Crews scramble to protect wildlife from Port Arthur oil spill

So far only two oil covered birds have been reported from the biggest Texas oil spill in over 15 years.

One of the birds--a night heron--was caught and cleaned and the other--a cormorant--flew away.

460,000 gallons of crude oil spilled into the Sabine-Netches Waterway Saturday morning after the tanker Eagle Otome was gashed in a collision with a tug pushing two barges in Port Arthur.

A nearly eight mile stretch of waterway was affected by the slick. Marshlands serving as breeding grounds for fish and shrimp have been under threat. Among the most critical areas is Keith Lake about three miles south of Port Arthur. Experts say that the remaining oil remains a critical threat to the environment and serious efforts must be made to protect the area's marshes.

“If they become contaminated, the damage could last for years,” said Rick Steiner, a conservationist and biologist with the University of Alaska. “We still have 20,000 or so gallons of Exxon Valdez oil in the beaches of Alaska … and most of the injured populations have yet to fully recover,” he said.

Officials said that nearly half of the oil had been recovered out of the water. Four skimmers have been deployed and 550 people are involved in cleanup operations. 45,800 feet of boom surrounded the spill. The cleanup crew battled high winds Sunday which threatened to spread the slick over a much greater area.

Source: Houston Chronicle