Eyewitness accounts from those who have been fishing in the Gulf for decades, alongside reports from scientists who have studied Gulf fish populations pre- and post-spill give a reasonable indicator that the abnormalities are tied to the release of chemicals in the oil, or the controversial dispersant used in an attempt to clear the enormous spill.
Dr. Jim Cowan of Louisiana State University’s Department of Oceanography and Coastal Sciences told
Al Jazeera that prior to 2010, the NOAA reported around one tenth of one percent of fish in the area presented with sores, “but nothing like we’ve seen with these secondary infections and at this high of rate since the spill.”
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), a volatile compound found in crude oil, have been detected in fish and crab populations, as well as in marshlands around the coast.
OnEarth describes that PAHs have been linked to cancer, birth defects, neurological impacts, and liver disease. Dixon believes that the PAH causes damage to the sealife, leaving them vulnerable to microbial infections, resulting in lesions, and notes that similar symptoms were reported in fish following Exxon Valdez.
The dispersant, meanwhile, contains solvents, known to cause an array of health problems from skin and respiratory irritation to cardiovascular and neurotoxic effects.
Al Jazeera speculates “the dispersant is also known to be mutagenic, a disturbing fact that could be evidenced in the seafood deformities. Shrimp, for example, have a life-cycle short enough that two to three generations have existed since BP’s disaster began, giving the chemicals time to enter the genome,” and from there we see shrimp without eye sockets — a view
reflected by Scott Eustis of the
Gulf Restoration Network.
Read more:
Eyeless Shrimp and Deformed Crabs a Serious Problem 2 Years After Gulf Oil Spill | Inhabitat - Sustainable Design Innovation, Eco Architecture, Green Building