Responses of ESNC Organizations to the Gulf Oil Spill Disaster

In the wake of the devastating Gulf Oil Spill, numerous environmental organizations have begun to take action, whether in the form of raising awareness, fundraising or volunteering directly with the cleanup. Many groups have already gone above and beyond to help repair the once pristine marshes and beaches along the Gulf coast, including several EarthShare North Carolina organizations.

The National Wildlife Federation and National Audubon Society have set up a website in conjunction with the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana in order to collect volunteers as well as donations. By visiting www.lagulfresponse.org, you can register to become a volunteer and help with a variety of tasks in the Gulf, from oiled wildlife recovery to providing a boat for response activities.

Some organizations, concerned about the energy future, have provided a way to speak up about clean energy in the form of petitions and letters to Congress. The North Carolina Conservation Network, Friends of the Earth and Defenders of Wildlife, among others, provide templates which can be filled out and emailed to governors, Congressmen and even the President. On the organizations’ websites, users can fill out a form as well as write a message to be sent to the respective parties.

Groups like Ocean Conservancy have been working with the oil spill crisis since the beginning. During the first phase of work, the organization began assessing affected and potentially affected areas, analyzing the overall impacts and advising strategies for restoration. With a team of scientists and an extensive network of volunteers, the organization is working in many ways to aid in the cleanup process. The group partnered with Surfrider Foundation and Skytruth to create an online tool, http://oilspill.skytruth.org, which allows residents to assist in cleanup by tracking and recording oil landfalls. The website, http://www.oceanconservancy.org, provides ways to donate money to the oil spill cleanup effort.

Some organizations have recently been taking action against the groups held responsible for the disaster. Southern Environmental Law Center and Defenders of Wildlife have filed a lawsuit against the Minerals Management Service for its failure to require thorough examination of oil spill risks from drilling operations. In addition to holding the agency accountable, the lawsuit also aims to overturn exemptions from required environmental reviews that the agency has issued since the accident. More information about the case can be found at www.southernenvironment.org.

Other groups are helping out by simply keeping the public informed. Whether in the form of blogs or tweets, organizations like The Nature Conservancy and the Natural Resource Defense Council are working to provide up-to-date information regarding the status of the oil spill and what is being done to repair the damage. Check out The Nature Conservancy’s blog at blog.nature.org and the NRDC’s at switchboard.nrdc.org.