How will this oil spill disaster affect us?

[Peace of Mind]

What can we do as individuals to help?


Peace

[rosie]

I feel we can all do something in our own way, such as becoming more aware of what oil is used for, other then transport, then to cut back in our purchases of these products.

A sample of items that are made from oil:

Computer chips – Ink – Paint brushes – Telephones – Insecticides – Motorcycle helmets – Clothing – Tents – Shoes – Glue – Skis – Hand lotion – CDs – Rubbing alcohol – Credit cards – Crayons – Toilet seats – House paint – Movie film – Disposable diapers – Upholstery – Garden hose – Umbrellas – Milk jugs – Bandages – Antihistamines – Nail polish – Perfume – Luggage – Ballpoint pens – Aspirin – Carpet – Toys – Pesticides.

Fortunately, non-petroleum-based alternatives exist for many of these items as more companies are creating products made from recycled, recyclable, organic, and non-synthetic materials. As consumers, we need to be increasingly diligent in selecting products that carry the least negative environmental and health impacts. Changing even the most seemingly insignificant action can result in significant environmental and health benefits, especially when compounded over a lifetime. Visit the Personal Implementation section of this website for more information.
http://www.oildepletionprotocol.org/getinformed/oilchemicalsandplastics

Now is the time to really think before we buy. Do we really need this item, is there a natural recycled alternative to it.

It is time for full responsibility in our purchasing. This is the one thing we all can do for earth and our future generations that will follow. My first non purchase will be the iphone, which until this oil spill, I was saving up for. Now my money will go to something that will not require oil to make it It is a small sacrifice, but a start.
in love & light :love:

[stardustaquarion]

Acid rain/corexit rain is the most likely effect that will be felt over the world depending on the weather. I remember the webbots predicting a ill wind that will go around the world 9 times :eek:

I have been researching what to do with the soil to counterbalance the acidity but no conclusive solutions yet.

I think we have to prepare for food shortages by planting our own food now because there will be many farms that will be render unusable in the USG. It is happening already so we must take this seriously

[tone3jaguar]

Acid rain has already been falling in the south for decades. If you test the PH of rain water in the middle of the winter in Florida it is a PH of less than five. Where as normal rain water tests out close to 7 give or take a few tenths. Depending on what type of soil you are dealing with, having acid rain water can either enhance the nutrient availability or it can reduce it, both are temporary conditions. The optimum PH for soil for maximum nutrient availability is 6.5. There are very few soils around that test out at that PH. If you have one of those soils, consider yourself lucky because it will be very easy to farm in it assuming it has good structure.

If you have a soil that is high in native limestone deposits then your soil will have a naturally high PH. I worked soil on one golf course I managed where the PH of the native soil tested out in the 8.0-8.4 range. If you have high PH soil like this then you will actually get a kick in the health and vitality of the plants that are growing in it if you have some acidic rain fall on it. This is because the closer you get to that magic 6.5 number, the more available the nutrients that are present in the soil will be.

If you have a soil that is naturally low in PH and you have an acid rain even, the nutrient availability will go down because you are getting further away from the magic 6.5 PH instead of getting closer to it. The reason why both of these scenarios are temporary is because once the acid (usually sulfuric in rain water) has reacted with the soil, the results from this are short lived. There are many agricultural situations where adding sulfurous acid to the irrigation water is very advantageous to the management of the fertility and health of the crops.

If there where a persistent acid rain scenario that actually caused the PH of the soil to stay so low that it caused decline in the crop, the simple age old solution of counter acting this is to apply either dolomitic lime or non-dolomitic lime to the soil which works the PH in the direction of being more basic instead of more acidic. I would not worry about crops going down due to acid rain. Farmers know how to work the PH of their soil.

[stardustaquarion]

Thank you Tone3jaguar for the tip, I will get some dolomite and keep it for my pots :) only have a little patio but gives me berries, tomatoes and salad leaves

[HORIZONS]

Acid rain/corexit rain is the most likely effect that will be felt over the world depending on the weather. I remember the webbots predicting a ill wind that will go around the world 9 times :eek:

I have been researching what to do with the soil to counterbalance the acidity but no conclusive solutions yet.

I think we have to prepare for food shortages by planting our own food now because there will be many farms that will be render unusable in the USG. It is happening already so we must take this seriously

This has been my concern as well. I can't help but be concerned as to what all contaminants/poisons toxins will be in the thunderstorms and rain that we get from the Gulf moister?
I have had a very deep-concerned feeling about all of this the last several days - the long term possible, and very realistic, effects of the chemical fallout in both the Gulf area and the inland areas grieve me deeply.

[norman]

How will it affect us..... ?

I've just been listening to what Pastor Lindsey Williams has told Alex Jones..... and it's horrific.

The true gush is 80,000 gallons per day and the chemicals coming out with it are many many times greater than the safe limits for these toxic chemicals.

The probable reasons for such a big operation kicking off in the southern US are:

The very poisonous air.

The probable use of a nuclear device.