in Bayou La Batre to document left over BP oil boom.
We had no problem finding some old boom and pompoms along the shoreline.
We also had no problem finding plenty of trash along the shoreline.
(I have a spare kayak that is available to reporters
who wish to view waterway trash up close and personal.)
I filed a compliant to ADEM in May about the pollution
in Bayou La Batre and have heard no news.
Obviously, the trash pollution in Bayou La Batre has not been cleaned up.
I'm willing to bet that this Saturday's Coastal Cleanup will fail to remove any of this shoreline pollution.
<Update: As usual, volunteer cleanup events fail every time to clean up waterway trash pollution.>
Just who is responsible for keeping Bayou La Batre Clean?
1) The City of Bayou La Batre because they have an MS4 ADEM permit?
2) Mobile County Department of Environmental Enforcement because they inspect private and
public property for violations of litter and illegal dumping regulations and they respond to citizen complaints?
3) Mobile County Health Department because it is their mission to protect the health of Mobile County?
4) Mobile County Public Works because they maintain environmental measures
to protect the water for Citizens of Mobile County?
5) Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources because
they manage the aquatic resources of Alabama?
6) Alabama Marine Police because they supposedly help guard Alabama's precious aquatic resources?
7) Alabama Department of Environmental Management because their mission is
to protect and improve the quality of Alabama's environment?
8) Alabama Department of Public Health because their mission is to assure conditions
in which citizens of Alabama can be healthy?
9) The US EPA because they are committed to helping local governments achieve clean water?
10) The US Fish and Wildlife because they protect fish, wildlife and plant habitats?
11) The property owners because most of the trash in trapped on their shorelines?
12) The US Coast Guard because one of their 11 missions is Marine Environmental Protection?
13) The Businesses located along the Bayou since much of the waterway trash is from their businesses.
All I know is there is trash rotting in the water and some of it is hazardous to the environment
and the sediment bed of the Bayou is so polluted if you walk along the shoreline it releases petroleum.
Just how dense does the trash pollution along a waterway have to be before
the waterway is deemed polluted enough to warrant putting someone to work cleaning it up?
Nearly half a million BP dollars are earmarked to be spent rebuilding a park in Fairhope.
Other BP money has been spent on police tasers, tourism, vacuum trucks, SUVs, iPads, and laptops.
When it comes to using BP Money to restore Alabama's coastal waterways
and marshlands to a healthy state, the current trash and oil pollution is ignored.
Go Figure...
Follow the money trail to see who stole all the BP restoration money.
Maybe John with Local15 can get some answers as to who is responsible for keeping Bayou La Batre clean.