How bad does it have to get before the proles wake-up?

How bad will it have to get before we as a nation say "Enough, we have to start doing things different?" How dirty and polluted do our coastlines need to become? How much wildlife, the natural inhabitants, have to be decimated? How many people displaced? How many lives ruined?


EPA: 1M gallons of oil may be in Mich. river
AP
By TIM MARTIN, Associated Press Writer Tim Martin, Associated Press Writer – 58 mins ago

BATTLE CREEK, Mich. – Federal officials now estimate that more than 1 million gallons of oil may have spilled into a major river in southern Michigan, and the governor is sharply criticizing clean-up efforts as "wholly inadequate."

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency released the update Wednesday night, shortly after Gov. Jennifer Granholm lambasted attempts to contain the oil flowing down the Kalamazoo River. She warned of a "tragedy of historic proportions" if the oil reaches Lake Michigan, which is still at least 80 miles downstream from where oil has been seen.


Gulf cleanup will change once oil stops for good
AP
By HARRY WEBER and TAMARA LUSH, Associated Press Writers Harry Weber And Tamara Lush, Associated Press Writers – 16 mins ago

NEW ORLEANS – The government's point man for the Gulf spill met with coastal parish officials Thursday to talk about what's next now that the oil has stopped flowing.
. . .

Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser said as he arrived for the meeting at a downtown New Orleans office building that it's clear the cleanup effort is being scaled back even though oil is still showing up on the coast.

He said his biggest fear is "they are going to start pulling back. They say they are not but already they have canceled catering contracts, they've stopped production of boom at factories."

Nungesser said no BP spill cleanup efforts were going on in Plaquemines on Wednesday, though a parish crew was working.

"We continued to get slammed by the oil," he said. "Once again, instead of having a seat at the table discussing it, they are pulling the rug from under us."


Oil spill 'under control'
BEIJING
July 27, 2010

CCHR.org
China said an oil spill on the country's north-east coast had been ''successfully controlled'', amid reports that the clean-up could cost millions of dollars.

The spill happened 10 days ago after two pipelines exploded at an oil storage depot in Dalian, a port city in Liaoning province, triggering a blaze that burned for days. About 1500 tonnes of oil poured into the Yellow Sea.