The media continues to bring us reports about the monstrous oil spill that is gushing as much as 2,500,000 gallons of crude a day into the Gulf of Mexico. This disaster is expected to be catastrophic for the land and people in the gulf. The oil has already reached land, contaminating wildlife sanctuaries. U.S. government officials have expanded the boundaries of a fishing ban in the Gulf of Mexico, a precautionary move meant to ensure fish caught there have not been affected by the massive oil spill. Fishing had already been shut down from the Mississippi River to the Florida Panhandle, an area representing about seven per cent of the U.S. federal waters. The expansion of the fishing shut down will close an additional 12 per cent of federal waters, for a total of 120,000 square kilometers.Researchers from the University of South Florida believe oil from the spill could reach Key West by Sunday if the huge plumes of crude already released continue on their path.

Cleanup costs have already reached $625M and it is hard to know when it will stop. That said,I don’t feel too sorry for the fossil fuel industry which is raking in windfall profits. BP, which operated the sunken rig, more than doubled its first quarter profits in 2010 to $5.65 billion. Meanwhile, those who earn their livelihood from fishing and tourism are facing a bleak future.

The life-style of North Americans demands fossil fuels. Will this crisis teach us anything in terms of re-shaping our life-style? An even more pressing question for me is how is it that this company did not have a safe-guard against such a catastrophe? Surely they should have had an emergency plan that would have prevented this staggering pollution of the ocean and coastline?

Does this news item intersect with your faith? While prayer is important does it move you to any kind of action? What will you do?