Cahoon is an oceanographer and professor of marine biology at the University of North Carolina, Wilmington campus. He has studied water quality management practices in coastal areas and is tracking the evolution of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Could oil end up on the East Coast?
I think we’ll see some tar balls come up on the East Coast. But the thing to bear in mind is the oil will have spent a long time in the water by the time it gets up here, and the oil at the surface will have weathered and will have been worked over and dispersed by turbulence in the ocean. [Tar balls] are unpleasant, but they’re not going to kill your birds or poison beachgoers.
How devastating is this oil spill?
I think the story on this is eventually going to be the long-term damage done in the water column below the surface. The ocean floor communities that are exposed to water that is filled with this cloud of suspended oil droplets — I think we’re going to see a tremendous amount of destruction there.
Why is the oil beneath the surface a problem?
We don’t really know how toxic it is. But we’re going to find out, unfortunately. None of our gear is really optimized for sampling an oil plume in the water. So we’ve got a terrific problem identifying where this stuff is, and also where it’s headed. The surface oil is much easier to see, and we can track that surface slick instantly. But the stuff underwater? Damn near impossible. So we’re in for some surprises here.
What is the mood right now among ocean scientists?
Those of us in the business feel like we’re going to be talking about this for the rest of our careers. It’s that big an event and the effects are going to be that far reaching. … But those folks [on the Gulf Coast] are going to lose livelihoods, communities, culture, the whole nine yards.
– Markham Heid
