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  • 21 August 2010. Barataria Bay, south Louisiana. <br />
Efforts continue to cap an abandoned oil well that was hit by a barge on July 27th. The unlit well spewed additional oil, gas and water 200ft into the air causing more misery to the sensitive environment already reeling from oil spilled by BP out in the Gulf of Mexico.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    21aug10-BP oil046.JPG
  • 21 August 2010. East Grand Terre Island, south Louisiana. <br />
A crane and other heavy equipment continue efforts to fortify newly created sand berms where the Gulf of Mexico meets Barataria Bay. The controversial new 'islands' are part of a grander scheme to boost efforts to save the wetlands. To date the islands have done a good job taking on oil, preventing a great deal of it from entering the Bay beyond.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    21aug10-BP oil032.JPG
  • 23 July 2010. Cat Islands. Barataria Bay near Grand Isle, Louisiana. <br />
Has mother nature naturally cleaned up the oil spill with human help? Young immature pelicans rest on one of the Cat islands near Grand Isle. In what would appear to be good news for the area, the pelicans and boom are clean. A sweep through Barataria bay uncovered only two oiled pelicans. No tar balls or oil were seen in the water. Many of the marsh grasses appeared to be growing back. Perhaps the area is witnessing the beginning of the end of the disaster from BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico? It will be many years before the long term effects of the spill are known and a tropical storm or hurricane could still bring large slicks of oil ashore. For now though, the situation looks relatively good.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    23july10-BP oil022.JPG
  • 11june 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Cafe Degas and owner Jaques Soula continue to offer the highest quality seafood at his restaurant on Esplanade Ave. Worries persist as fish stocks run low and prices rise thanks to closed fishing grounds affected by oil pollution. BP's disastrous environmental catastrophe out in the Gulf of Mexico threatens  the livelihood of many thousands of workers affiliated to the fishing industry in Louisiana. Thousands of barrels of oil per day continues to leak into the Gulf because of the explosion and collapse of the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform 46 miles out to sea. The closure of fishing grounds both east and west of the Mississippi river outflow is crippling thousands of local fishermen and all affiliated businesses and families who rely on the seafood industry.  <br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    11june10-seafood058.JPG
  • 11june 2010. Westwego, Louisiana. <br />
Shrimp imported from Texas at the Shrimp Lot in Westwego just outside New Orleans. Incomes have crashed as all seafood prices have risen over 30% in the past 4 weeks alone as stocks run low thanks to closed fishing grounds affected by oil pollution. BP's disastrous environmental catastrophe out in the Gulf of Mexico threatens  the livelihood of many thousands of workers affiliated to the fishing industry in Louisiana. Earnings are down as much as  50% of those pre BP's oil disaster. Thousands of barrels of oil per day continues to leak into the Gulf because of the explosion and collapse of the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform 46 miles out to sea. The closure of fishing grounds both east and west of the Mississippi river outflow is crippling thousands of local fishermen and all affiliated businesses and families who rely on the seafood industry. None of the shrimp or other seafood offered at the market are fresh catch from today. Everything has been through the IQF (Instant Quick Freeze) process and is seafood caught out of state or earlier in the season and brought from storage freezers in Venice and Grand Isle. Louisiana stocks are virtually non-existant. With few new catches, the market will be forced to rely on farmed shrimp shipped in from Texas and Georgia. Local traders refuse to stock Chinese import fish raised with growth hormones, pesticides, fungicides and other contaminants widely found in Chinese farm raised seafood. Many fear losing their jobs and everything they own as a result of BP's Gulf Coast environmental disaster.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    11june10-seafood007.JPG
  • 26 May 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
The fragile grass lands perched at the mouth of Mississippi delta is all that seperates land from the Gulf of Mexico. The region is strategically vital to the American oil and gas industry and a major player in America's seafood industry. BP's catastrophic oil spill continues to spew a black tide of death which continues to encroach upon everything in the region. The economic impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips are cancelled. The only real business is cleaning up big oil's disasterous screw up. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    26may10-barataria bay073.JPG
  • 26 May 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
Grand Isle.  Waterworld of the south, perched at the mouth of mississippi delta, all that seperates land from the Gulf of Mexico. Strategically vital to the American oil and gas industry and a major player in America's seafood industry. BP's catastrophic oil spill continues to spew a black tide of death which continues to encroach upon everything in the region. The economic impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips are cancelled. The only real business is cleaning up big oil's disasterous screw up. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    26may10-barataria bay068.JPG
  • 26 May 2010. Grand Isle, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
From Barataria Bay to Grand Isle. Cat Island, a prefered nesting ground for Pelicans, gulls and herons  is protected by boom but oil keeps seeping ashore.  The environmental and economic impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips cancelled the only business for shrimpers is loading and laying boom and working for big oil. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. <br />
Photo credit;Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    26may10-barataria bay053.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
Tim Robbins, movie star and environmental activist gives a press conference. Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid077.JPG
  • 07 May 2010. Westwego, Louisiana. <br />
Perhaps the last of local fresh blue crabs to arrive at the Westwego Fish market just outside New Orleans. All seafood prices have risen 25% in the past 7 days alone as stocks run low thanks to closed fishing grounds affected by oil pollution. Today was the opening day of the inshore shrimp season. The season was closed before it could open thanks to BP's disastrous environmental catastrophe out in the Gulf of Mexico. Approximately 210,000 barrels of oil per day is leaking uncontrollably into the Gulf because of the explosion and collapse of the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform 46 miles out to sea. The closure of fishing grounds both east and west of the Mississippi river outflow is crippling thousands of local fishermen and all affiliated businesses and families who rely on the seafood industry. None of the shrimp or other seafood offered at the market are fresh catch from today. Everything has been through the IQF (Instant Quick Freeze) process and is seafood caught earlier in the season and brought from storage freezers in Venice and Grand Isle. Stocks are running low. With no new catches, the market will be forced to rely on farmed shrimp shipped in from Texas and Georgia. Local traders refuse to stock Chinese import fish raised with growth hormones, pesticides, fungicides and other contaminants widely found in Chinese farm raised seafood. Many fear losing their jobs and everything they own as a result of BP's Gulf Coast environmental disaster.<br />
Photo credit;Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    10may10-seafood113.JPG
  • 09 May 2010. Waveland, Mississippi USA. <br />
Government boats roar past on their way to check barrier islands for oil as locals, tourists and visitors relax and enjoy the beauty of South Beach, an hour from New Orleans. Just a few miles off the coast, an impending disaster looms. With the continual flood of oil washing into the Gulf of Mexico and as winds turn and begin to push from the south, it is only and matter of when, not if the oil reaches the beaches. The barrier islands just offshore are taking a battering soaking up the initial fronts of oil, threatening everything in it's ever encroaching path. <br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09may10-waveland miss136.JPG
  • 05 May 2010. Venice, Louisiana. Deepwater Horizon, British Petroleum environmental oil spill disaster. <br />
Gluiding through a mix of oil and dispersant, 10 miles south of Venice Marina and approximately 34 miles from the site of the Deepwater Horizon's sunken oil platform. The sludge is a gelatinous mix with the consistency of diarrhea, sometimes clumped together in large masses so thick you can not see the ocean through it. The water, for miles and miles is filled with small pea shaped clumps, most the size of every kind of fish food available from small fish shape to shrimp to plankton. It is everywhere. The sheen on the surface is everywhere. It stretches for miles and miles and miles and miles and miles. Dead Jellyfish shrivel in the mix, the main seafood of turtles passing through at this time of year. What have we done?<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    05may10-oil-spill044.JPG
  • 21 May 2010. Grand Isle, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. .BP Macondo Well disaster. A dead fish lies in oil debris as oil washes ashore in greater concentrations than previously seen on the once pristine beaches of Grand Isle. The economic and environmental impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips cancelled as police chase tourists from the beaches just two hours drive from New Orleans..Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. .Photo credit; Charlie Varley.
    21may10-oil grand isle029.JPG
  • 21 May 2010. Grand Isle, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. .BP Macondo Well disaster. Oil washes ashore in greater concentrations than previously seen on the once pristine beaches of Grand Isle. The economic and environmental impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips cancelled as police chase tourists from the beaches just two hours drive from New Orleans..Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. .Photo credit; Charlie Varley.
    21may10-oil grand isle042.JPG
  • 21 May 2010. Grand Isle, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. .BP Macondo Well Disaster. L/R; The feet of Nicholas Major (10), Maggie Hurdle (8), Taylor Hurdle (11) and Matthew Major (11) are upset that their vacation is ruined by oil on the beach. 'Our beaches are ruined,' said Maggie. Their parents are cutting short their trip and returning home in the morning. The child tourists dodged oil as authorities closed the beaches. Oil washes ashore in greater concentrations than previously seen on the once pristine beaches of Grand Isle. The economic and environmental impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips cancelled with police chasing tourists from the beaches just two hours drive from New Orleans..Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. .Photo credit; Charlie Varley.
    21may10-oil grand isle012.JPG
  • 21 August 2010. Bay Jimmy, south Louisiana. <br />
Sub contractors, working for contractors working for BP check, replace, remove and deploy absorbent oil boom as the worst environmental disaster in US history continues to unfold in south Louisiana. Bay Jimmy received another recent coating of oil despite government and BP efforts to persuade the public otherwise. The sub contractors were ordered over the radio 'Do not talk to journalists.' The culture of fear remains whereby any contractor speaking to the media fears he may lose his job.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    21aug10-BP oil054.JPG
  • 23 July 2010. Cat Islands. Barataria Bay near Grand Isle, Louisiana. <br />
Has mother nature naturally cleaned up the oil spill with human help? Young immature pelicans rest on one of the Cat islands near Grand Isle. In what would appear to be good news for the area, the pelicans and boom are clean. A sweep through Barataria bay uncovered only two oiled pelicans. No tar balls or oil were seen in the water. Many of the marsh grasses appeared to be growing back. Perhaps the area is witnessing the beginning of the end of the disaster from BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico? It will be many years before the long term effects of the spill are known and a tropical storm or hurricane could still bring large slicks of oil ashore. For now though, the situation looks relatively good.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    23july10-BP oil027.JPG
  • 23 July 2010. Cat Islands. Barataria Bay near Grand Isle, Louisiana. <br />
Has mother nature naturally cleaned up the oil spill with human help? Young immature pelicans rest on one of the Cat islands near Grand Isle. In what would appear to be good news for the area, the pelicans and boom are clean. A sweep through Barataria bay uncovered only two oiled pelicans. No tar balls or oil were seen in the water. Many of the marsh grasses appeared to be growing back. Perhaps the area is witnessing the beginning of the end of the disaster from BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico? It will be many years before the long term effects of the spill are known and a tropical storm or hurricane could still bring large slicks of oil ashore. For now though, the situation looks relatively good.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    23july10-BP oil015.JPG
  • 12 june 2010. Wetlands of Plaquemines Parish, South Louisiana. <br />
Vanishing wetlands. Where once there was land, there is only the mere outline of old canals and channels, many dug by oil companies to pump their product ashore with little regard to the effects the chopping up of the wetlands would have. Chronic erosion of the land, a football pitch every 50 minutes, greatly reduced protection from hurricanes and impending BP oil slicks is the direct result of mismanagement and utter disregard for the environment. The army corps of engineers and the oil companies, together with inept government have a great deal to answer for. <br />
View from a blackhawk helicopter flown by airmen of the Nebraska Air National Guard over southern Louisiana as they assist in the dumping of sand bags onto barrier islands in a vain attempt to prevent BP oil from getting into the inner  wetlands. As valiant as their efforts are, the dumping of sand bags may well prove to be a complete waste of manpower, resources and money. Meanwhile, the mighty Mississippi river runs straight out to sea nearby, her valuable land building sediment carried far out into deep ocean as the region struggles to find a way to reverse the disastrous effects of man's interference with her flow. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    12june10-helos044.JPG
  • 12 june 2010. Wetlands of Plaquemines Parish, South Louisiana. <br />
Vanishing wetlands. Where once there was land, there is only the mere outline of old canals and channels, many dug by oil companies to pump their product ashore with little regard to the effects the chopping up of the wetlands would have. Chronic erosion of the land, a football pitch every 50 minutes, greatly reduced protection from hurricanes and impending BP oil slicks is the direct result of mismanagement and utter disregard for the environment. The army corps of engineers and the oil companies, together with inept government have a great deal to answer for. <br />
View from a blackhawk helicopter flown by airmen of the Nebraska Air National Guard over southern Louisiana as they assist in the dumping of sand bags onto barrier islands in a vain attempt to prevent BP oil from getting into the inner  wetlands. As valiant as their efforts are, the dumping of sand bags may well prove to be a complete waste of manpower, resources and money. Meanwhile, the mighty Mississippi river runs straight out to sea nearby, her valuable land building sediment carried far out into deep ocean as the region struggles to find a way to reverse the disastrous effects of man's interference with her flow. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    12june10-helos030.JPG
  • 11june 2010. Westwego, Louisiana. <br />
Shrimp imported from Texas at the Shrimp Lot in Westwego just outside New Orleans. Incomes have crashed as all seafood prices have risen over 30% in the past 4 weeks alone as stocks run low thanks to closed fishing grounds affected by oil pollution. BP's disastrous environmental catastrophe out in the Gulf of Mexico threatens  the livelihood of many thousands of workers affiliated to the fishing industry in Louisiana. Earnings are down as much as  50% of those pre BP's oil disaster. Thousands of barrels of oil per day continues to leak into the Gulf because of the explosion and collapse of the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform 46 miles out to sea. The closure of fishing grounds both east and west of the Mississippi river outflow is crippling thousands of local fishermen and all affiliated businesses and families who rely on the seafood industry. None of the shrimp or other seafood offered at the market are fresh catch from today. Everything has been through the IQF (Instant Quick Freeze) process and is seafood caught out of state or earlier in the season and brought from storage freezers in Venice and Grand Isle. Louisiana stocks are virtually non-existent. With few new catches, the market will be forced to rely on farmed shrimp shipped in from Texas and Georgia. Local traders refuse to stock Chinese import fish raised with growth hormones, pesticides, fungicides and other contaminants widely found in Chinese farm raised seafood. Many fear losing their jobs and everything they own as a result of BP's Gulf Coast environmental disaster.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    11june10-seafood063.JPG
  • 07 June 2010. Pointe aux Chenes, Louisiana.<br />
Fading away. Fisherman and local Pointe aux Chenes Indians take a 40 hour Hazardous waste operation class in order to get certification to work for BP as sub contractors cleaning up oil. The isolated town of Pointe Aux Chenes clings to the little land that remains along the bayous and waterways of southern Louisiana. Oil washes up on the  marsh grasses just south of tribal homes. If the grass dies, there is nothing left to hold the land. All of this was solid ground just 100 years ago. Diversion of the mighty Mississippi River diverted sediment from the wetlands and deposited precious land building material deep out at sea.  At present, all these fishing grounds are closed. Members of the Pointe aux Chenes Indians, settlers that can trace their roots beyond 5 generations back to France face extinction of their very way of life, their very existence. French cajun is the language of the elders, but is dying out in the children of today. BP's catastrophic oil spill threatens everything, their way of life and the land on which they live. Not recognised by the federal government, the 680 member tribe struggles for funds in a small community that survives only because of fishing and oil extraction in the Gulf of Mexico.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    07june10-point aux chenes 046.JPG
  • 07 June 2010. Pointe aux Chenes, Louisiana.<br />
Fading away. Fisherman Walter Guidry listens and learns as local Pointe aux Chenes Indians take a 40 hour Hazardous waste operation class in order to get certification to work for BP as sub contractors cleaning up oil. The isolated town of Pointe Aux Chenes clings to the little land that remains along the bayous and waterways of southern Louisiana. Oil washes up on the  marsh grasses just south of tribal homes. If the grass dies, there is nothing left to hold the land. All of this was solid ground just 100 years ago. Diversion of the mighty Mississippi River diverted sediment from the wetlands and deposited precious land building material deep out at sea.  At present, all these fishing grounds are closed. Members of the Pointe aux Chenes Indians, settlers that can trace their roots beyond 5 generations back to France face extinction of their very way of life, their very existence. French cajun is the language of the elders, but is dying out in the children of today. BP's catastrophic oil spill threatens everything, their way of life and the land on which they live. Not recognised by the federal government, the 680 member tribe struggles for funds in a small community that survives only because of fishing and oil extraction in the Gulf of Mexico.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    07june10-point aux chenes 100.JPG
  • 09 June 2010. Fort Jackson, Venice, Louisiana.<br />
What have we done? Pelicans coated in oil are cleaned and cared for at the International Bird Rescue Research Center (IBRRC)in Fort Jackson. The animals have been collected from marshes throughout Louisiana where BP's catastrophic oil spill washes ashore.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09june10-pelican-helo094.JPG
  • 09 June 2010. Fort Jackson, Venice, Louisiana.<br />
What have we done? Pelicans coated in oil are cleaned and cared for at the International Bird Rescue Research Center (IBRRC)in Fort Jackson. The animals have been collected from marshes throughout Louisiana where BP's catastrophic oil spill washes ashore.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09june10-pelican-helo029.JPG
  • 09 June 2010. Fort Jackson, Venice, Louisiana.<br />
BP OIl Spill response. Soldiers from the 843rd Engineering Company Louisiana National Guard load giant sand bags in operation 'Pelican Island Mission' as they struggle to reinforce fragile barrier islands in an effort top stem the flow of BP's catastrophic oil spill as it <br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09june10-pelican-helo078.JPG
  • 09 June 2010. Fort Jackson, Venice, Louisiana.<br />
BP OIl Spill response. Soldiers from the 843rd Engineering Company Louisiana National Guard load giant sand bags in operation 'Pelican Island Mission' as they struggle to reinforce fragile barrier islands in an effort top stem the flow of BP's catastrophic oil spill as it <br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09june10-pelican-helo064.JPG
  • 09 June 2010. Fort Jackson, Venice, Louisiana.<br />
 Soldiers from the 843rd Engineering Company Louisiana National Guard as they load giant sand bags in operation 'Pelican Island Mission' as they struggle to reinforce fragile barrier islands in an effort top stem the flow of BP's catastrophic oil spill as it washes ashore.<br />
The ecological and economic impact of BP's oil spill is devastating to the region. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. The Louisiana wetlands produce over 30% of America's seafood and oil and gas production. They are the most fertile wetlands and nurseries of their kind in the world. BP's oil is killing everything.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09june10-pelican-helo062.JPG
  • 28 May 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
A Louisiana  Blue heron fishes in a  'closed fishing area' just outside Barataria Bay in South Louisiana. The ecological and economic impact are devastating to south louisiana. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. The Louisiana wetlands produce over 30% of America's seafood and are the most fetile of their kind in the world.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    28may10-BP-oil045.JPG
  • 28 May 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
Kirt Alexie takes a break from laying oil boom at the entrance to Barataria Bay. The ecological and economic impact are devastating with Alexie's shrimp boat tied up, his earnings have plummeted. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. The Louisiana wetlands produce over 30% of America's seafood and are the most fertile of their kind in the world.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    28may10-BP-oil003.JPG
  • 26 May 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
Oil washed up on boom is taken out on a shrimp boat in Grand Isle. The economic impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips are cancelled. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    26may10-barataria bay063.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
Lenny Kravitz in fine form rocks the event as he closes the show on the Wetlands indoor stage. <br />
Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit;Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid024.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
Ani DiFranco. Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid108.JPG
  • 09 May 2010. Waveland, Mississippi USA. <br />
A child discovers one of 6 dead stingrays and two dead catfish in just a half mile stretch of beach. Whether it's early indications of oil pollution, or catch tossed from a local fishing pier, it is truly tragic to find so many once fine, now dead fish in such a short stretch of beach. Either way, it shows a callous disregard for the environment in which we live. Meanwhile all around locals, tourists and visitors relax and enjoy the beauty of South Beach,  an hour from New Orleans. Just a few miles off the coast, an impending disaster looms. With the continual flood of oil washing into the Gulf of Mexico and as winds turn and begin to push from the south, it is only and matter of when, not if the oil reaches the beaches. The barrier islands offshore are taking a battering soaking up the initial fronts of oil threatening everything in it's ever encroaching path. <br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09may10-waveland miss015.JPG
  • 06 May 2010. Shell Beach, Louisiana. Deepwater Horizon, British Petroleum environmental oil spill disaster.<br />
Soldiers from the 2225th Multi-Role Bridge Company Louisiana National Guard commence work on a floating pontoon which will be used by local fishermen to load oil containment boom. With oil reaching ever closer to the St Bernard Parish wetlands, it is vitally important to get more oil containment booms in place.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    06may10-oil-spill008.JPG
  • 05 May 2010. Venice, Louisiana. Deepwater Horizon, British Petroleum environmental oil spill disaster. <br />
Friends of fishing guide William Bradford glide through a mix of oil and dispersant, 10 miles south of Venice Marina and approximately 34 miles from the site of the Deepwater Horizon's sunken oil platform. The sludge is a gelatinous mix with the consistency of diarrhea, sometimes clumped together in large masses so thick you can not see the ocean through it. The water, for miles and miles is filled with small pea shaped clumps, most the size of every kind of fish food available from small fish shape to shrimp to plankton. It is everywhere. The sheen on the surface is everywhere. It stretches for miles and miles and miles and miles and miles. Dead Jellyfish shrivel in the mix, the main seafood of turtles passing through at this time of year. What have we done?<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    05may10-oil-spill028.JPG
  • 05 May 2010. Venice, Louisiana. Deepwater Horizon, British Petroleum environmental oil spill disaster.<br />
Micro 50, a certified ecologically sound and environmentally responsible product that could be used to disperse the oil spill in the gulf. Developed by a Canadian company whose representatives have discovered they can not get access to anyone in authority who might wish to consider using their product to disperse the oil slick now spreading out over thousands of miles. Instead, it is alleged that BP is using a toxic dispersant to disperse a toxic oil spill, effectively adding two toxins to the Gulf. A lawsuit filed just days ago seeks to force BP to disclose the chemical composition of the dispersant they are currently using.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    05may10-oil-spill007.JPG
  • 21 May 2010. Grand Isle, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. .BP Macondo Well disaster. Oil washes ashore in greater concentrations than previously seen on the once pristine beaches of Grand Isle. The economic and environmental impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips cancelled as police chase tourists from the beaches just two hours drive from New Orleans..Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. .Photo credit; Charlie Varley.
    21may10-oil grand isle037.JPG
  • 21 May 2010. Grand Isle, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. .BP Macondo Well disaster. Oil washes ashore in greater concentrations than previously seen on the once pristine beaches of Grand Isle. The economic and environmental impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips cancelled as police chase tourists from the beaches just two hours drive from New Orleans..Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. .Photo credit; Charlie Varley.
    21may10-oil grand isle017.JPG
  • 21 May 2010. Grand Isle, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. .BP Macondo Well disaster. Oil washes ashore in greater concentrations than previously seen on the once pristine beaches of Grand Isle. The economic and environmental impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips cancelled as police chase tourists from the beaches just two hours drive from New Orleans..Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. .Photo credit; Charlie Varley.
    21may10-oil grand isle001.JPG
  • 12 june 2010. Wetlands of Plaquemines Parish, South Louisiana. <br />
View from a blackhawk helicopter flown by airmen of the Nebraska Air National Guard over southern Louisiana as they assist in the dumping of sand bags onto barrier islands in a vain attempt to prevent BP oil from getting into the inner  wetlands. As valiant as their efforts are, the dumping of sand bags may well prove to be a complete waste of manpower, resources and money. Meanwhile, the mighty Mississippi river runs straight out to sea nearby, her valuable land building sediment carried far out into deep ocean as the region struggles to find a way to reverse the disastrous effects of man's interference with her flow. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    12june10-helos001.JPG
  • 06 June 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
Oil soaked brown pelicans on Belle Pass island near Grand Isle, home to thousands of nesting birds. The Louisiana brown pelican, a bird only recently removed from the endangered species list try in vain to clean oil from their feathers. The birds are attempting to rear their young with the threat of oil pouring into their habitat.  The ecological and economic impact of BP's oil spill is devastating to the region. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. The Louisiana wetlands produce over 30% of America's seafood and are the most fertile of their kind in the world.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    06june10-oil france-soir 032.JPG
  • 06 June 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
Jimmy Terrebonne Snr sits surrounded by oil boom on his boat in Barataria Bay. The shrimp boater should be sweeping the waters for up to $5,000 worth of beautiful Gulf shrimp a day but the fishing grounds are all closed. Instead he is making around $1,000 a day for oil for BP contractors instead, a fraction of what he would ordinarily be making with bills mounting at home. The fisherman does not have a fixed contract within BP and does not know when BP will stop hiring him. He does however know that his life will never be the same again. The ecological and economic impact of BP's oil spill is devastating to the region. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. The Louisiana wetlands produce over 30% of America's seafood and are the most fertile of their kind in the world.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    06june10-oil france-soir 042.JPG
  • 07 June 2010. Pointe aux Chenes, Louisiana.<br />
Fading away. Oil and gas pipelines criss cross the wetlands just south of the isolated town of Pointe Aux Chenes. The town clings to the little land that remains along the bayous and waterways of southern Louisiana. Oil washes up on the  marsh grasses just south of tribal homes. If the grass dies, there is nothing left to hold the land. All of this was solid ground just 100 years ago. Diversion of the mighty Mississippi River diverted sediment from the wetlands and deposited precious land building material deep out at sea.  At present, all these fishing grounds are closed. Members of the Pointe aux Chenes Indians, settlers that can trace their roots beyond 5 generations back to France face extinction of their very way of life, their very existence. French cajun is the language of the elders, but is dying out in the children of today. BP's catastrophic oil spill threatens everything, their way of life and the land on which they live. Not recognised by the federal government, the 680 member tribe struggles for funds in a small community that survives only because of fishing and oil extraction in the Gulf of Mexico.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    07june10-point aux chenes 063.JPG
  • 26 May 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
Oil washed up on boom in Grand Isle. The economic impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips are cancelled. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    26may10-barataria bay061.JPG
  • 26 May 2010. Grand Isle, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
From Barataria Bay to Grand Isle. Cat Island, a prefered nesting ground for Pelicans, gulls and herons  is protected by boom but oil keeps seeping ashore.  The environmental and economic impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips cancelled the only business for shrimpers is loading and laying boom and working for big oil. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    26may10-barataria bay042.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
Ani DiFranco. Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid114.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
The Voice of the Wetlands Allstars. Big Chief Monk Boudreaux. Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid095.JPG
  • 09 May 2010. South Beach, Waveland, Mississippi USA. <br />
One of many Government planes overhead, returning to shore on a constant shuttle of dispersant spraying missions  as locals, tourists and visitors relax and enjoy the beauty of South Beach, an hour from New Orleans. Just a few miles off the coast, an impending disaster looms. With the continual flood of oil washing into the Gulf of Mexico and as winds turn and begin to push from the south, it is only and matter of when, not if the oil reaches the beaches. The barrier islands just offshore are taking a battering soaking up the initial fronts of oil, threatening everything in it's ever encroaching path. <br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09may10-waveland miss137.JPG
  • 05 May 2010. Venice, Louisiana. Deepwater Horizon, British Petroleum environmental oil spill disaster. <br />
Fishing guide William Bradford picks up sludge as he glides through a mix of oil and dispersant, 10 miles south of Venice Marina and approximately 34 miles from the site of the Deepwater Horizon's sunken oil platform. The sludge is a gelatinous mix with the consistency of diarrhea, sometimes clumped together in large masses so thick you can not see the ocean through it. The water, for miles and miles is filled with small pea shaped clumps, most the size of every kind of fish food available from small fish shape to shrimp to plankton. It is everywhere. The sheen on the surface is everywhere. It stretches for miles and miles and miles and miles and miles. Dead Jellyfish shrivel in the mix, the main seafood of turtles passing through at this time of year. What have we done?<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    05may10-oil-spill038.JPG
  • 05 May 2010. Venice, Louisiana. Deepwater Horizon, British Petroleum environmental oil spill disaster. <br />
Friends of fishing guide William Bradford glide through a mix of oil and dispersant, 10 miles south of Venice Marina and approximately 34 miles from the site of the Deepwater Horizon's sunken oil platform. The sludge is a gelatinous mix with the consistency of diarrhea, sometimes clumped together in large masses so thick you can not see the ocean through it. The water, for miles and miles is filled with small pea shaped clumps, most the size of every kind of fish food available from small fish shape to shrimp to plankton. It is everywhere. The sheen on the surface is everywhere. It stretches for miles and miles and miles and miles and miles. Dead Jellyfish shrivel in the mix, the main seafood of turtles passing through at this time of year. What have we done?<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    05may10-oil-spill027.JPG
  • 05 May 2010. Venice, Louisiana. Deepwater Horizon, British Petroleum environmental oil spill disaster.<br />
Hurry up and wait. Long lines of commercial fishermen wait as representatives from BP hand out four hour basic oil spill awareness diplomas to captains and crews. The diploma certifies the crews as able to assist in the deployment of oil containment booms. WIthout work helping to clear up BP's disgraceful catastrophic mess, the fishermen would all be out of work thanks to the oil spill forcing the closure of their fishing grounds. The handing out of diplomas was a shambles with mixed lists in various bundles taking a great deal of time to sort through. And just as fishermen felt close to the end of the line, the BP representatives packed up and went to lunch at midday!<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    05may10-oil-spill003.JPG
  • 21 August 2010. Bay Jimmy, south Louisiana. <br />
Despite government and BP efforts to persuade the public otherwise, oil continues to wash up in the marshes of Bay Jimmy, flowing under absorbent oil boom as the worst environmental disaster in US history continues to unfold in south Louisiana.  Despite concerted clean up efforts, filthy oil laden absorbent oil boom lies uselessly in the marshes the boom is suppose to protect.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    21aug10-BP oil019.JPG
  • 21 August 2010. Jean Lafitte, Louisiana. <br />
Contractors for BP decontaminate and clean ocean oil booms before they are returned to service as the worst environmental disaster in US history continues to unfold in south Louisiana.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    21aug10-BP oil007.JPG
  • 23 July 2010. Grand Isle, Louisiana. <br />
A sales poster pitched primarily to oil clean up workers as seen on the wall at the Grand Isle marina advertising FEMA trailers at discount prices. These would be the same FEMA trailers that are known to be contaminated with formaldehyde and are the subject of extensive legal wrangling following their use after hurricane Katrina. The FEMA trailers are known to have made people very sick. How is it possible for these trailers, effectively contaminated government owned stock to now be available through private dealers to the general public? <br />
BP's catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico would appear to be encouraging additional contamination of clean up crews through private sales of contaminated FEMA trailers. How is this possible? <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    23july10-BP oil008.JPG
  • 23 July 2010. Cat Islands. Barataria Bay near Grand Isle, Louisiana. <br />
Oil containment hard boom washed ashore in the middle of bird nesting areas on one of the Cat islands near Grand Isle. The boom appears to be mostly clean and free from oil, but the boom itself has now become the problem as it interferes with nesting brown pelicans and other birds. Minor storms and swell easily remove the boom from flimsy moorings creating yet another problem in the region. Stakes tethering boom to the bay floor are unlikely to be removed, causing yet more obstacles for shrimp fishermen to tear their nets on when shrimping is permitted to resume. The entire area appears to be relatively clean of oil. Perhaps the area is witnessing the beginning of the end of the disaster from BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico? It will be many years before the long term effects of the spill are known and a tropical storm or hurricane could still bring large slicks of oil ashore. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    23july10-BP oil037.JPG
  • 23 July 2010. Cat Islands. Barataria Bay near Grand Isle, Louisiana. <br />
Has mother nature naturally cleaned up the oil spill with human help? Young immature pelicans rest on one of the Cat islands near Grand Isle. In what would appear to be good news for the area, the pelicans and boom are clean. A sweep through Barataria bay uncovered only two oiled pelicans. No tar balls or oil were seen in the water. Many of the marsh grasses appeared to be growing back. Perhaps the area is witnessing the beginning of the end of the disaster from BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico? It will be many years before the long term effects of the spill are known and a tropical storm or hurricane could still bring large slicks of oil ashore. For now though, the situation looks relatively good.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    23july10-BP oil030.JPG
  • 12 june 2010. Wetlands of Plaquemines Parish, South Louisiana. <br />
Vanishing wetlands. Where once there was land, there is only the mere outline of old canals and channels, many dug by oil companies to pump their product ashore with little regard to the effects the chopping up of the wetlands would have. Chronic erosion of the land, a football pitch every 50 minutes, greatly reduced protection from hurricanes and impending BP oil slicks is the direct result of mismanagement and utter disregard for the environment. The army corps of engineers and the oil companies, together with inept government have a great deal to answer for. <br />
View from a blackhawk helicopter flown by airmen of the Nebraska Air National Guard over southern Louisiana as they assist in the dumping of sand bags onto barrier islands in a vain attempt to prevent BP oil from getting into the inner  wetlands. As valiant as their efforts are, the dumping of sand bags may well prove to be a complete waste of manpower, resources and money. Meanwhile, the mighty Mississippi river runs straight out to sea nearby, her valuable land building sediment carried far out into deep ocean as the region struggles to find a way to reverse the disastrous effects of man's interference with her flow. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    12june10-helos050.JPG
  • 12 june 2010. Wetlands of Plaquemines Parish, South Louisiana. <br />
Vanishing wetlands. Where once there was land, there is only the mere outline of old canals and channels, many dug by oil companies to pump their product ashore with little regard to the effects the chopping up of the wetlands would have. Chronic erosion of the land, a football pitch every 50 minutes, greatly reduced protection from hurricanes and impending BP oil slicks is the direct result of mismanagement and utter disregard for the environment. The army corps of engineers and the oil companies, together with inept government have a great deal to answer for. <br />
View from a blackhawk helicopter flown by airmen of the Nebraska Air National Guard over southern Louisiana as they assist in the dumping of sand bags onto barrier islands in a vain attempt to prevent BP oil from getting into the inner  wetlands. As valiant as their efforts are, the dumping of sand bags may well prove to be a complete waste of manpower, resources and money. Meanwhile, the mighty Mississippi river runs straight out to sea nearby, her valuable land building sediment carried far out into deep ocean as the region struggles to find a way to reverse the disastrous effects of man's interference with her flow. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    12june10-helos026.JPG
  • 12 june 2010. Wetlands of Plaquemines Parish, South Louisiana. <br />
Vanishing wetlands. Where once there was land, there is only the mere outline of old canals and channels, many dug by oil companies to pump their product ashore with little regard to the effects the chopping up of the wetlands would have. Chronic erosion of the land, a football pitch every 50 minutes, greatly reduced protection from hurricanes and impending BP oil slicks is the direct result of mismanagement and utter disregard for the environment. The army corps of engineers and the oil companies, together with inept government have a great deal to answer for. <br />
View from a blackhawk helicopter flown by airmen of the Nebraska Air National Guard over southern Louisiana as they assist in the dumping of sand bags onto barrier islands in a vain attempt to prevent BP oil from getting into the inner  wetlands. As valiant as their efforts are, the dumping of sand bags may well prove to be a complete waste of manpower, resources and money. Meanwhile, the mighty Mississippi river runs straight out to sea nearby, her valuable land building sediment carried far out into deep ocean as the region struggles to find a way to reverse the disastrous effects of man's interference with her flow. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    12june10-helos023.JPG
  • 10 June 2010. Breton Sound Marina, Hopedale, Louisiana. USA.  <br />
Breton Sound Marina in Hopedale. Over 1,000 people now work in what was, just weeks ago empty fields. A city is rising out of the marshes to deal with BP's catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Workers load and unload, repair and haul miles and miles of oil boom. The 'hard boom' is not owned by BP or the federal government. It is leased with prices allegedly over $1.00 a linear foot per day. In St Bernard Parish alone there is over 200,000 linear feet of hard boom. Someone, somewhere is making a fortune on the back of this crisis. Workers are hired by contractors, who themselves are hired by bigger contractors. Yet again, the middle men are making a fortune on the backs of workers and on the back of this crisis. The scandal continues to grow.<br />
The ecological and economic impact of BP's oil spill is devastating to the region. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. The Louisiana wetlands produce over 30% of America's seafood and oil and gas production. They are the most fertile wetlands and nurseries of their kind in the world. BP's oil is killing everything.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    10june10-BP Oil043.JPG
  • 11june 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Cafe Degas and owner Jaques Soula continue to offer the highest quality seafood at his restaurant on Esplanade Ave. Worries persist as fish stocks run low and prices rise thanks to closed fishing grounds affected by oil pollution. BP's disastrous environmental catastrophe out in the Gulf of Mexico threatens  the livelihood of many thousands of workers affiliated to the fishing industry in Louisiana. Thousands of barrels of oil per day continues to leak into the Gulf because of the explosion and collapse of the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform 46 miles out to sea. The closure of fishing grounds both east and west of the Mississippi river outflow is crippling thousands of local fishermen and all affiliated businesses and families who rely on the seafood industry.  <br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    11june10-seafood056.JPG
  • 11june 2010. Westwego, Louisiana. <br />
Shrimp imported from Texas at the Shrimp Lot in Westwego just outside New Orleans. Incomes have crashed as all seafood prices have risen over 30% in the past 4 weeks alone as stocks run low thanks to closed fishing grounds affected by oil pollution. BP's disastrous environmental catastrophe out in the Gulf of Mexico threatens  the livelihood of many thousands of workers affiliated to the fishing industry in Louisiana. Earnings are down as much as  50% of those pre BP's oil disaster. Thousands of barrels of oil per day continues to leak into the Gulf because of the explosion and collapse of the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform 46 miles out to sea. The closure of fishing grounds both east and west of the Mississippi river outflow is crippling thousands of local fishermen and all affiliated businesses and families who rely on the seafood industry. None of the shrimp or other seafood offered at the market are fresh catch from today. Everything has been through the IQF (Instant Quick Freeze) process and is seafood caught out of state or earlier in the season and brought from storage freezers in Venice and Grand Isle. Louisiana stocks are virtually non-existant. With few new catches, the market will be forced to rely on farmed shrimp shipped in from Texas and Georgia. Local traders refuse to stock Chinese import fish raised with growth hormones, pesticides, fungicides and other contaminants widely found in Chinese farm raised seafood. Many fear losing their jobs and everything they own as a result of BP's Gulf Coast environmental disaster.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    11june10-seafood002.JPG
  • 06 June 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
Utterly useless oil soaked boom washed up on the beaches of Grand Isle. The ecological and economic impact of BP's oil spill is devastating to the region. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. The Louisiana wetlands produce over 30% of America's seafood and are the most fertile of their kind in the world.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    06june10-oil france-soir 025.JPG
  • 06 June 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
Brown pelicans on the Cat Island chain in Barataria Bay, home to thousands of nesting birds including the Louisiana brown pelican, a bird only recently removed from the endangered species list. The birds are attempting to rear their young with the threat of oil pouring into their habitat.  The ecological and economic impact of BP's oil spill is devastating to the region. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. The Louisiana wetlands produce over 30% of America's seafood and are the most fertile of their kind in the world.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    06june10-oil france-soir 011.JPG
  • 07 June 2010. Pointe aux Chenes, Louisiana.<br />
Fading away. Myron Prosterie, a shrimper, crabber, oysterman, fisherman and one time oil worker. Myron holds over $1,700 worth of various fishing permits issued by the state. At present, all his fishing grounds are closed. He can not make use of any of the permits and he can not earn the money to make up the money. Widowed eight months ago, Myron is a member of the Pointe aux Chenes Indians, settlers that can trace their roots beyond 5 gererations back to France. French cajun is the language of the elders, but is dying out in the children of today. BP's catastrophic oil spill threatens the tribe's very existance, their way of life and the land on which they live. Not recognised by the federal government, the 680 member tribe struggles for funds in a small community that survives only because of fishing and oil extraction in the Gulf of Mexico.<br />
He knows his life will never be the same again. The ecological and economic impact of BP's oil spill is devastating to the region. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. The Louisiana wetlands produce over 30% of America's seafood and oil and gas production. They are the most fertile wetlands and nurseries of their kind in the world.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    07june10-point aux chenes 001.JPG
  • 09 June 2010. Fort Jackson, Venice, Louisiana.<br />
Signs  at the International Bird Rescue Research Center (IBRRC) in Fort Jakson. Animals coated in oil are bought here having been collected from marshes throughout Louisiana where BP's catastrophic oil spill washes ashore.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09june10-pelican-helo103.JPG
  • 09 June 2010. Fort Jackson, Venice, Louisiana.<br />
What have we done? Pelicans coated in oil are cleaned and cared for at the International Bird Rescue Research Center (IBRRC)in Fort Jackson. The animals have been collected from marshes throughout Louisiana where BP's catastrophic oil spill washes ashore.<br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09june10-pelican-helo025.JPG
  • 09 June 2010. Fort Jackson, Venice, Louisiana.<br />
BP OIl Spill response. Soldiers from the 843rd Engineering Company Louisiana National Guard load giant sand bags in operation 'Pelican Island Mission' as they struggle to reinforce fragile barrier islands in an effort top stem the flow of BP's catastrophic oil spill as it <br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09june10-pelican-helo059.JPG
  • 09 June 2010. Fort Jackson, Venice, Louisiana.<br />
BP OIl Spill response. Soldiers from the 843rd Engineering Company Louisiana National Guard load giant sand bags in operation 'Pelican Island Mission' as they struggle to reinforce fragile barrier islands in an effort top stem the flow of BP's catastrophic oil spill as it <br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09june10-pelican-helo057.JPG
  • 09 June 2010. Fort Jackson, Venice, Louisiana.<br />
BP OIl Spill response. Soldiers from the 843rd Engineering Company Louisiana National Guard load giant sand bags in operation 'Pelican Island Mission' as they struggle to reinforce fragile barrier islands in an effort top stem the flow of BP's catastrophic oil spill as it <br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09june10-pelican-helo056.JPG
  • 28 May 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
Louisiana born and raised Justin Workmon studies the eerily empty ocean where water that would ordinarily be crystal clear but is now gravy coloured thanks to dispersed oil just off Grand Terre Island where Barataria Bay meets the Gulf of Mexico. Ordinarily the ocean would be filled with shrimp boats, sport fishermen, and sea birds, especially in the run up to memorial day weekend. The ecological and economic impact are devastating to the region. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. The Louisiana wetlands produce over 30% of America's seafood and are the most fertile of their kind in the world.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    28may10-BP-oil012.JPG
  • 28 May 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
Brown Pelicans, protected by freshly laid oil boom cram every inch of a small outcrop of Cat Island in Barataria Bay. The ecological and economic impact are devastating to south louisiana. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. The Louisiana wetlands produce over 30% of America's seafood and are the most fertile of their kind in the world.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    28may10-BP-oil040.JPG
  • 26 May 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
The fragile grass lands perched at the mouth of mississippi delta is all that seperates land from the Gulf of Mexico. The region is strategically vital to the American oil and gas industry and a major player in America's seafood industry. BP's catastrophic oil spill continues to spew a black tide of death which continues to encroach upon everything in the region. The economic impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips are cancelled. The only real business is cleaning up big oil's disasterous screw up. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    26may10-barataria bay029.JPG
  • 26 May 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
Just off deserted Isle Grande Terra, east of Grand Isle.  Local fishermen have never seen anything so 'spooky,' 'creepy.' Where normally there are boats, fishermen, shrimpers, bait fish skimming the surface and thousands of birds there is little but a sheen of oil washing ashore as the black tide of death continues to encroach upon everything in the region. The economic impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips are cancelled. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    26may10-barataria bay017.JPG
  • 26 May 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
Just off deserted Isle Grande Terra, east of Grand Isle.  Local fishermen have never seen anything so 'spooky,' 'creepy.' Where normally there are boats, fishermen, shrimpers, bait fish skimming the surface and thousands of birds there is little but a sheen of oil washing ashore as the black tide of death continues to encroach upon everything in the region. The economic impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips are cancelled. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    26may10-barataria bay015.JPG
  • 26 May 2010. Barataria Bay to Grand Isle, Jefferson/Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
Just off deserted Isle Grande Terra, east of Grand Isle.  Local fishermen have never seen anything so 'spooky,' 'creepy.' Where normally there are boats, fishermen, shrimpers, bait fish skimming the surface and thousands of birds there is little but a sheen of oil washing ashore as the black tide of death continues to encroach upon everything in the region. The economic impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips are cancelled. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    26may10-barataria bay009.JPG
  • 26 May 2010. Grand Isle, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
From Barataria Bay to Grand Isle. The bay is devoid of life, no fishermen, no shrimp boats, even most of the birds have left. The environmental and economic impact is devastating with shrimp boats tied up, vacation rentals and charter boat fishing trips cancelled the only business for shrimpers is loading and laying boom and working for big oil. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf and washes ashore wherever the current carries it. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley<br />
www.varleypix.com
    26may10-barataria bay002.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
Lenny Kravitz in fine form rocks the event as he closes the show on the Wetlands indoor stage. <br />
Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit;Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid033.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
Lenny Kravitz in fine form rocks the event as he closes the show on the Wetlands indoor stage. <br />
Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit;Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid027.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
Lenny Kravitz in fine form rocks the event as he closes the show on the Wetlands indoor stage. <br />
Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit;Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid009.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
Lenny Kravitz in fine form rocks the event as he closes the show on the Wetlands indoor stage. <br />
Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit;Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid017.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
Lenny Kravitz in fine form rocks the event as he closes the show on the Wetlands indoor stage. <br />
Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit;Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid015.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
John Legend on the Wetlands indoor stage. <br />
Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid047.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
Dr John performs with the Preservation Hall Jazz band on the Wetlands indoor stage. <br />
Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid066.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
Ani DiFranco. Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid107.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
The Voice of the Wetlands Allstars. Tab Benoit. Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit;Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid085.JPG
  • 16 May 2010. New Orleans, Louisiana. <br />
Gulf Aid - a benefit festival for Louisiana fishermen and our coast.<br />
The Voice of the Wetlands Allstars. L/R; Dr John and Marcia Ball.  Local musicians have gathered together in response to BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, threatening the very fabric of an entire region. All proceeds from the event will be used to support local fishing communities and the region.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    17may10-gulf aid080.JPG
  • 13 May 2010. Grand Isle, Lafourche Parish, Louisiana. <br />
A disaster for the local economy, holiday lets have plummeted and thousands have been cancelled as oil lands on the beaches of Jefferson and Lafourche parishes to the west of the Mississippi River outlet. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon catastrophe is evading booms laid out to stop it thanks in part to the dispersants which means the oil travels at every depth of the Gulf. <br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    13may10-oil spill009.JPG
  • 07 May 2010. Westwego, Louisiana. <br />
Perhaps the last of local fresh blue crabs to arrive at the Westwego Fish market just outside New Orleans. All seafood prices have risen 25% in the past 7 days alone as stocks run low thanks to closed fishing grounds affected by oil pollution. Today was the opening day of the inshore shrimp season. The season was closed before it could open thanks to BP's disastrous environmental catastrophe out in the Gulf of Mexico. Approximately 210,000 barrels of oil per day is leaking uncontrollably into the Gulf because of the explosion and collapse of the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform 46 miles out to sea. The closure of fishing grounds both east and west of the Mississippi river outflow is crippling thousands of local fishermen and all affiliated businesses and families who rely on the seafood industry. None of the shrimp or other seafood offered at the market are fresh catch from today. Everything has been through the IQF (Instant Quick Freeze) process and is seafood caught earlier in the season and brought from storage freezers in Venice and Grand Isle. Stocks are running low. With no new catches, the market will be forced to rely on farmed shrimp shipped in from Texas and Georgia. Local traders refuse to stock Chinese import fish raised with growth hormones, pesticides, fungicides and other contaminants widely found in Chinese farm raised seafood. Many fear losing their jobs and everything they own as a result of BP's Gulf Coast environmental disaster.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    10may10-seafood112.JPG
  • 07 May 2010. Westwego, Louisiana. <br />
All seafood prices have risen 25% in the past 7 days alone as stocks run low thanks to closed fishing grounds affected by oil pollution. Today was the opening day of the inshore shrimp season. The season was closed before it could open thanks to BP's disastrous environmental catastrophe out in the Gulf of Mexico. Approximately 210,000 barrels of oil per day is leaking uncontrollably into the Gulf because of the explosion and collapse of the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform 46 miles out to sea. The closure of fishing grounds both east and west of the Mississippi river outflow is crippling thousands of local fishermen and all affiliated businesses and families who rely on the seafood industry. None of the shrimp or other seafood offered at the market are fresh catch from today. Everything has been through the IQF (Instant Quick Freeze) process and is seafood caught earlier in the season and brought from storage freezers in Venice and Grand Isle. Stocks are running low. With no new catches, the market will be forced to rely on farmed shrimp shipped in from Texas and Georgia. Local traders refuse to stock Chinese import fish raised with growth hormones, pesticides, fungicides and other contaminants widely found in Chinese farm raised seafood. Many fear losing their jobs and everything they own as a result of BP's Gulf Coast environmental disaster.<br />
Photo credit;
    10may10-seafood172.JPG
  • 07 May 2010. Westwego, Louisiana. <br />
All seafood prices have risen 25% in the past 7 days alone as stocks run low thanks to closed fishing grounds affected by oil pollution. Today was the opening day of the inshore shrimp season. The season was closed before it could open thanks to BP's disastrous environmental catastrophe out in the Gulf of Mexico. Approximately 210,000 barrels of oil per day is leaking uncontrollably into the Gulf because of the explosion and collapse of the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform 46 miles out to sea. The closure of fishing grounds both east and west of the Mississippi river outflow is crippling thousands of local fishermen and all affiliated businesses and families who rely on the seafood industry. None of the shrimp or other seafood offered at the market are fresh catch from today. Everything has been through the IQF (Instant Quick Freeze) process and is seafood caught earlier in the season and brought from storage freezers in Venice and Grand Isle. Stocks are running low. With no new catches, the market will be forced to rely on farmed shrimp shipped in from Texas and Georgia. Local traders refuse to stock Chinese import fish raised with growth hormones, pesticides, fungicides and other contaminants widely found in Chinese farm raised seafood. Many fear losing their jobs and everything they own as a result of BP's Gulf Coast environmental disaster.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    10may10-seafood079.JPG
  • 07 May 2010. Westwego, Louisiana. <br />
All seafood prices have risen 25% in the past 7 days alone as stocks run low thanks to closed fishing grounds affected by oil pollution. Today was the opening day of the inshore shrimp season. The season was closed before it could open thanks to BP's disastrous environmental catastrophe out in the Gulf of Mexico. Approximately 210,000 barrels of oil per day is leaking uncontrollably into the Gulf because of the explosion and collapse of the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform 46 miles out to sea. The closure of fishing grounds both east and west of the Mississippi river outflow is crippling thousands of local fishermen and all affiliated businesses and families who rely on the seafood industry. None of the shrimp or other seafood offered at the market are fresh catch from today. Everything has been through the IQF (Instant Quick Freeze) process and is seafood caught earlier in the season and brought from storage freezers in Venice and Grand Isle. Stocks are running low. With no new catches, the market will be forced to rely on farmed shrimp shipped in from Texas and Georgia. Local traders refuse to stock Chinese import fish raised with growth hormones, pesticides, fungicides and other contaminants widely found in Chinese farm raised seafood. Many fear losing their jobs and everything they own as a result of BP's Gulf Coast environmental disaster.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    10may10-seafood163.JPG
  • 09 May 2010. Waveland, Mississippi USA. <br />
One of 6 dead stingrays and two dead catfish in just a half mile stretch of beach. Whether it's early indications of oil pollution, or catch tossed from a local fishing pier, it is truly tragic to find so many once fine, now dead fish in such a short stretch of beach. Either way, it shows a callous disregard for the environment in which we live. Meanwhile all around locals, tourists and visitors relax and enjoy the beauty of South Beach,  an hour from New Orleans. Just a few miles off the coast, an impending disaster looms. With the continual flood of oil washing into the Gulf of Mexico and as winds turn and begin to push from the south, it is only and matter of when, not if the oil reaches the beaches. The barrier islands offshore are taking a battering soaking up the initial fronts of oil threatening everything in it's ever encroaching path. <br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09may10-waveland miss032.JPG
  • 09 May 2010. Waveland, Mississippi USA. <br />
Two dead catfish make up a small fraction of carnage at the beach.  6 dead stingrays also littered a half mile stretch of beach. Whether it's early indications of oil pollution, or catch tossed from a local fishing pier, it is truly tragic to find so many once fine, now dead fish in such a short stretch of beach. Either way, it shows a callous disregard for the environment in which we live. Meanwhile all around locals, tourists and visitors relax and enjoy the beauty of South Beach,  an hour from New Orleans. Just a few miles off the coast, an impending disaster looms. With the continual flood of oil washing into the Gulf of Mexico and as winds turn and begin to push from the south, it is only and matter of when, not if the oil reaches the beaches. The barrier islands offshore are taking a battering soaking up the initial fronts of oil threatening everything in it's ever encroaching path. <br />
Photo; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    09may10-waveland miss127.JPG
  • 06 May 2010. Shell Beach, Louisiana. Deepwater Horizon, British Petroleum environmental oil spill disaster.<br />
Soldiers from the 2225th Multi-Role Bridge Company Louisiana National Guard commence work on a floating pontoon which will be used by local fishermen to load oil containment boom. With oil reaching ever closer to the St Bernard Parish wetlands, it is vitally important to get more oil containment booms in place.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    06may10-oil-spill018.JPG
  • 06 May 2010. Shell Beach, Louisiana. Deepwater Horizon, British Petroleum environmental oil spill disaster.<br />
Soldiers from the 2225th Multi-Role Bridge Company Louisiana National Guard commence work on a floating pontoon which will be used by local fishermen to load oil containment boom. With oil reaching ever closer to the St Bernard Parish wetlands, it is vitally important to get more oil containment booms in place.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    06may10-oil-spill017.JPG
  • 05 May 2010. Venice, Louisiana. Deepwater Horizon, British Petroleum environmental oil spill disaster.<br />
Just a fraction of what is at stake. Sunset over some of Louisiana's southernmost wetlands as seen from Venice Marina. If the oil pollution gets into these wetlands, it could potentially kill everything. The plants, the animals, the fish and life as locals know it could be gone forever. Only a great deal of luck from wind and water currents might the pollution be carried away from here. But it is going to land somewhere. The Florida Keys are hoping and praying it will not be there.<br />
Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    05may10-oil-spill049.JPG
  • 05 May 2010. Venice, Louisiana. Deepwater Horizon, British Petroleum environmental oil spill disaster.<br />
ARCA NASCAR rising star and environmental activist Leilani Munter takes in the unnatural disaster created by BP on a trip into the Gulf of Mexico.<br />
Photo credit;Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    05may10-oil-spill045.JPG
  • 05 May 2010. Venice, Louisiana. Deepwater Horizon, British Petroleum environmental oil spill disaster.<br />
ARCA NASCAR rising motor racing star and environmental activist Leilani Munter takes a trip into the Gulf to see the disaster for herself.<br />
Here she passes the 'Ocean Saratoga' drilling platform, where drilling continues as oil companies strive to build ever more oil rigs in the Gulf. Photo credit; Charlie Varley/varleypix.com
    05may10-oil-spill022.JPG
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