Environmental Law

Chemical dispersants used in gulf oil spill don't hurt seafood safety, FDA says

By STEPHEN HOLZER

Chemical dispersants sprayed into the Gulf of Mexico to break up the massive oil spill from the Deepwater Horizon disaster do not appear to threaten the safety of seafood in the affected waters, the Food and Drug Administration said this week.

In a letter sent in response to questions from Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), the agency responsible for ensuring the safety of seafood said that chemicals used to break up the slicks are not as dangerous to human health as the oil itself.

FDA scientists do not believe that the chemicals accumulate significantly in the tissue of fish and shellfish, and so, even if the fish absorb the chemicals through gills or other ways, the fish do not retain them, Jeanne Ireland, FDA's assistant commissioner for legislation, wrote to Markey.

from http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/06/AR2010080603185.html

Full post as published by Environmental Legal Blogs on August 06, 2010 (boomark / email).