Where Gulf Spill Might Place on the Roll of Disasters

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/19/science/earth/19enviro.html?ref=science

Quarter 4

Article 2

NY TIMES

National

Summary:

President Obama called the oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico “the worst environmental disaster America has ever faced.” However, environmentalists offer an intimidating list of disasters to consider: floods caused by human negligence, the destruction of forests across the entire continent and the near-extermination of the American bison. Scientists note that the worst disaster is always the one that we are enduring through at the moment and that perhaps the dust bowl was the worst environmental disaster that America has ever faced. A drought that began in 1930 exposed the poor farming practices that stripped away the native grasses. Boiling clouds of dust whipped up by harsh winds buried homes and cars, destroyed crops, choked farm animals to death and sent children to the hospital with pneumonia. At first the crisis was ignored in Washington, but then the apocalyptic clouds began to blow all the way to New York, Buffalo and Chicago. The environmental effects of the gulf spill remain largely unknown. But the number of lives disrupted is certainly in the thousands, if not the tens of thousands; the paychecks lost in industries like fishing add up to millions; and the ultimate cost will be counted in billions. We won't be able to tell the impact of the oil spill until it's over.

Opinion: I believe that President Obama just said that it was the worst environmental disaster to show sympathy for the people of the Gulf coast. We are not able to tell exactly how severe the impact will be until it's over. However, right now, we need to figure out a solution to stop the leak and begin the cleanup so that the disaster will not be the worst in American history.

Vocabulary:

calamity- a great misfortune or disaster, as a flood or serious injury.