Land commissioner: Oil spill unlikely to reach Texas coast
McALLEN — Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson told a legislative committee Monday that the Texas Gulf Coast is likely to see little impact from the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Speaking in McAllen at a hearing of the House Select Committee on Emergency Preparedness, Patterson told legislators that the giant oil slick that is threatening the shores in Louisiana and other states will likely stay away from Texas unless there are significant changes in current or wind speed.
Tests on tarballs found washed up on the beach near Galveston last week showed that they did not come from the oil spill.
“So far, we have not had any negative impact here in Texas and we don’t really anticipate much,” said Patterson, whose office would lead any state response to the spill. “If we do have an impact, it’s probably going to be tar balls and we’re a couple of weeks away from that.”
More than 5,000 barrels of crude oil have spilled into the Gulf each day — although some scientists believe the actual amount to be much larger — since the April 20 explosion on the Deepwater Horizon drill rig off the southeast coast of Louisiana. Efforts to completely contain the leak are still ongoing as BP, which owns the rig, announced Monday that a mile-long, four-inch wide tube was capturing about a fifth of the oil.
But the long-term effect of the oil spill is unknown. Environmentalists warn of irreparable damage to fragile ecosystems in the Gulf from the oil and the chemical dispersants used to break it up, while uncertainly continues over how the oily water could affect local economies that depend on Gulf coast seafood and tourism.
But the oil slick remains at least 150 miles from Texas waters and is unlikely to spoil Texas beaches or wetlands, Patterson told legislators. If the oil spill does reach the Texas coast, points as far south as South Padre Island would are unlikely to be touched.
But the oil spill could curtail the movement of cargo if it enters the Intracoastal Waterway used for shipping.
The Port of Brownsville no longer has any limestone that is used for highway construction, port director Eduardo Campirano said. The vessels carrying the limestone to Brownsville were caught on the wrong side of the spill, causing a delay of six to eight weeks.
And Patterson told state Rep. Tara Rios Ybarra, D-South Padre Island, that a hurricane entering the Gulf before the oil leak is capped and the spill cleaned up would have unknown consequences.
A hurricane that passed over the spill might deposit the oil on farflung beaches, Patterson said, or it might reduce the spill’s impact by dispersing the oil.
Patterson’s testimony provided legislators a good introduction into the oil spill that will be referenced as the committee watches the disaster, said state Rep. Aaron Peña, D-Edinburg, the chairman of the House committee that’s charged with reviewing Texas’ response to natural and manmade disasters.
“We’re out of a sticky situation,” Pena said of the state’s concerns. “But we have to continue to prepare and be on guard because (the oil spill) could have a long-lasting effect.”
In addition to the oil spill, hurricane preparedness and disaster response experts provided testimony on response and recovery from major emergencies resulting from natural disasters. The committee also heard testimony on border security from academics, border crossing stakeholders and law enforcement officers with an emphasis on potential emergency scenarios.
The committee meets again in Houston in July.
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Jared Janes covers Hidalgo County government, Edinburg and general assignments for The Monitor. He can be reached at (956) 683-4424.
