Alabama has 53 miles of coastline, much of it estuary tucked into areas around the the bay. This important ecosystem supports the fish, crab, shrimp and oyster nurseries that thrive in our waters; as well as the microscopic plankton that they must have to survive. Although there is already oil and toxic dispersant in the bay, only a small amount of what has been spilled has yet to arrive, and many species of bay life could be saved if action were taken now to keep the oil out of the bay. We need ships in place to collect oil before it reaches our estuaries.

We demand that supertankers and ships be ordered to blockade the mouth of the Bay, and that they be placed in a line from Fort Gaines to Fort Morgan. To facilitate shipping, some of the tankers could be moved from the shipping channel when the tide is going out, thus allowing commerce to continue. The blockade could be moved back into formation before the tide starts coming back in, so that they can resume capturing and blocking the oil.

We demand that this be done immediately, and that the foreign ships who have offered to help with this catastrophe be allowed to assist in the collection.