Despite a massive surplus in the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund – Port Maintenance is underfunded now
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- Even a small spill disrupts the marine ecosystem
- Impact is extinction
Contention Two – Oil SpillsMaritime Terrorism destroys oil infrastructure, causes oil shocks and spillsMoreno, Houston Chronicle, 11 (Jenalia, Aug. 24 11, “Testimony: Port terrorist attack could cripple energy sector,” p.1, AS) A terrorist attack on the Houston Ship Channel would be catastrophic for the nation's energy sector, international trade and economy, witnesses testified during a congressional hearing Wednesday at the Port of Houston Authority. As testimony was under way at the port's executive offices, a Government Accountability Office issued a report finding that the nation must take further measures to secure the maritime energy supply. A similar report in 2007 made five recommendations to the U.S. Coast Guard and Federal Bureau of Investigation for enhancing energy tanker vessel security. The 22-page report Wednesday said security has improved since then but recommended that the Coast Guard, the lead federal agency for maritime security, develop an updated list of offshore oil and natural gas facilities and examine security risks. An attack on deep-water rigs and platforms could have consequences as serious as last year's deadly Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill, the report said. Stephen Caldwell, director of maritime and Coast Guard issues for the GAO, was among witnesses before the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations and Management as it took testimony Wednesday at the Port of Houston, the nation's largest petrochemical complex. Also at the hearing were U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin, chairman of the subcommittee; its ranking Democrat, Rep. William Keating of Massachusetts; and Democratic Reps. Gene Green and Sheila Jackson Lee of Houston. "The Port of Houston is the energy capital of the United States, and it's a target- rich environment," McCaul said. Because so much oil is imported to Houston and refined in the region, an attack along the channel "could cripple this nation," he said. Even a small spill disrupts the marine ecosystemCongressional Digest 10 (Congressional Digest, periodical, June 2010, “Impact of Oil Spills”, pg 167 SC) No oil spill is entirely benign. Depending on timing and location, even a relatively minor spill can cause significant harm to individual organisms and entire populations. Oil spills can cause impacts over a range of time scales, from days to years, or even decades for certain spills. Impacts are typically divided into acute (short-term) and chronic (long-term) effects. Both types are part of a complicated and often controversial equation that is addressed after an oil spill: ecosystem recovery. Acute Impacts. Depending on the toxicity and concentration of the spill, acute exposure to oil spills can kill various organisms and cause the following debilitating (but not necessarily lethal) effects: • reduced reproduction • altered development • impaired feeding mechanisms • decreased defense from disease Birds, marine mammals, bottom-dwelling and intertidal species, and organisms in their developmental stages — e.g., fish eggs and larvae — are particularly vulnerable to oil spills. In addition to the impacts to individual organisms, oil spills can lead to a disruption of the structure and function of the ecosystem. Certain habitats — such as coral reefs, mangrove swamps, and salt marshes — are especially vulnerable, because the physical structure of the habitats depends upon living organisms. These potential acute effects to individual organisms and marine ecosystems have been "unambiguously established" by laboratory studies and well-studied spills. this undermines the resilience of ocean and river environmentsMaragos, Crosby, and McManus 96 (J.E., PhD, Coral Reef Biologist, M.P., Ocean Biologist, J.W., PhD, Oceanography, 1996, “Coral reefs and biodiversity: a critical and threatened relationship”, pg 84-85 http://www.tos.org/oceanography/issues/issue_archive/issue_pdfs/9_1/9.1_maragos_et_al.pdf SC) Coral Reef Biodiversity and Importance- Not only is the coral reef structure itself composed of and built by a diversity of organisms, but the reef structure serves as the basis for one of the highest diversity ecosystems in the world (Talbot, 1994). Coral reef ecosystems generally have high species diversity, although many associated species tend to exhibit low endemism and broad distributions (Norse, 1993). The coral species alone range from >48 in the Caribbean (Goreau and Wells. 1967) to > 700 in the Indo-Pacific (Wells, 1957: Veron, 1986). When speaking of biological diversity, it is indeed appropriate to refer to coral reef ecosystems as the rain forests of the marine realm. Coral reefs have far greater productivity than other marine systems, surpassing 7,000 g C m^2: yr ~ (Odumetal., 1959; Helfrich and Townsley, 1965). Reef fishes, sea urchins, coralline algae, and many additional species of plants and animals contribute to healthy reef ecosystems and play a significant role in helping maintain the resilience, stability, and accelerated coral reef recovery following natural and anthropogenic disturbances. Coralline algae are extremely robust and help cement large chunks of coral and other reef remains together to form very hard and wave-resistant reef structures. Fishes, sea urchins, and other herbivores graze down growths of fleshy algae or seaweeds, allowing both reef-building coras and coralline algae to flourish and maintain reef growth and overall health. Impact is extinctionKraig 3 (Robert Kraig, Prof Law @ Indiana Univ., McGeorge Law Review Vol. 34, 2003, “Taking Steps”) The world's oceans contain many resources and provide many services that humans consider valuable. "Occupy[ing] more than [seventy percent] of the earth's surface and [ninety-five percent] of the biosphere," n17 oceans provide food; marketable goods such as shells, aquarium fish, and pharmaceuticals; life support processes, including carbon sequestration, nutrient cycling, and weather mechanics; and quality of life, both aesthetic and economic, for millions of people worldwide. n18 Indeed, it is difficult to overstate the importance of the ocean to humanity's well-being: "The ocean is the cradle of life on our planet, and it remains the axis of existence, the locus of planetary biodiversity, and the engine of the chemical and hydrological cycles that create and maintain our atmosphere and climate." n19 Ocean and coastal ecosystem services have been calculated to be worth over twenty billion dollars per year, worldwide. n20 In addition, many people assign heritage and existence value to the ocean and its creatures, viewing the world's seas as a common legacy to be passed on relatively intact to future generations. n21 Directory: files files -> Answer True False 2 points Question 2 files -> Integer programming and game theory files -> 4 Integer Programming files -> Bpa vehicle Window Repair Scenario #1 task: Procure vehicle window relacement. Objective files -> Pop Warner History files -> North Carolina Inclusion Initiative Mapping Where Children with ieps are Being Served Purpose files -> Fall 2013 Spring 2014 Program Data: Standard 1 Exhibit 4d files -> Hanban – asia society confucius classrooms network 2010 request for proposal files -> Northern England’s set-jetting locations Download 0.78 Mb. Share with your friends:
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