“From the air I could see 3000-5000 feet of black smoke… and what seemed like one fire was actually dozens of fires… recently heard a story of a captain who was rescuing sea turtles and realized that they were getting caught in the skimming nets that were being lit on fire.. the captain ended up checking up on the nets too much that BP let him go from his contract… the reality is that all kinds of wildlife are getting caught in the nets… and no one is getting them out before the burns.”

Photographer Kris Krüg, audio interview with Arjun Singh

For over 60 days straight the Deepwater Horizon oil well has been leaking thousands of gallons of crude oil in the Gulf of Mexico. The tremendous amount of damaging has been stacking up the facts to register this event as a full on catastrophe for the Gulf and its coastal communities. No one has been spared when it comes to the effects of this leak. From wildlife habitats being destroyed, to fisherfolk being out of work for their fishing season, to dead marine life washing up on the beaches, there is something blatantly obvious about this situation: the Deepwater Horizon oil spill must be stopped.

All of this cataclysmic emotion and frustration has fueled the organizing of TEDxOilSpill, an event taking place in Washington, DC on June 28th. This event will host a lineup of speakers who have emotional connection to the situation in the Gulf, including scientists, researchers, policymakers and photographers. The TED-inspired event will focus on the topics of energy policy reform, Gulf of Mexico marine life research and media collected from the TEDxOilSpill Expedition team. The Expedition team consisted of writer Darron Collins, photo editor Danielle Sipple and photographers Kris Krüg, Duncan Davidson and Pinar Ozger.

Bearing witness to the situation that is unfolding in the Gulf really puts into perspective the lack of comprehensive news coverage coming out of the area, with media blackouts, misinformation and coverups. Traveling along the Gulf coast lining Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, the team spoke to cleanup relief workers, displaced fisherfolk and local residents. Taking to the skies, they flew over the Southern Louisiana marshlands directly to the Deepwater Horizon oil well itself, otherwise known as ‘the Source’. Witnessing from an aerial perspective the oiled beaches, oil burns on the water surface, and a litter of tiny boats making very little progress against this immense spill was very disheartening. In fact news has just surfaced of an out of work fisherman in Alabama who committed suicide over the lack of effort in cleaning up the oil spill.

Dozens of small islands in the Barataria Bay marshlands are the homes and nesting areas to wonderful species of seabirds. Laughing Gulls, Brown Pelicans and even Roseate Spoonbills can be seen all on the same shore, with nests side by side. Unfortunately these small islands and these seabirds are getting hit very heavily by crude oil washing up on the shores and sometimes covering the seabirds’ feet, feathers and even their entire body. These islands are extremely remote which means getting to them can be very difficult in the cleanup attempts. Viewed from a boat ride led by an out of work fisherman, the islands were filled with dirty, forgotten boom and their beaches were absent from any sign of cleanup workers.

Taking to the skies one last time was one of the best ways to grasp the true size of the oil spill. This flight proved to be an eye-opening journey into the depths of the actual size of this oil spill. Flying from the Source directly to the coastal area of eastern Alabama, the team discovered the shocking fact: the flow of oil from the Source was a constant slick all the way to the shore of Alabama. Slow and steady, a mixture of dispersant and crude oil was yards from beach lines that had people sunbathing in beach chairs. The most shocking realization was that everyone had bits and pieces of information, but really no one had any idea where it was going, when it was going to hit and who was safe.

The expedition may be over but the emotional situation in the Gulf worsens as each day goes on. Cleanup crews work 24 hours a day in the coastal area while failed solutions are tried repeatedly at the Source. The size of the oil spill, the devastation of the constant leak and the cultural destruction of communities is overwhelming and saddening. The ironic scientific reality is that innocent marine life are being poisoned by their deceased ancestors in our glorified greedy actions. The only hope is that this is a wake up call for the greater situation at hand which is our dependency on fossil fuels. This hope comes at the price of so much loss. This is not okay.

Here are photos by Kris Krüg from the last seaplane journey to the coast of Alabama:

A boat involved in the cleanup effort in the Gulf of Mexico approaches a large patch of some extremely concentrated crude oil.

Just a few hundred yards off shore in Gulf Shores, Alabama, boats skim oil from the surface as the giant oil slick quickly approaches the tourist-filled beach.

Large patches of dark crude oil gather along the water’s edge in coastal beach near Gulf Shores, AL.

In parts of the Gulf of Mexico the crude oil collects together and appears dark red. This gives the appearance of blood which is not ironically lost on the fact that oil leak is more of a gash in the earth’s surface.

A lone boat wades through the blue water of the Gulf of Mexico. A small pathway can be seen where the boat has passed, pushing the oil to either side.

One of the ways BP controlled the media coverage of the oil spill was booking up virtually every available seaplane hour in the Gulf coast area. Luckily, our seaplane captain Dickie was fed up with how BP was trying to control the airways. A lucky situation arose which gave this rogue pilot complete flight clearance, even to the ‘Source’. Dickie and his seaplane was a rare find for the Gulf Coast during this time.

Despite the fact that this is an underwater spill at 5,000 feet, crude oil is collecting at the water’s surface. The oil that is seen on the surface is a mere percentage of what lies beneath, at thousands and thousands of feet.

Some boom protects the open waterways of Louisiana marshlands; out of work fishing boats attempt to skim oil from the water’s surface; the oil slick is so much bigger than we can imagine or even see.

This is one of the relief well drilling stations in the Gulf of Mexico. These relief wells have been hailed as the solution to relieve pressure from the weakened and continuously leaking Deepwater Horizon well. Unfortunately completion for this project is slated for August, months after the initial leak.

Oddly resembling a scene from the game Battleship, this is actually the Gulf of Mexico right at the source of the oil leak. Each massive ship, aiding in the relief or cleanup effort, looks tiny against the massive oily backdrop.

The best defense for the oil is literally to scoop it out of the sand and water. This large blob of oil lands upon the shores in Alabama which results in the need for the industrial size machinery.

Iridescent oil streaks the beautiful aqua blue Gulf of Mexico. Once the crude oil mixes with the dispersant and starts to travel, streaks can appear like this.

The beautiful marshlands of Southern Louisiana are being threatened and/or systematically destroyed by the Deepwater Horizon leak. Once oil hits the shores of the marshlands and coats the marsh grasses, there is really no hope of survival for the greenery.

When the dispersant works against the crude oil leaking in the Gulf of Mexico, it essentially works the same as dishwasher detergent would work against grease. This unfortunately makes the surface water appear discolored and soapy looking.

Whitecap waves in the Gulf of Mexico at this time can be an unfortunate occurrence. These waves can carry very strong currants which can be one of the greatest downfalls of this ever-expanding oil spill.

Boats that are currently working in the Gulf of Mexico can come back into harbor, after a day of sailing through the crude oil, looking absolutely horrific.

Two boats race towards each other in one of the dark waterways of the Southern Louisiana marshlands.

A perfect day coasting in a fast boat along the blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico are becoming ones of the distant past. The effects of this oil spill will be felt for years to come.

The first line of defense against the encroaching oil slick is surface protective boom that act as a barrier. Unfortunately the boom when unattended or left to the whims of weather changes can be highly ineffective.

There are so many working parts of the cleanup effort in the Gulf of Mexico that it can seem disjunct yet potentially effective. Unfortunately the size of this oil spill makes is fairly difficult to see how effective any of these efforts are doing.

The darker colors within the oil designate the areas of the thickest crude oil.

An aerial flyover view of Gulf Shore, Alabama shows the lively community and culture that is being directly affected by this oil disaster.

Black garbage bags line this white sand beach in Alabama. The only question on everyone’s minds is: WHAT IS IN THE BLACK GARBAGE BAGS?

Catching the seaplane wing in this view of the Deepwater Horizon oil well really puts the grand size of the whole operation into perspective.

This picture perfect image of a jet setting boat gliding through clear water, upon closer inspection, is a cleanup boat heading out to the oil spill ‘Source’ along a seemingly untouched stretch of Gulf water.

The beach in Gulf Shores, Alabama is lined up with beach chairs in anticipation of tourists’ arrival to the sandy shores. Yet the reality is that two boats are skimming oil off the top surface of the ocean just a few hundred yards out from the shoreline.

Breathtaking marshlands and their unprotected waterways are in danger of being infected with the fast moving oil slick. Two boats travel through the blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico and leave streaks through the iridescent oil settling on the surface.

The site of the oil leak creates a massive dark cloud of oil that looms darkly over the entire cleanup operation.

A large boat, carries accommodation units for workers’ working in the Gulf of Mexico, travels through murky waters.

A small look into the seaplane that flew over the Expedition Team over the Gulf of Mexico.

This ominous view is the very unsettling reality of the Gulf Coast situation. A long boat works tirelessly against the growing oil spill as small blobs of oil move quickly and steadily to the endangered marshland shores. The reality is that no one or nothing along the Gulf Coast is truly safe.

There is no two ways about this situation. There is a massive oil leak in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico, it has not been stopped and communities, cultures, wildlife and natural habitats are dying. The company that is in control of this leak is controlling information, spreading misinformation and continuing to endanger workers and wildlife on a daily basis.

The saddest part of this whole situation is that the OIL IS STILL LEAKING.

Please join one of the 115 TEDxOilSpill Meetups that are happening on June 28th.

Educate yourselves with some more information below:

Help Support the TEDxOilSpill Expedition Team

TEDxOilSpill event

Static Photography heads down to the Gulf with TEDxOilSpill Expedition

TEDxOilSpill Expedition Team Takes to the Skies

Louisiana Wildlife is Threatened as Oil Washes upon Coastal Shores

PBS Article: An expedition to the Gulf by Darron Collins

BP Sends PR Professionals to Gulf to Pretend to Be Journalists

Horrifying Video of Kids playing on oil-covered Destin Beach, Florida

Flashpoints: Pacifica Radio Station interview with Kris Krüg (starts at 32:38)

BP Press Release Theatre: Flying Higher

BP Press Release Theatre: Ballet at Sea

Free Prosecute BP Sticker

TEDxOilSpill Expedition photos by Kris Krüg

TEDxOilSpill photos by Duncan Davidson

TEDxOilSpill photos by Pinar Ozger

This past week the TEDxOilSpill Expedition team spent time in the Southern states that line the Gulf of the Mexico documenting the disaster that is slowly unfolding in Gulf waters. Exactly two months ago the Deepwater Horizon oil well owned by British Petroleum sprung a terrible leak thousands of miles under the water’s surface. The oil well has consistently leak millions of gallons of crude oil into the Gulf on a daily basis, with little to no stopping it. This catastrophe has affected so many areas of the Gulf Coast, not just touching upon the beaches and devastating the fisherfolk communities but also displacing hundreds of birds from their homes. Overall the amount of damage is infuriating.

A collective call to action and response has emerged from this unsettling situation into the formation of the TEDxOilSpill event that is happening in Washington, DC on June 28th. The TED-inspired event will feature speakers from the NOLA areas, scientists who have studied in the Gulf of Mexico, policy makers about energy reforms on a government level and photos from the TEDxOilSpill Expedition. Photographers Kris Krüg, Duncan Davidson and Pinar Ozger, alongside the documentary words from Darron Collins, will curate the images for the event from this past week.

One of the most heart wrenching communities that are affected by this disaster are the native wildlife to the Gulf Coast. Marine life, bird species, fish and mammals are all being caught in the effects of the oil spill, either by having their habitats destroyed or literally getting covered in crude oil. Either way the effects are monstrous and fatal in most areas. The wildlife are innocent bystanders and yet seem to be taking some of the biggest hits when it comes to the devastation. Bird and wildlife rehab centers have been setup through the Gulf to attend to the hundreds of birds that require serious oil cleaning.

The Expedition team had the chance to head out into the Southern Louisiana marshlands with a local fisherman as a guide around some of the most inhabited bird islands. These photos depict the horror that is being committed in this area: stunning landscapes and overpopulated habitats are being destroyed by crude oil being washed ashore. The truly sad thing is that most of the wildlife has nowhere to go as many have young that have just hatched.

Many of the boats that are helping with various aspects of the cleanup effort often come back into the harbors and bays with massive amounts of oil coverage. The unfathomable amount of oil that is being spilled into the Gulf is often unseen as the majority is at deep sea levels yet it is very easy to see the crude oil smeared across the sides, backs, and tops of the boats coming back in from the Gulf. Everywhere is being affected by this catastrophe.

Here are some of the photos by Kris Krüg of the journey to Bird Island:

Dozens of laughing gulls take to the blue skies over a small island in the marshlands of southern Louisiana.

This beautiful bird is a brown pelican and was just released off the endangered species list just over six months ago. These birds are one a few species that is feeling the effects of the oil spill the most.

A beautiful underside view of a laughing gull in full flight.

Often times these surface floatation devices called booms are the first line of defense against the travelling oil spill. Most coastal areas through the Gulf of Mexico are lined with them.

From a distance it is surely hard to distinguish rocks from the hundreds of birds that cover the shores of this Southern Louisiana island. Many of these birds have nowhere to go and end up hanging out on the oiled banks.

The oil spill that has come from the leak in the Deepwater Horizon oil well is primarily a deepwater leak. This means that the mass majority of the crude oil that is spilling into the Gulf is doing so for hundreds of miles below the surface. What oil that is seen on the surface is merely a fraction of the damage.

A large boat awaits departure into the Gulf of Mexico in Grand Isle, Louisiana.

In the early morning light a lone brown pelican flies just under a brewing storm cloud in Louisiana.

Two large brown pelicans fly against a blue sky backdrop.

While in Grand Isle, half of the TEDxOilSpill Expedition team was able to head out into the marshland waters with the assistance of Captain Joseph. The other half of the team, fiercekitty and Darron Collins stayed on the mainland.

What appears to be oil pirates capitalizing on the oil spill are actually cleanup workers attempting to vacuum the crude oil out of the water. This technique is not very successful but Kevin Costner just released new machines that are much better at this task.

Boom that is used as a defense against the migrating oil is only effective when it stays in the water. Unfortunately the boom is fairly lightweight and is susceptible to movement by weather conditions.

Many local Gulf residents are frustrated by the mere fact that the oil spill has singlehandedly destroyed the main livelihood of the fisherfolk communities. The oil spill had the disastrous misfortune of happening at the beginning of the fishing season.

Brown pelican babies congregate on this small island in Grand Isle, Louisiana. Many of these birds are very young which proves to be an extremely vulnerable stage of life as their survival rate is being compromised by the destruction of their habitat.

The early morning brings in an early storm to the shoreline of Grand Isle in Louisiana.

Many of the fisherfolk have been unable to fish for this year’s season due to the contaminated Gulf waters. In lieu of their normal liveliood, many fisherfolk have been hired for the cleanup response instead.

The aftermath of a boat that has ventured into the Gulf of Mexico. In many coastal harbors it is commonplace to see such boats as this oil-caked one.

A single laughing gull travels through the stormy skies of Grand Isle, Louisiana.

A rogue pirate flag flies high on this supplies barge.

More boom, a protesting poster and an island that is shaped like a seahorse.

These boats in the past were used for shrimping but have been put out of commission due to the oil spill. For the past two months they have been scooping up surface oil instead.

A brown pelican attempts a landing in a sea of oil-soaked marsh grasslands.

Two brown pelicans fly side by side in the blue sky. These relatively small pelicans can have wingspans up to 8 feet.

A brown pelican swims low to the oily waters in Grand Isle, Louisiana.

Many different groups and organizations are taking part in the Gulf cleanup effort. Here a US Coast Guard boat makes its way out into the waters.

A sign just off the shores of the marshlands states a warning to watch out for petroleum pipeline crossing. It is unbelivable how much of the Gulf of Mexico is being drilled for oil.

More protest signs and severely oiled boats line the waterways in Grand Isle, Louisiana.

When effective the boom in the water acts as a sponge for the crude oil that reaches the top surface. Once the boom is heavy with oil, it is replaced.

Despite the environmental destruction that is going on around them, young pelican parents come back to their island habitat to feed their very young offspring.

Real estate and housing prices in coastal cities have sky rocketed in the past two months due to the oil spill. Thousands of cleanup workers are working just in the coastal areas, for sometimes weeks on end, and they all need housing accommodations. Some have resorted to having housing on the waters like this barge unite.

An oil covered buoy gets stuck in the boom.

The back end of this boat, which normally is white, was soaked by the crude oil from the Gulf. There are some parts of the oil spill that coat the water in this dark brown color.

Such beauty in such a devastatingly dark place. A streak of hot pink flies through the air as a brightly colored Roseate Spoonbill glides in through the sky, high above the oiled island below.

The most heartbreaking realization about this whole situation is that the oil is still leaking into the beautifully diverse and rich Gulf of Mexico. The facts and images are terribly overwhelming and can leave one feeling truly helpless. The effects of this catastrophic event will be felt for years to come.

For more information:

Help Support the TEDxOilSpill Expedition Team

TEDxOilSpill event

Static Photography heads down to the Gulf with TEDxOilSpill Expedition

TEDxOilSpill Expedition Team Takes to the Skies

TEDxOilSpill Expedition photos by Kris Krüg

TEDxOilSpill photos by Duncan Davidson

TEDxOilSpill photos by Pinar Ozger

The recent Oil Spill disaster in the Gulf of Mexico has been on everyone’s mind and media outlets for the past month. Between horrifying photos, misleading information and many failed attempts at stopping the gushing oil well, a growing national frustration has mounted into a direct collective responsibility that something has to be done.

A group of environmentally passionate geeks gathered together to organize a TEDxOilSpill that is scheduled to happen in Washington, DC on June 28th. This TED inspired event will bring together the powerful voices that have responded in a call to action over the various facets that amounted to our current oil crisis, including our dependency to fossil fuels, our irresponsibility to our environment and the unregulated parade that is environmental policy.

As a precursor to the June 28th event, an TEDxOilSpill Expedition team of photographers, writers and videographers has been sent to the Gulf to capture footage and media. The team consists of Static Photography photographer Kris Krüg, TED photographer Duncan Davidson, videographer Pinar Ozger and WWF writer Darron Collins.

The team is scheduled to be covering the coastal areas for a full week, witnessing and documenting the local response to the oil spill, the effect it has on the local coastal communities and the general hold that BP has on the Gulf itself since April 20th. The team has been on the ground for just two and half days yet has covered over 600 miles of the coastal Gulf between Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

The next few days on the Gulf will prove to be trying and crucial for the TEDxOilSpill Expedition team. They are scheduled to take to the air and to the deep waters covering remote areas of the Louisiana marsh. One of the tested areas that the team will be visiting is the original location of the Deepwater Horizon oil well, known to the Gulf coastal communities as merely ‘the Source’.

The Expedition team is carrying the responsibility of bearing witness to the effects that the size of this disaster has caused while reporting back a responsive catalog of media that includes comprehensive footage of what is sensationally neglected by various controlled news filters.

Here is the first collection of photos from photographer Kris Krüg from his journey on the TEDxOilSpill Expedition:

A motivational quote in a bait n’ tackle shop on Dauphin Island, Alabama.

The entire gulf coast is peppered with oil rigs surprisingly very close to the shoreline. Here two oil rigs sit side by side just off the coast of Alabama.

Many wildlife, including various types of seabirds, have felt horrific effects from the Gulf oil disaster. A team of EPA workers checks on some various seabirds, including the recently removed from the endangered species list Brown Pelican on Dauphin Island, Alabama.

Large fisherfolk communities have been displaced from their livelihood of fishing as an effect of the oil spill. Pictured here are various boats, having been docked for weeks in Biloxi, Mississippi.

The initial first line of defense for the coastlines is excessive miles of protective boom that acts as a superficial means of stopping the approaching crude oil. Every body of water in the Gulf area has boom laid within it.

The TEDxOilSpill Expedition team holds an evening meeting to discuss the day’s findings as well as the upcoming schedule for the next few days.

A most distressing apparent fact is that many of the seabirds photographed are not actually diving into the water, with good reason. Here a flock of Brown Pelicans catch some rest on some rocks in Alabama.

An environmental cleanup boat is docked in Alabama, awaiting departure; massive storm clouds torment the crisis ridden Gulf; a very brave Brown Pelican attempts a dive along side an oil rig.

Whatever oil touches it stains a deep rust color. In the areas where massive collections of crude oil are not present, the effects of the oil saturation in the Gulf of Mexico can plainly be witnessed.

A 3-State Fisherfolk Press Rally gathered in Biloxi, Mississippi and was largely organized by the displaced Vietnamese fisherfolk communities. Youth leaders and activists created signs with major concerns that need to be addressed by the communities that are being affected.

Local celebrity Billy the Exterminator came out and supported the 3-State Fisherfolk Press Rally in Biloxi, Mississippi. Billy, alongside his Louisiana based exterminator company Vex Con, has a reality television show on A&E called the Billy the Exterminator.

Brown Pelicans perch upon random signs and posts throughout harbors and bays in the Gulf; a sky view of a New Orleans bridge.

An American Pollution Control boat carries what appears to be hundreds of feet of boom in a small harbor in Biloxi, Mississippi. Often faulty the boom is the first line of defense for targeted coastlines.

Road signs in Alabama. In just over two days the TEDxOilSpill Expedition team covered over 600 miles of the Gulf coast.

Boats in Mississippi supervise boom laying; photographer Duncan Davidson carries the tools of the trade; beaches in Alabama are stained with the effects of the oil spill.

A biblical quote offers some religious solutions to the crisis stricken communities in the Gulf states.

The normally white sands of Perdido Beach in Alabama were stained with the rust of oil ridden waters. Each wave that broke upon the shore brought more oil and tar balls.

Photographer Duncan Davidson takes a moment to cool off in the sweltering southern heat; a crew member from the Vex Con exterminator company; a crowd gathered for the 3-State Fisherfolk Press Rally in Biloxi, Mississippi.

Many unused, docked fishing boats are lining the harbors of Gulf coastal towns. Very large areas of the Gulf have been deemed unsafe for fishing and drastically cut into the economic livelihood of many families.

Beautiful blue Gulf coastal waters are outlined by red lines of boom. Just off the coast of Alabama a large collection of crude oil is waiting to hit the shores. Whenever a portion breaks off and travels the 3-5 miles to shore, beach cleanup crews are ready and waiting.

One of the many oil rigs that sits in the Gulf of Mexico; a Brown Pelican soars high above the waters; rescue boats organize boom in Mississippi.

Local media interviewed participants of the 3-State Fisherfolk Press Rally in Biloxi, Mississippi.

This devastating and ominous sign hung along the wooden walkway at Perdido Beach in Alabama. Not only is the gulf being contaminated by thousands of gallons of crude oil, but the already compromised environment is being furthered polluted by harmful chemicals as a means for cleanup. Unfortunately the toxicity of the oil mixed with cleanup chemicals is worsening the state of the Gulf of Mexico.

The Expedition continues on in the Gulf. Be sure to check back to the official TEDxOilSpill Expedition website for more photos and thoughts from Pinar, Duncan, Darron, and Kris as we continue to document what’s going on with the oil disaster in the Gulf.

All photos in this essay credit: Kris Krüg.

For more information:

Help Support the TEDxOilSpill Expedition Team

TEDxOilSpill event

Static Photography heads down to the Gulf with TEDxOilSpill Expedition

TEDxOilSpill Expedition photos by Kris Krüg

TEDxOilSpill photos by Duncan Davidson

TEDxOilSpill photos by Pinar Ozger