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Comment by Tripatini on August 13, 2010 at 6:08pm

From CuriousAboutOurCoast.com (Pensacola CVB), Aug. 13:

"Beach conditions: Beaches in Escambia County, including Pensacola Beach, Perdido Key and the Gulf Islands National Seashore, remain open for swimming. Reports over the last several weeks have been of minimal impacts, typically scattered tar balls. The threat of oil to beaches has been greatly reduced due to the capping of the oil well and progress toward a permanent kill, according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission have reopened coastal state waters off Escambia County to the harvest of saltwater fish."

Comment by Tripatini on August 13, 2010 at 6:06pm

Comment by Tripatini on August 12, 2010 at 5:51pm

Comment by Tripatini on August 12, 2010 at 3:00pm

From WWLTV.com (Louisiana), Aug. 11:

"Wet weather on Wednesday afternoon kept most people away from Grand Isle's beach: four sections of it have reopened after closing because of the oil spill.

...Jefferson Parish officials ... are still keeping an eye on the coming storms.

...officials prepare to be on the lookout for any potential oil that higher-than-normal waves and tides might bring in.

'It is a concern,' [Jefferson Parish Emergency Management Directror Dean] Bonano said. 'Certainly it may stir up any oil that settled on the bottom somewhere and bring it onshore.'

Even if the effects of the tropical weather end up being minor, once it clears up, assessment teams plan to head out across Grand Isle's beach to see if any oil washed up onshore."

Comment by Tripatini on August 12, 2010 at 2:52pm

From FoxTV10.com (Mobile/Pensacola/Fort Walton Beach), Aug. 12:

Gulf Shores Mayor "Happy" to See Oil

"Late Wednesday afternoon, tar balls and patties washed up on the beaches of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach. It is the first significant oil impact in recent weeks, according to local leaders.

Gulf Shores Mayor Robert Craft said he welcomes the oil.

'I would rather see it wash up now rather than next summer. We knew this would probably happen, so we want to get this oil off our beaches as soon as possible,' said Craft.

Comment by Tripatini on August 12, 2010 at 2:48pm

From TravelMole.com, Aug. 10:

Gulf Coast Beaches Still Cleaning Up Bad Rap
by David Wilkening

"...USA Today in an editorial [wrote that] the news media did a poor job of providing accurate information about the event. There were many exaggerations.

Gulf coast tourism officials say the real problem with the spill has been perception.

...'Yes, we had tar balls from time to time, but the impacts were widely scattered and quickly cleaned,' said a tourism official.

The few tar balls that have been reported over the last several weeks have been small and weathered, and tourism official have been told by numerous agencies that they do not pose health risks.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection has been conducting regular tests of the waters, and even when tar balls are present, those tests have yet to find any unsafe levels of oil contamination.

'Our reality is that isolated tar balls will occasionally wash ashore just as they have for decades along beaches around the nation. It’s an unfortunate nuisance, and but we are prepared and have place towelettes at each of our 60 beach access points for beachgoers who may find tar on their feet,' said a CVB official.

...'Travelocity recently conducted a poll of over 2,000 Americans and found that many travelers believe the oil has spread far beyond its actual reach. For example, one in four respondents named the Florida Keys as one of the top three destinations they thought were impacted by the spill. One in four also named Panama City as affected, although the beaches are clean and open,' said the company.

...'Plans to travel to the Gulf Coast have fallen sharply since the April 20 oil spill, even along Florida’s west coast, which hasn’t been touched by oil,' reports the Houston Business Journal."

Comment by Tripatini on August 12, 2010 at 2:16pm

From Houston Press, Aug. 11:

Tourists, Tar Balls and Tort: Galveston and Deepwater Horizon

"...many local residents dismiss the legitimacy of the tar balls that washed ashore in early July as media frenzy or overzealous legal tactics. In his July 6 Hairballs post, Richard Connelly speculated that "...[the tar] probably traveled here by boat and not ocean currents, meaning more ain't coming soon..."

Having spent a fair amount of time on Sea Isle as a kid I remember Boogie boards and rafts that would return from the surf with mysterious rust-colored splotches, performing routine "tar checks," and the containers of turpentine and baby oil that were permanent fixtures at the bottom of the stairs. This is oil country, ya'll. Tar happens.

...From April 22 to June 21, visitors to the [Galveston CVB] website from Louisiana increased by 71 percent, Mississippi visitors went up by 77 percent, and Alabama traffic increased by 40 percent. ...there was a 17 percent increase in hotel occupancy in May and a 25 percent increase in June... as compared to 2009"

Comment by Tripatini on August 12, 2010 at 1:52pm

HomeAway Launches Gulf Coast Response Center

"While progress has been made in the months-long battle to contain the oil from the Deep Water Horizon disaster, Gulf Coast vacation property owners face long-term implications to their travel and tourism business and property values.

To help vacation rental homeowners caught in a maelstrom of economic challenges, claims paperwork and inquires from bargain-seeking renters, HomeAway, Inc. – the world's leading online vacation rental marketplace – has launched the HomeAway Gulf Coast Response Center to provide timely news and expert advice.

A U.S. Travel Association study projects the effects of the oil spill on travel to the Gulf Coast are likely to last up to three years with a potential $22.7 billion loss to the travel economies of the Gulf Coast states. Often overlooked but directly impacted are owners of vacation rentals along the Gulf Coast who rely on tourism income.

"HomeAway has always served as a trusted resource for vacation rental owners. Creating a site for our more than 42,000 owners with Gulf Coast properties to navigate around complex issues arising from the oil spill is merely an extension of our valued relationship with our customers," says Brian Sharples, chief executive officer of HomeAway.

The HomeAway Gulf Coast Response Center, located at www. OilSpill.HomeAway.com, provides information and articles to help guide homeowners, such as expert advice on filing claims with BP, legal opinions and marketing tips to reassure current renters and attract travelers to the Gulf. The web site also aggregates relevant news of the most importance to homeowners about the spill and efforts to support Gulf tourism, while providing a forum for homeowners to share experiences and advice.

Spearheaded by Director of Owner Community at HomeAway [AND TRIPATINI MEMBER] Christine Karpinski, who owns rental property in the Gulf Coast herself, the online resource center is supported by real estate journalist Broderick Perkins, who serves as the site's managing editor, and attorney Peter Taaffe, whose Buzbee Law Firm represents clients affected by the spill.

"The oil spill is far from over in the minds of vacation homeowners in the Gulf," says Karpinski. "The Gulf Coast Response Center zeros in on what matters most to vacation rental homeowners and lets them know there is a community of support and solutions to help improve the situation."

Comment by Tripatini on August 12, 2010 at 11:25am

CNN Money video on impact of oil slick perception on Pensacola tourism, 8/11:

http://money.cnn.com/video/smallbusiness/2010/08/11/sbiz_bp_oil_spi...

Comment by Tripatini on August 11, 2010 at 1:38pm

NOAA Reopens More than 5,000 Square Miles of Closed Gulf Fishing Area

No oil has been observed for 30 days in area to be re-opened for fishing

Today NOAA reopened 5,144 square miles of Gulf waters to commercial and recreational finfish fishing. The reopening was announced after consultation with FDA and under a re-opening protocol agreed to by NOAA, the FDA, and the Gulf states.

Since July 3, NOAA data have shown no oil in the area, and United States Coast Guard observers flying over the area in the last 30 days have also not observed any oil. Trajectory models show the area is at a low risk for future exposure to oil and, most importantly, fish caught in the area and tested by NOAA experts have shown no signs of contamination. ...

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