Bus-Sized Tar Mats Sighted; Barbour Announces Study | Jackson Free Press | Jackson, MS

Bus-Sized Tar Mats Sighted; Barbour Announces Study

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Gov. Haley Barbour will give his annual State of the State address tonight.

A five- to six-mile stretch of large tar mats washed up on Long Beach Harbor late last night, reports The Sun Herald.

Some tar mats in the water Wednesday were "the size of school buses," Long Beach Fire Chief George Bass told The Sun Herald.

Yesterday, Gov. Haley Barbour announced that his office is partnering with several state agencies to conduct a year long economic-impact study on the effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil disaster on the Gulf Coast. The agencies include the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning, the departments of Employment Security and Environmental Quality and Marine Resources, the Mississippi Development Authority and the Gulf Coast Business Council.

BP and the U.S. Economic Development Administration will fund the $600,000 study that will collect employment data, tax revenues and socio-economic information.

"We need a clear grasp on how this oil spill will impact the State of
 Mississippi and local communities for years to come," Barbour
 said in a July 7 statement. "We want a picture of exactly how this spill will effect
 Mississippi businesses, families and communities. This study will help
 as state leaders, agencies and local governments create long-term
 coastal restoration plans."



Previous Comments

ID
158542
Comment

...and as the study begins, ROME continues TO BURN!

Author
justjess
Date
2010-07-08T10:50:16-06:00

Support our reporting -- Follow the MFP.

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