This time it's oil trouble for Lake Pontchartrain
Oil seeping into New Orleans' Lake Pontchartrain latest environmental worry for waterway
Rigging on idle shrimp boats is seen at sunset next to lake Pontchartrain in the Bucktown section of Metairie, La., Tuesday, July 6, 2010. Oil from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill has infiltrated Lake Pontchartrain for the first time. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Oil from the ruptured well in the Gulf of Mexico is seeping into Lake Pontchartrain north of New Orleans, threatening another environmental disaster for the huge body of water that was rescued from pollution in the 1990s.
Tar balls and an oil sheen pushed by strong winds from faraway Hurricane Alex slipped past lines of barges that were supposed to block the passes connecting the Gulf of Mexico to the lake.
"Our universe is getting very small," said Pete Gerica, president of the Lake Pontchartrain Fishermen's Association.
State authorities closed the lake's eastern reaches to fishing on Monday, though most of it remained open. Barges were lined up at bayous and passes to stop the oil from coming in, and cleanup crews Tuesday used nets to collect tar balls from marinas and docks.
They also planned to lay 9,000 feet (2,700 meters) of special permeable booms, but the lake was too choppy for skimmer vessels to operate.
About 1,700 pounds (770 kilograms) of oily waste has been collected, said Suzanne Parsons Stymiest, a spokeswoman for St. Tammany Parish.
The amount of oil infiltrating 600-square-mile (1,500-square-kilometer) Lake Pontchartrain appears small so far. And tests on seafood have not turned up any oil contamination, said Brian Lezina, a state biologist. But the pollution is distressing to the many people in Louisiana who have a deep attachment to the lake.
"You won't hear songs about a lot of the marshes in south Louisiana, but you will hear songs about Lake Pontchartrain," Lezina said.
Associated Press writers Michael Kunzelman and Tom Breen in New Orleans contributed to this report.
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