Fears have been expressed that the BP oil spill will eventually make its way to the Irish coast because of being carried on the Gulf stream currents.
International oil experts say that the horrific contamination will eventually spread from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic Ocean.
Research by the American-based National Center for Atmospheric Research has found that oil from the spill may well spread along thousands of miles of the Atlantic coast within a few weeks.
That has created real concern that the oil will find its way to Irish coastline, especially the western seaboard.
The Irish Coast Guard says it is actively monitoring events and is receiving daily updates from the Monitoring Information Center in Brussels and the European Maritime Safety Agency but that so far there is no immediate cause for alarm.
The Marine Institute which is also monitoring the oil spill says it did not know enough about the composition of the oil to make a definitive statement.
Lighter oil would evaporate quicker but heavier, thicker oil could would be carried across the ocean if it was to enter the Gulf stream.
"The Marine Institute has no details of the chemical composition of the oil spilled in the Gulf of Mexico and therefore cannot make an authoritative statement on this scenario," it said.
Professor Michael Hayes of at the University of Limerick stated that that the "only tangible possibility" of the oil reaching Ireland was via the Gulf Stream.
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.peterson | Jun 18, 2010, 12:22 PM EDT
If the U.S. would have accepted the assistance offered from Thirteen countries and acted promptly, much of the present situation more than likely could have been prevented. Another Goof !! from the White House
moygannon | Jun 18, 2010, 12:32 AM EDT
Ireland may well by concerned but so should the entire natural world.
feeneycj | Jun 16, 2010, 03:41 PM EDT
BP should have been banned from deepsea drilling until proper precautionary measures were mandated by the government, but instead Obama did nothing.
missspook1994 | Jun 16, 2010, 02:12 PM EDT
Because BP has so drastically understated how much oil has really gushed from the floor of the Gulf and instead of just capping it off they are still trying to capture as much as possible. The amount of oil now determined to be 3.5 million gallons a day for the past 58 days. That amount of oil could fill 300 oil trucks, or fill the Empire State Building half full as of today and we have to go to some time in August before the other two wells will be finished that they say will stop this gushing they HOPE. Oil could very well end up on the shores in Ireland and the Gulf of Mexico could become a dead zone here. All offshore oil drilling should cease immediately. This is the worst ecological disaster to occur which was man made.
killowen | Jun 16, 2010, 12:28 PM EDT
They still keep on giving the world pain while aided and abetted with their other two partners. -- For U.S.-based pro-boxer John Duddy, 30, a Derry native and nephew of 17-year-old Jack Duddy who was killed on Bloody Sunday, the dramatic report by the Bloody Sunday inquiry on Tuesday is a validation of everything his relatives have fought for.
citizen69 | Jun 16, 2010, 11:56 AM EDT
latest estimates say that upto 60,000 barrels a day may now be leaking from the doomed oil rig.
brandyyue | Jun 16, 2010, 11:03 AM EDT
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