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Helping hands tied on oil spill

posted by Stephanie.Wilding

By RICHARD MULLINS

rmullins@tampatrib.com

Published: June 13, 2010

TAMPA - Another disaster, another wave of charities and volunteers trying to help make things right.

But this time, charities aren't dealing with a natural disaster such as a hurricane or earthquake. It's an oil spill, a man-made problem destroying the environment of the Gulf of Mexico and the livelihoods of those who rely on it.

The spill has wreaked havoc with countless lives, companies and groups across the region. Birds struggle in goopy crude. Fishermen sit idled. Hotels lose reservations.

For now, no single organization, such as the Red Cross, appears to be the collector of donations and organizer of help. And growing ranks of good-hearted volunteers are finding there's no simple way to show up and help.

Peter Demarie of Bethany Beach, Del., has spent days calling groups across the region in an effort to find a place to help, but no one seems to have an option to offer.

"I've got plenty of money," Demarie said. "I can rent my own car and hotel and get lobster dinners for anyone. I just want to help down there."

But after calling the Coast Guard, mayors of cities lining the Gulf, Greenpeace and others, he received the same message: Nobody knows where he can help. One group said he could volunteer at a food bank for the homeless.

"I've even been calling BP for two weeks," Demarie said. "They told me to stay off the beach or I'd be arrested."

Promises by BP

BP has promised in a raft of advertisements worldwide to "Make this right." If BP is promising to pay for damage, what is the role for charities doing good deeds?

For instance, the International Bird Rescue Research Center is helping rehabilitate oiled birds. But its website says that BP promises to pay for cleanup and wildlife costs, so "your donations cannot be used to fund bird rescue operations in the Gulf of Mexico spill." The center, however, welcomes support for future rescue efforts.

BP's promises can complicate messages to potential donors and volunteers, said Jeff Capanigro, a crisis communications specialist in Tampa. And in a communications sense, the volunteer effort is a mess - primarily because BP can't stop the leak.

"This just goes against the primary tenet of crisis management; the first point being 'First solve the problem,'" Capanigro said. With BP unable to cap the blown-out well, there is a psychological helplessness among potential volunteers and donors, he said.

"Until the problem is solved, you can't really put your arms around it and determine how to pick up the pieces. ... It's as if this were Katrina and the water never stopped rising."

Fundraising

Meanwhile, the fundraising campaigns are rolling out. Cash donations, fundraisers and charity drives had generated more than $4 million as of late last week, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy.

Rocker Lenny Kravitz headlined a fundraising concert in New Orleans to help with the damage. A rough tally: $300,000.

Other groups raising money include the Greater New Orleans Foundation's Gulf Oil Spill Fund, the Gulf Coast Fund for Community Renewal and Ecological Health, the Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation, the Audubon Nature Institute, Catholic Charities, Second Harvest Food Bank, Greenpeace, the National Wildlife Federation and many others.

The National Audubon Society has raised about $200,000 in recent weeks, said spokesman Phil Cavits.

"We can all see the heartbreaking images of oiled birds," he said. "It's really the most visible sign of what's happening."

Tampa-based Mad Mobile helped start a campaign in which cell phone users can donate $10 by sending a text message, "GULF," to 50555. Similar to Haiti relief campaigns, this one uses the text donation aggregator mGive.com. The campaign started Monday, and the money goes to the Waterkeeper Alliance and SaveOurGulf.org.

As with most modern disasters, authorities are warning donors to do their homework before giving money. Charities should be able to provide a tax ID number to prove nonprofit status. Residents also should be wary of phone or door-to-door solicitations. The website Guidestar.org maintains one of the most comprehensive lists of charitable groups with tax-exempt 501(c)(3) status.

Volunteers

Tampa Bay Watch is training volunteers in oil cleanup and how to deploy oil-blocking booms. The Tampa chapter of the Audubon Society is also raising money.

But volunteering isn't as simple as driving to the Gulf to load sandbags.

"Katrina needed everybody and anybody that could help," said Jim Kelly, co-president and CEO of Catholic Charities. "But this isn't a case of hitting the ground and helping to gut a house or rebuild it. The needs here are specialized in many ways."

BP has said it will use only trained workers and professionals to clean up the oil and wash wildlife, adding to the deepening frustration related to the government and BP's response. The workers also need safety equipment, said BP spokesman Mark Proegler.

Proegler suggested that volunteers visit the company's websites and sign on with subcontractors working along the Gulf coast. But Bethany Kraft of the Alabama Coastal Foundation said in an e-mail that many people aren't looking for full-time work. And there's no guarantee they would be hired because some states require that those hired be unemployed or otherwise affected by the spill, she said.

Foremen must take a 40-hour hazardous materials course, but most workers need only a four-hour course, Kraft said. However, the need for such training - which hasn't been opened to the public by BP - may be overstated.

"All the Hazmat training does is basically tell people common-sense things" about the oil, said Edward B. Overton of the Louisiana State School of Coast and Environment. "Like 'Don't eat it.'"

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report. Reporter Richard Mullins can be reached at (813) 259-7919.

**** for more information please visit the link that I found this story posted on, http://www2.tbo.com/content/2010/jun/13/na-helping-hands-tied-on-oil-spill/ ****

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