US government study links dolphin deaths to BP oil spill

Scientists in the US have found the first direct evidence linking deaths of dolphins in the Gulf of Mexico to the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster in 2010.

Government led studies have shown diseases found in dolphins around the Barataria Bay area in Louisiana, which was badly affected by the BP spill, were consistent with exposure to oil. These include lung disease and hormonal abnormalities, and of those dolphins studied by the scientists, up to 17% were expected to die of illness related to oil pollution.

The lead scientist behind the study, published in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Science and Technology, said : “I’ve never seen such a high prevalence of very sick animals – and with unusual conditions.”