As a resident of Mississippi who enjoys seafood and wants to help the local economy whenever possible, I have been wondering about the safety of eating Gulf shrimp since the oil spill. According to a recent story in The Clarion-Ledger, it sounds like I have my answer. Here is what shrimp boat Capt. Chris Balius told the paper:

"It's eat it at your own risk from this point on," said Balius, 44, who has shrimped the Gulf of Mexico since he was 6. "I'm afraid to eat it. It's not the oil so much, but the chemicals they're using out there. I don't trust it, and I don't trust BP.

"If you trust the people who are telling you there is nothing wrong with the shrimp, then eat it. If you trust BP that those dispersants are safe, go right ahead."

This stands in sharp contrast to what Gov. Haley Barbour has been saying, which is essentially that there is no danger whatsoever. The thing is, I'm no more inclined to trust him than I am to trust BP at this point. He has made it clear that he will not acknowledge the vast environmental damage resulting from the spill no matter what.

I'm not particularly reassured by the report of tests on Gulf shrimp either because I know this can change quickly. From what I have seen, Mississippi is quite poor when it comes to rapid reporting of even basic water quality threats. The odds that they are going to be considerably faster when it comes to detecting hydrocarbons in seafood strike do not impress me.

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