Oil Spill Expert Riki Ott Speaks at League of Women Voters Meeting
By Kate Peterson

The oil spill in the Gulf has been lapping up on our shores for a year now, and the effects on our environment and us will last a long time. Many of us have questions about what our future holds, and Riki Ott, Ph.D, can answer them. She has first-hand experience dealing with the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska.

Ott holds a degree in marine toxicology with a specialty in oil pollution. Originally, she was going to be a commercial fisherman after a trip to Alaska. Soon after she arrived in 1989, the Exxon Valdez crashed and spilled millions of gallons of oil into Prince William Sound. The local economy, communities and the coastal environment were devastated–then ignored. She has spent the years after becoming a force for change.

She is the author of “Sound Truth and Corporate Myth$: The Legacy of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill,” and she has also created guidebooks on the health effects of oil and dispersants to cleanup workers and communities. The discussion planned during the luncheon is titled, “Changing the Endgame: The Real Gulf Story and America’s Consequences of our Oil Addiction.”

RIKI OTT AT LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS MEETING
WHEN: 11:30 a.m. Saturday, May 7
WHERE: New World Landing, 600 S. Palafox
COST: $17
DETAILS: lwvpba.org