June 15, 2010 - This site has been inactive since we delivered our volunteer lists to the four northern Gulf of Mexico states.
While we appreciate offers of volunteer assistance, we are unable to provide information on opportunities other than to refer you to the four state volunteer coordination organizations. Given that thousands of Coast residents already on the volunteer registries are not being used, it is unlikely that additional volunteers would be called on. It's a frustrating situation. We all want to do something, but after six weeks of effort we've reached the conclusion that there's simply not a significant role for volunteers in the BP spill response.
We offer our sincere thanks and admiration to the thousands of good folks from all over the world who have offered their time, talents, and resources.
May 27, 2010 - BP never accepted our offers to provide our volunteers lists. However, each of the four Gulf of Mexico states affected by the BP spill have established their own web sites for volunteer coordination within their states. We are working with each of the states to provide email addresses of our volunteers. Everyone who registered at OilSpillVolunteers.com must register at the state sites. The new state registration forms provide much more detail on volunteer qualifications and interests, so that the full OSV database is not directly transferable.
- Volunteer Louisiana - http://www.volunteerlouisiana.gov/ 800.755.5175
- Mississippi Commission for Volunteer Service - http://www.mcvs.org
- Volunteer Florida - http://www.volunteerflorida.org/
- 211 Connects Alabama - http://211connectsalabama.org 866.869.4921
If you live outside the region, be aware that the number of local volunteers seems to greatly outnumber the opportunities for volunteers now. You should identify a specific volunteer role before traveling to the Coast.
May 12, 2010 - We are no longer updating the content of this site on a regular basis. Volunteer registration needs are now being handled by other organizations. We are working with state and governments and other groups to see that volunteers who registered here are incorporated into the official response team. That objective has already been accomplished for volunteers who indicated and interest in working with wildlife. BP's response to our offers has been disappointing to say the least.
Introduction - This web site provides a place for people to volunteer to assist in cleanup operations related to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Organizations working on the cleanup may register here to be connected with volunteers. OilSpillVolunteers.com will link volunteers with cleanup organizations; we will not be directing volunteer activities. More information on OSV here.
Attention BP - If any BP management person is reading this, please contact us. We're eager to help you but we're unable to get through to the right people via the toll-free numbers. The automated response I received from your Horizon Call Center indicates that you have "hundreds of people willing to volunteer." We have thousands. Your local community outreach people are good folks who are working hard but they don't have the right information and resources. BP management needs to help us and them.
OSHA, BP, Transocean, Homeland Security, USCG, NOAA, EPA, Department of the Interior - We need to hear from you. We have 7000+ people eager to be trained and eager to jump into action when the oil comes ashore. How do they get training? What can they do to help with the cleanup? We have volunteers with prior oil spill cleanup experience, certifications, and commercial boats who are eager to go to work. How can we communicate with the right people to put them to work? The public toll-free numbers aren't working for such things.
Volunteers - Please register using this form. (CLOSED) Provide complete as much of the form as possible and indicate whether your contact information can be shared directly with cleanup organizations. Please do not use email to provide your volunteer information. Note that OSHA regs require special training for anyone involved in oil cleanup or oiled-wildlife rehab. BP has contracted with Tri-State to do the cleanup and wildlife rehab.
Volunteers not on the Gulf Coast - At this time we have enough local volunteers to handle the opportunities that have been identified. Please save your travel resources for now.
Note: On May 28, 2009 at 14:50 CDT a BP representative from the Houston office called and requested that this paragraph be removed. It remains. It is an accurate and honest statement about the current situation here on the Coast.
Oiled Wildlife Caution: Do not attempt oil cleanup work without training and the required safety equipment. The oil waste is a toxic material and can pose a threat. This OSHA handbook for oil spill cleanup will explain. OSHA regulations require that oil spill cleanup personnel have HAZWOPER (Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response) certification. Read about the issue of training and oil cleanup here.
Donations of Dawn dishwashing detergent, towels, rags, hair, and other oil absorbent materials - The bottom line is apparently that donated materials will not be used in the response program. We have requested statements on this subject from BP since early May. We advise that you not embark on collection programs without having a valid recipient of the materials already identified.
Cleanup Organizations Needing Volunteers - Please contact one of the four state volunteer coordination groups. We are no longer maintaining volunteer lists.
Please send email to don@OilSpillVolunteers.com describing your needs and activities. (Please route all individual volunteer offers to the registration form here on the web. We are receiving a large number of emails and calls and it's much simpler and more reliable to keep track of volunteers in the database linked to the form. We'd hate to misplace an email and lose contact with you.)
Boat owners - If your boat is capable of handling booms and other spill management and cleanup equipment, you may contact BP's Vessels of Opportunity program at 281.366.5511. Participation under this program would be compensated by BP. (Commercial fishing boats and similar craft, not appropriate for small recreational boats.)
If you have HAZWOPER certifications or wildlife rehabilitiation certification, you may be eligible to work in a paid capacity with BP's contractors. If you cannot reach someone at BP or Tri-State, you may send an email to certified@oilspillvolunteers.com with your contact information and certification details. We'll do our best to see that it gets to the right place. (HAZWOPER - Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response) We have delivered contact information for qualified people to BP and their contractor OEG in several batches beginning on May 13. We have not yet identified anyone who was ever contacted by BP or their cleanup contractors.
Spill Forecast
See http://deepwaterhorizon.noaa.gov/#downloads for the latest 24-hr, 48-hr, and 72-hr spill trajectory forecasts, near the bottom of the page.
Forecast location of the spill at 1800 CDT on Saturday 5/8/2010. 