Coping with oil spills: oil exposure and anxiety among residents of Gulf Coast states after the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill

In April 2010, a fatal explosion on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico resulted in the largest marine oil spill in history. This research describes the association of oil exposure with anxiety after the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and evaluates effect modification by self-mastery, emotional support and cleanup participation. To assess the impacts of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) conducted the Gulf States Population Survey (GSPS), a random-digit-dial telephone cross-sectional survey completed between December 2010 and December 2011 with 38,361 responses in four different Gulf Coast states: Louisiana, Florida, Alabama and Mississippi. Anxiety severity was measured using the Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD) symptom inventory. We used Tobit regression to model underlying anxiety as a function of oil exposure and hypothesised effect modifiers, adjusting for socio-demographics. Latent anxiety was higher among those with direct contact with oil than among those who did not have direct contact with oil in confounder-adjusted models [β = 2.84, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.78, 4.91]. Among individuals with direct contact with oil, there was no significant interaction between participating in cleanup activities and emotional support for anxiety (p = 0.20). However, among those with direct contact with oil, in confounder-adjusted models, participation in oil spill cleanup activities was associated with lower latent anxiety (β = −3.55, 95% CI: −6.15, −0.95). Oil contact was associated with greater anxiety, but this association appeared to be mitigated by cleanup participation

‘Green’ on the ground but not in the air: Pro-environmental attitudes are related to household behaviours but not discretionary air travel

The rise in greenhouse gas emissions from air travel could be reduced by individuals voluntarily abstaining from, or reducing, flights for leisure and recreational purposes. In theory, we might expect that people with pro-environmental value orientations and concerns about the risks of climate change, and those who engage in more pro-environmental household behaviours, would also be more likely to abstain from such voluntary air travel, or at least to fly less far. Analysis of two large datasets from the United Kingdom, weighted to be representative of the whole population, tested these associations. Using zero-inflated Poisson regression models, we found that, after accounting for potential confounders, there was no association between individuals’ environmental attitudes, concern over climate change, or their routine pro-environmental household behaviours, and either their propensity to take non-work related flights, or the distances flown by those who do so. These findings contrasted with those for pro-environmental household behaviours, where associations with environmental attitudes and concern were observed. Our results offer little encouragement for policies aiming to reduce discretionary air travel through pro-environmental advocacy, or through ‘spill-over’ from interventions to improve environmental impacts of household routines

Exposure patterns among coast guard responders to the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: A latent class analysis

Background: The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill was an environmental crisis for which multiple groups, including the United States Coast Guard (USCG), provided emergency response services. A cohort of 5,665 USCG oil spill responders completed postdeployment surveys eliciting information on a variety of topics, including oil spill-related exposures and experiences. Our objective was to determine the most common exposure patterns among USCG responders. Methods: We used latent class analysis based on six indicator variables reflecting different aspects of the responders' experiences: exposure to oil, exposure to engine exhaust fumes or carbon monoxide, hand sanitizer use, sunblock use, mosquito bites, and level of anxiety. We validated our interpretation of these latent classes using ancillary variables. Results: The model distinguished four distinct exposure profiles, which we interpreted as "low overall exposure" (prevalence estimate = 0.18), "low crude oil/exhaust and moderate time outdoors/anxiety (prevalence estimate = 0.18), "high crude oil/exhaust and moderate time outdoors/anxiety" (prevalence estimate = 0.25), and "high overall exposure" (prevalence estimate = 0.38). The validation analysis was consistent with our interpretation of the latent classes. Conclusions: The exposure patterns identified in this analysis can help inform future studies of the health impacts of exposure mixtures among USCG oil spill responders