

Attention scientists: A consensus statement opposing any further dispersant use in the Gulf is ready for signatures. Read it here, and sign on by emailing kcoker@meriresearch.org. Include your name, degree, title, affiliation and contact info. Your comments are welcome! View the press release here.
Countless gallons of toxic crude oil and dispersants have poisoned the Gulf of Mexico. With 20 years of experience tracking toxins in the ocean food web, MERI brings critical expertise to the crisis.
MERI's director, Dr. Susan Shaw, is a marine toxicologist. She dove in the oil slick in May to witness impacts first hand, and has since become an influential voice in the media and scientific community on the impacts of the oil and dispersant mix.
Learn Why Dispersants Are Harmful
MERI stands with many marine scientists in opposing the use of toxic dispersants in the Gulf. Oil and dispersants combined are more toxic than either alone.
Read Dr. Shaw's op-ed in the New York Times to learn about the dispersant Corexit. Visit our news page to read articles and listen to interviews in which she explains the impact dispersants have on every level of the ocean food web.
Support MERI's proposal for independent research
To assure that short- and long-term impacts of toxins in the Gulf of Mexico are fully understood, MERI is calling for an independent, collaborative investigation that will examine effects at every level--from phytoplankton, fish, and birds, to marine mammals and humans. Learn more here.