Exxon Valdez expert Riki Ott tells Florida to dig in for a protracted legal, environmental battle

All about The Network

Tuesday, July 27, 2010 at 03:19PM

With a degree in marine toxicology and a few summers’ experience working on a salmon boat, Riki Ott was uniquely qualified to help the fishing communities of southern Alaska battle a giant oil company after the Exxon Valdez spill threatened their way of life.

She did not realize the fight would last for decades. The lawsuits have only recently been settled, the Prince William Sound is still recovering and people who made their living fishing its waters are still struggling to pay off debts from the years when their fishing licenses were nearly worthless.

Since early May, Ott has been touring the area around the Gulf of Mexico, to share the lessons she learned during more than 20 years of advocacy and to bring together victims of a disaster that can turn neighbor against neighbor.

She spoke to the public twice in Tallahassee and, as well as in Crawfordville and Apalachicola. She also met with fishermen, environmentalists and members of the Leon County Commission.