Send more hair

Gulf oil spill spreads west of mouth of Mississippi

ON THE GULF OF MEXICO -- Streaks of putrid, orange and rust-colored oil snaked well west of the mouth of the Mississippi River in an area that has received less attention.

Here's an NPR story on the nylon and hair booms we read about the other day.

Commercial booms are usually made of plastic. But an alternative source for the booms is found on the floor of salons across the country.

As it turns out, hair adheres to oil pretty efficiently, which is why your hair gets greasy. Now salons are donating their discarded locks to help with the Gulf Coast cleanup.

A group in San Francisco has been producing hair booms for nearly a decade now. Matter of Trust makes nylon stockings stuffed with human hair and trimmed animal fur.

Christmas trees to fight erosion and old hair to fight the oil. Way to "push the technological envelope" guys.