Stylists will ship it to company that says it can be used in Gulf of Mexico

Got hair?

Some people trying to find a solution to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico want it — not all of it, just the clippings from a haircut.

Matter of Trust, an ecological public charity established in 1998 in the San Francisco area, started a program to collect hair clippings and make them into panty hose-stuffed tubes to be formed into booms and placed along the coast to soak up the oil from the current spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

“We shampoo hair because it collects oil. It soaks up skin oils and grabs oil from pollution in the air, so it can soak up petroleum in oil spills,” West Sedona hair dresser Judy Deans said.

Deans and fellow hairdresser Jerry Watkins learned about the campaign to collect hair clippings for the Gulf over the Internet. They and their fellow hairdressers are collecting and packaging the clippings to send to Matter of Trust.

“They tried a boom made from the hair and panty hose in a pool of water. They put in a quart of oil and within 2½ minutes the hair soaked up the oil,” Deans said.

She said Matter of Trust is also making mats with the hair. After the mat absorbs the oil, they put worms on it, and the worms eat the whole thing. Then the worms can turn into compost, Deans said.

“That’s the ultimate recycling, in my mind,” she said.

Deans, Watkins and the others are putting out a challenge to all hair dressers and dog groomers in greater Sedona to collect the hair clippings and ship them to be used in the Gulf of Mexico.

“If they don’t want to ship the hair themselves, they can drop them off,” Deans said.

On April 20, the BP Deepwater Horizon oil drilling rig approximately 50 miles off the coast of Louisiana exploded and spewed oil into the Gulf of Mexico’s waters. The oil has been leaking and spreading since, threatening the coast of several states.

According to a June 1 publication, BP has turned down the hair- and fur-filled booms. BP spokesman Ronald D. Rybarczyk said the company will use a synthetic boom it prefers to use for oil spills instead.

However, Deans said Matter of Trust is still going to collect the clippings and make the booms. They are also collecting fleece, feathers and nylon hosiery — all of which can absorb oil.

“I checked out Matter of Trust, and we were looking for a charitable organization to donate to. This was a great one that will also help the environment,” Watkins said. “With regular booms they sit on top of the water. The hair booms sit lower and absorb more oil.”

Usually, the hair clippings are thrown away; now there’s something that it can be used for, he said.

“We’re not asking anyone for money, just the hair from their regular cut,” Deans said. “Doing something that will help the environment, or protect it is the best thing anyone can do — and with something you normally throw away.”

Watkins said what needs to take place to solve the oil spill problem is less red tape and more action.

“The world keeps shouting ‘green, green, green.’ Now here’s a green solution, why not use it?” Watkins said. “Plus it’s a renewable resource.”

When one woman came in for her regular haircut, Watkins said she told him to take an extra inch after they told her what they are doing with clippings.

Matter of Trust has had a Hair Clippings for Oil Spills program for several years and has been cleaning up oil spills in the San Francisco Bay Area using the booms. Currently, they are shipping clippings to warehouses in Alabama, Florida and Louisiana.

For information or to drop off clippings for shipment, call 282-2475.