OK, let’s take a moment to not bash Tony Hayward and BP (or at least I’ll try).

This is about the poor, defenseless sea animals of the Gulf: the sea turtles, the countless fish, shrimp and crustaceans, the sea gulls that fly about and yes, that yellow sponge that lives in a pineapple under the sea.

The first thing you may ask is: where does Spongebob live? If you ask me, he’s got to live in the Gulf. Remember the time Sandy wanted to go back home to Texas? She almost went but didn’t go after realizing how much her Bikini Bottom friends loved her.

The Texas coastline is bordered by the Gulf of Mexico. Bikini Bottom must be somewhere near Texas. It must be in the Gulf.

And yes, sponges do live in the Gulf, such as the Boring sponge, a bright yellow sponge (sound familiar?) that exhibits the pumping of water through holes on its body.

Hey, didn’t Spongebob cry through those holes in his body once?

Now that I’ve clearly established that Spongebob lives in the Gulf of Mexico, I can explain how the BP oil spill is affecting him and all those pals of his in Bikini Bottom and the rest of the Gulf.

More than 8,000 species of animals live in the Gulf region, including an endangered species of turtles and several bird species. As recent as June 23, more than 1,000 birds, 407 sea turtles and 47 dolphins have been found dead in the Gulf.

Harry Roberts, a professor at LSU said, “The oil spill could be enough to wipe out marine life deep at sea near the location of the spill and along hundreds of miles of coastline.”

Mark Saito, a scientist in Massachusetts said, “(the oil spill) may alter the chemistry of the sea, with unforeseeable results.”

Some of the affected sea animals play a part in the tourism and fishing industries of the Gulf region. The Louisiana Department of Health has closed several of the state’s oyster beds, citing oil as the reason for the closure. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) closed commercial and recreational fishing areas between the mouth of the Mississippi River and Pensacola Bay.

These fishery closures have been estimated to be a loss of $2.5 billion. The economic impact of the closure of several fi shing areas will be felt by humans for years to come.

When it’s all said and done, the BP oil spill, off course, won’t do anything to the fictional Bikini Bottom. The oil spill has caused tons of damage to the undersea environment for countless numbers of sea animals. These animals have the right to live decent lives and not die at the hands of us humans.

There are several ways that we can all help with this problem. Check out the government websites of states like Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. There are also sites that gather information about legit charities that are helping with the disaster, such the Impact Your World section of CNN.com.

We must all work together to find ways to help with this oil spill disaster, not only for ourselves and our pockets, but also the animals.

I’d hate to have to tell a kid that BP killed Spongebob.