The cost to the Gulf states’ tourism industry alone could be $22.7 billion, according to a study commissioned by the U.S. Travel Association. The outlook for the region’s fishing and drilling industries is also pretty bleak.

BP, meanwhile, has already spent $4 billion trying to clean up the mess.

CNN:

The effects of the oil spill on the region’s travel industry could last up to three years and cost up to $22.7 billion, according to the study released Thursday.

In preparing the research, Oxford Economics looked at current spending, government models predicting oil flow and the effect of 25 past crises on tourism to develop a model to gauge the Gulf disaster’s impact, according to Adam Sacks, managing director for Oxford Economics.

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