finally be within reach. bp officials say the static kill operation appears to be working. crews are stopped pumping mud down the well, and are now monitoring it to make sure that the sealed leak is holding. if so, the next stop would be to permanently plug it by pumping concrete through a relief well. that's still several days away. meanwhile, lawmakers are demanding answers on how that spill has been handled, and whether dispersants have created a danger all on their own. the environmental protection agency will be in the spotlight at the joint senate hearing, which gets under way next hour. at the top of the hour, we're expecting the government to make a rather startling announcement. as bad as the environmental damage is, it's not likely to get worse. let me show you why. here's a breakdown of where the oil has gone. the national oceanic and atmospheric association actually crunched the numbers and gave a sneak peek to the "new york times." noaa says that 1/4 of all the oil that's gushed out of the