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Tom, he did take a pay cut, like most of the guys did. his boat has not been working so he's been a team player with the understanding that we will be back to work one time and we all got to cut where we can. so the boats that aren't working are taking a 10% pay cut while they're docking the guys that are not having to sit in the dock are getting paid a little more because they're actually out there working every day. >> a lot of people tightened their belts over this. the last time we talked, you were worried these boats are very expensive, costs a lot of money just to keep in the water every...

It is so distinct. can you see it on camera. it is unbelievable truly remarkable. what is oil under the surface of the sand. it glows in the dark but how toxic is the sand? >> is it a problem for us to be in contact with the oil in the sand? the answer is i don't know. >> reporter: why hasn't somebody tested that? >> same question i've been asking for six weeks. >> reporter: so we decided to get it tested with the help of a scientist from the university of west florida. getting a good average requires taking samples in different spots at different depths. all right, let's take it back to the l...

I hope you can because in the nak eye it is unbelievable. truly rackable. that right there is oil underneath the surface of the sand. it glows in the dark but just how toxic is this sand. >> is it a problem for us to be in contact with this petroleum product that's now mixed in with the sand? the answer to that question is -- i don't know. >> why hasn't somebody tested that? >> same question i've been asking for about six weeks. >> reporter: so we decided to get it tested with the help of the scientists from the university of west florida. getting a good average requires taking samples in diff...

Credit for, banged around the water pretty good and maybe dispersed it further. dispersed oil doesn't mean it is gone. it is still in the water, it is just floating around. but the natural biodegradation process is going to take hold as well and just because we can see it doesn't mean it's not there. it is still going to take years before the gulf is back to where it should be. >> rob marciano for us this morning, thanks so much. unfortunately, another problem though off the coast of louisiana this morning. another well leaking oil. a barge crashed into an abandoned well. it happened yesterd...

Rescued in the face of an oily death. but according to a coast guard official, the worst may not be behind us. >> i had over 800 skimmers out yesterday and across the entire region. they've only recovered one darryl of recoverable oil so the oil really is in its final life cycle. it is starting to break down quite rapidly. where it will pose each day less and less of a threat to the environment. >> because of what we can't see, it could be months, even years before we know the full extent of the damage that's been done to the gulf of mexico. >> rob marciano is live for us in ft. pickens, flori...