Oil spill
An oil spill is a release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment due to human activity, and is a form of pollution. The term often refers to marine oil spills, where oil is released into the ocean or coastal waters. Oil spills include releases of crude oil from tankers, offshore platforms, drilling rigs and wells, as well as spills of refined petroleum products (such as gasoline, diesel) and their by-products, and heavier fuels used by large ships such as bunker fuel, or the spill of any oily white substance refuse or waste oil. Spills may take months or even years to clean up.[1]Oil also enters the marine environment from natural oil seeps.[2] Public attention and regulation has tended to focus most sharply on seagoing oil tankers.Contents
[hide]- 1 Environmental effects
- 2 Cleanup and recovery
- 3 Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) mapping
- 4 Estimating the volume of a spill
- 5 Largest oil spills
- 6 See also
- 7 References
- 8 Further reading
Environmental effects
The oil penetrates into the structure of the plumage of birds, reducing its insulating ability, thus making the birds more vulnerable to temperature fluctuations and much less buoyant in the water. It also impairs birds' flight abilities to forage and escape from predators. As they attempt to preen[disambiguation needed], birds typically ingest oil that covers their feathers, causing kidney damage, altered liver function, and digestive tract irritation. This and the limited foraging ability quickly causes dehydration and metabolic imbalances. Hormonal balance alteration including changes in luteinizing protein can also result in some birds exposed to petroleum.[4]Most birds affected by an oil spill die unless there is human intervention.[5][6] Marine mammalsexposed to oil spills are affected in similar ways as seabirds. Oil coats the fur of Sea otters andseals, reducing its insulation abilities and leading to body temperature fluctuations andhypothermia. Ingestion of the oil causes dehydration and impaired digestions. Because oil floats on top of water, less sunlight penetrates into the water, limiting the photosynthesis of marine plants and phytoplankton. This, as well as decreasing the fauna populations, affects the food chain in the ecosystem.[citation needed] There are three kinds of oil-consuming bacteria. Sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) and acid-producing bacteria are anaerobic, while general aerobic bacteria (GAB) are aerobic. These bacteria occur naturally and will act to remove oil from an ecosystem, and their biomass will tend to replace other populations in the food chain.See also
- Environmental issues with petroleum
- Environmental issues with shipping
- List of oil spills
- LNG spill
- Low-temperature thermal desorption
- National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan
- Ohmsett (Oil and Hazardous Materials Simulated Environmental Test Tank)
- Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (in the US)
- Oil well
- Penguin sweater
- Project Deep Spill, the first intentional deepwater oil and gas spill
- Pseudomonas putida (used for degrading oil)
- S-200 (fertilizer)
- Spill containment
- Tarball
Contents
[hide]Environmental effects
The oil penetrates into the structure of the plumage of birds, reducing its insulating ability, thus making the birds more vulnerable to temperature fluctuations and much less buoyant in the water. It also impairs birds' flight abilities to forage and escape from predators. As they attempt to preen[disambiguation needed], birds typically ingest oil that covers their feathers, causing kidney damage, altered liver function, and digestive tract irritation. This and the limited foraging ability quickly causes dehydration and metabolic imbalances. Hormonal balance alteration including changes in luteinizing protein can also result in some birds exposed to petroleum.[4]
Most birds affected by an oil spill die unless there is human intervention.[5][6] Marine mammalsexposed to oil spills are affected in similar ways as seabirds. Oil coats the fur of Sea otters andseals, reducing its insulation abilities and leading to body temperature fluctuations andhypothermia. Ingestion of the oil causes dehydration and impaired digestions. Because oil floats on top of water, less sunlight penetrates into the water, limiting the photosynthesis of marine plants and phytoplankton. This, as well as decreasing the fauna populations, affects the food chain in the ecosystem.[citation needed] There are three kinds of oil-consuming bacteria. Sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) and acid-producing bacteria are anaerobic, while general aerobic bacteria (GAB) are aerobic. These bacteria occur naturally and will act to remove oil from an ecosystem, and their biomass will tend to replace other populations in the food chain.
See also
- Environmental issues with petroleum
- Environmental issues with shipping
- List of oil spills
- LNG spill
- Low-temperature thermal desorption
- National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan
- Ohmsett (Oil and Hazardous Materials Simulated Environmental Test Tank)
- Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (in the US)
- Oil well
- Penguin sweater
- Project Deep Spill, the first intentional deepwater oil and gas spill
- Pseudomonas putida (used for degrading oil)
- S-200 (fertilizer)
- Spill containment
- Tarball
