scholarly journals Bottom sediment along oil spill trajectory in Prince William Sound and along Kenai Peninsula, Alaska; Chapter B, Comparison of Exxon Valdez oil with extractable material from deep-water bottom sediment in Prince William Sound and the Gulf of Alaska

1990 ◽  
Author(s):  
John B. Rapp ◽  
Frances D. Hostettler ◽  
Keith A. Kvenvolden
Keyword(s):  
Bottom Sediment ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Deep Water ◽  
Gulf Of Alaska ◽  
Prince William Sound ◽  
Exxon Valdez ◽  
Kenai Peninsula ◽  
Water Bottom

scholarly journals Nine Years After the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill: Effects on Marine Bird Populations in Prince William Sound, Alaska

The Condor ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 102 (4) ◽  
pp. 723-737 ◽  
Author(s):  
David B. Irons ◽  
Steven J. Kendall ◽  
Wallace P. Erickson ◽  
Lyman L. McDonald ◽  
Brian K. Lance
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Prince William Sound ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Exxon Valdez ◽  
Marine Bird ◽  
Marine Birds ◽  
Exxon Valdez Oil Spill ◽  
Positive Effects

Abstract We compared post Exxon Valdez oil-spill densities of marine birds in Prince William Sound from 1989–1991, 1993, 1996, and 1998 to pre-spill densities from 1984–1985. Post-spill densities of several species of marine birds were lower than expected in the oiled area of Prince William Sound when compared to densities in the unoiled area. These negative effects continued through 1998 for five taxa: cormorants, goldeneyes, mergansers, Pigeon Guillemot (Cepphus columba), and murres. Black Oystercatchers (Haematopus bachmani) and Harlequin Ducks (Histrionicus histrionicus) exhibited negative effects in 1990 and 1991. Loons showed a weak negative effect in 1993. Black-legged Kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla) showed relative decreases in 1989, 1996, and 1998 which may have been caused by shifts in foraging distribution rather than declines in populations. Glaucous-winged Gulls (Larus glaucescens) showed positive effects in most post-spill years. Murrelets and terns showed relative increases in 1993, 1996, and 1998. Generally, taxa that dive for their food were negatively affected, whereas taxa that feed at the surface were not. Effects for some taxa were dependent upon the spatial scale at which they were analyzed. Movements of birds and the mosaic pattern of oiling reduced our ability to detect oil-spill effects, therefore our results may be conservative. Several marine bird species were negatively affected at the population level and have not recovered to pre-spill levels nine years after the oil spill. The reason for lack of recovery may be related to persistent oil remaining in the environment and reduced forage fish abundance.

Comparative Toxicities of Polar and Non-Polar Organic Fractions From Sediments Affected By the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill in Prince William Sound, Alaska

1995 ◽  
Vol 10 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 137-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas A. Wolfe ◽  
K. John Scott ◽  
John R. Clayton ◽  
John Lunz ◽  
James R. Payne ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
Prince William Sound ◽  
Exxon Valdez ◽  
Exxon Valdez Oil Spill ◽  
Organic Fractions

BIOLOGICAL CONDITIONS OF SHORELINES FOLLOWING THE EXXON VALDEZ SPILL1

1993 ◽  
Vol 1993 (1) ◽  
pp. 287-292
Author(s):  
Sam W. Stoker ◽  
Jerry M. Neff ◽  
Thomas R. Schroeder ◽  
Deborah M. McCormick
Keyword(s):  
Marine Mammals ◽  
Gulf Of Alaska ◽  
Prince William Sound ◽  
Residual Oil ◽  
Exxon Valdez ◽  
Biological Communities ◽  
Upper Intertidal ◽  
Abundance And Diversity ◽  
Environmentally Sound ◽  
Almost All

ABSTRACT Following the Exxon Valdez oil spill of March 24, 1989, in Prince William Sound, Alaska, Exxon conducted a comprehensive shoreline survey program in cooperation with federal and state authorities. Objectives of surveys during the spring and summer of 1989 were to assess the distribution and magnitude of oiling, to evaluate impacts of the oil on key shoreline biological communities, and to identify ecological and archaeological resources requiring special care during the massive cleanup effort that followed. Similar shoreline surveys were performed during the springs of 1990, 1991, and 1992 on all shorelines in Prince William Sound and the Gulf of Alaska suspected of having residual oil. These subsequent surveys were conducted to provide information on the distribution and amounts of residual shoreline oil and to assess the condition of intertidal biological communities in order to make environmentally sound decisions regarding the need for additional cleanup. The following report is based primarily on survey results from Prince William Sound, where most of the heavy shoreline oiling occurred. Although not strictly quantitative, the shoreline surveys provide an unprecedented, broad base of professional observations covering the entire spill-affected area from 1989 through 1992 by which to evaluate spill impacts and recovery. Shoreline surveys documented that the extent of shoreline oiling declined substantially from 1989 to 1992. In 1989, oil was found on about 16 percent of the 3,000 miles of shoreline in Prince William Sound; by the spring of 1991, oil was found on only about 2 percent of the shoreline; and by May of 1992, on only 0.2 percent. In all years, most of this oil was located in the biologically least productive upper intertidal and supratidal zones. In both 1991 and 1992, small, isolated pockets of subsurface oil were found on some boulder/cobble beaches. Most of these deposits were also located in the upper intertidal and were usually buried beneath clean sediments. In almost all cases, the condition of intertidal biological communities improved correspondingly from 1989 to 1992. By the spring of 1991, recovery appeared to be well under way on virtually all previously oiled shores, with species composition, abundance, and diversity levels usually comparable to those of nearby shores that were not oiled in 1989. Recruitment of intertidal plants and animals was observed as early as the summer of 1989, and increasingly through 1991 and 1992. Recruitment was evident even in areas with remnant deposits of surface and subsurface oil, indicating that toxicity levels of the oil had declined substantially and that, in most cases, the residual oil no longer interfered with biological recovery. Observations of birds and marine mammals on or near shorelines surveyed during 1991 and 1992 confirmed that species present before the spill were still present and were feeding and reproducing in areas affected by oil in 1989. In most cases, observed densities were comparable to those recorded prior to the spill, and to those found in similar unaffected areas.

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