scholarly journals COMPARATIVE COSTS OF OIL SPILL CLEANUP TECHNIQUES1

1987 ◽  
Vol 1987 (1) ◽  
pp. 123-127 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. H. Moller ◽  
H. D. Parker ◽  
J. A. Nichols
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Effective Option ◽  
Oil Spill Cleanup ◽  
Pollution Spill ◽  
Oil Type ◽  
Mechanical Recovery

ABSTRACT This paper examines the costs of various cleanup techniques, drawing mainly on information from recent oil spills from ships. Analyses of the costs for dispersant application and for the use of offshore mechanical recovery equipment are compared in relation to their effectiveness and scope for reducing shoreline cleanup costs and damage from oil pollution. Spill size, oil type, coastline character, and the extent of pollution all contribute to the observed differences in shoreline cleanup and disposal costs. The influence of these factors is evaluated and criteria are proposed for selecting the most appropriate cleanup response to suit the circumstancees of a particular oil spill. On occasions, a response at sea is both necessary and worthwhile, but for most spills shoreline cleanup, including protection of sensitive resources, is likely to be the most cost-effective option.

Limited Oil Spills In Harbor Areas

1969 ◽  
Vol 1969 (1) ◽  
pp. 151-156
Author(s):  
J. Stephen Dorrler
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
East Coast ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Complete Removal ◽  
Long Beach ◽  
Physical Conditions ◽  
Oil Spillage ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Oil Spill Cleanup

Abstract When compared on an individual basis to major oil pollution disasters, the average Navy oil spillage incident seems insignificant. However, when the cleanup costs are tallied, these limited oil spills do not appear so small. For example, a one barrel oil spill, discharged from a destroyer berthed at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard, took nine laborers, a boat operator, a truck driver, a crane operator and a supervisor one and a half days to clean up at a cost of $1,300. On the East Coast, the Norfolk Naval Shipyard spends approximately $1,000 an incident in its oil spill cleanup operations. These spills vary between 50 and 500 gallons. From the presented data which defines the limited oil spill, three general statements are derived:1. Limited oil spills are a large problem due to their numerous occurrences.2. Limited oil spills require proper treatment.3. Limited oil spills are expensive to treat. This paper investigates this last statement and by so doing discloses the actual problems which contribute to the high cost of cleaning up limited oil spills. Three factors are discussed:1. The physical conditions affecting an oil spill.,a. Location of the slick,b. Oil Slick Movement,(1) Spreading,(2) Weather, wind and current effects,2. The type of equipment employed.,a. Booms,b. Chemical Dispersants,c. Physical Removal,(1) Skimmers,(2) Straws,3. The completeness of the removal operation. The limited harbor oil spill is expensive and the cost is expected to rise. At the present time, the typical oil spill costs the Navy over $1,000 to clean up. This cost will increase as control agencies rightfully require more removal and more complete removal.

NATURAL RECOVERY: A PRACTICAL NATURAL RESOURCE RESTORATION OPTION FOLLOWING OIL SPILLS

1997 ◽  
Vol 1997 (1) ◽  
pp. 665-668 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew E. Jahn ◽  
Gordon A. Robilliard
Keyword(s):  
Natural Resources ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Anthropogenic Disturbances ◽  
Human Intervention ◽  
Natural Recovery ◽  
Biological Communities ◽  
Active Restoration

ABSTRACT This paper evaluates the role of natural recovery in the restoration of populations, communities, and ecosystems following natural and anthropogenic disturbances, especially oil spills. Under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, options for the restoration of natural resources and services injured by oil spills range from natural recovery to aggressive methods requiring human intervention. Natural recovery is defined herein as the return of natural resources to a dynamic baseline with no active human intervention. Populations, communities, and ecosystems are a product of biological responses to a wide variety of natural and anthropogenic disturbances. In an oil spill, biological communities will generally recover naturally to baseline conditions about as quickly and effectively as they will with active human interventions, and at a lower cost and lower commitment of people, equipment, and materials. Therefore, natural recovery should be considered a primary restoration alternative for each oil spill incident. Natural recovery should also be the standard or benchmark restoration alternative against which all active restoration alternatives are compared for cost-effectiveness and probable success in restoring natural resources and services. We conclude that natural recovery is a cost-effective, efficient process that, in most oil spills, restores natural resources to baseline about as quickly as would the most aggressive active restoration alternative.

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE AVAILABILITY OF APPROPRIATE RESTORATION PROJECTS AND INJURY ASSESSMENT

2008 ◽  
Vol 2008 (1) ◽  
pp. 1171-1174
Author(s):  
John Kern ◽  
Lisa Dipinto ◽  
John Rapp
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
Natural Resource ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Geographic Location ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Restoration Planning ◽  
Natural Resource Damage Assessment ◽  
Injury Assessment ◽  
The Relationship

ABSTRACT The natural resource damage assessment (NRDA) process under the Oil Pollution Act regulations is restoration-focused. In order to proceed with a NRDA after Preassessment Phase activities are completed, the natural resource trustees must determine that feasible restoration actions are available to address the potential injuries resulting from the discharge of oil. If this determination is made, the trustees can move forward and conduct injury assessment and injury quantification as part of the Restoration Planning Phase. The availability of appropriate restoration alternatives for natural resources can have a profound effect on the nature of both injury assessment and injury quantification that is necessary for a particular oil spill. This paper examines that relationship, using some examples from settled oil spill NRDA cases to illustrate how the availability of appropriate and cost-effective restoration alternatives can reduce the overall cost of a NRDA and the length of time necessary to reach an appropriate settlement. The type of restoration and the degree to which it is scaleable can also influence both cost and time to reach settlement. It also discusses some of the factors that are important in determining to what degree restoration opportunities influence the injury assessment and quantification process for oil spills, including geographic location, previous experience with similar spills, and the degree of cooperation that exists between the trustees and the responsible party.

scholarly journals Characterization of microbial response to petroleum hydrocarbon contamination in a lacustrine ecosystem

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emilio D’Ugo ◽  
Milena Bruno ◽  
Arghya Mukherjee ◽  
Dhrubajyoti Chattopadhyay ◽  
Roberto Giuseppetti ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
Petroleum Hydrocarbon ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Primary Source ◽  
Hydrocarbon Contamination ◽  
Petroleum Hydrocarbon Contamination ◽  
Microbial Response ◽  
Pollution Event ◽  
Hydrocarbonoclastic Potential

AbstractMicrobiomes of freshwater basins intended for human use remain poorly studied, with very little known about the microbial response to in situ oil spills. Lake Pertusillo is an artificial freshwater reservoir in Basilicata, Italy, and serves as the primary source of drinking water for more than one and a half million people in the region. Notably, it is located in close proximity to one of the largest oil extraction plants in Europe. The lake suffered a major oil spill in 2017, where approximately 400 tons of crude oil spilled into the lake; importantly, the pollution event provided a rare opportunity to study how the lacustrine microbiome responds to petroleum hydrocarbon contamination. Water samples were collected from Lake Pertusillo 10 months prior to and 3 months after the accident. The presence of hydrocarbons was verified and the taxonomic and functional aspects of the lake microbiome were assessed. The analysis revealed specialized successional patterns of lake microbial communities that were potentially capable of degrading complex, recalcitrant hydrocarbons, including aromatic, chloroaromatic, nitroaromatic, and sulfur containing aromatic hydrocarbons. Our findings indicated that changes in the freshwater microbial community were associated with the oil pollution event, where microbial patterns identified in the lacustrine microbiome 3 months after the oil spill were representative of its hydrocarbonoclastic potential and may serve as effective proxies for lacustrine oil pollution.

Analyses of Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Intertidal Sediments Resulting from Two Spills of No. 2 Fuel Oil in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts

1978 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
pp. 510-520 ◽  
Author(s):  
John M. Teal ◽  
Kathryn Burns ◽  
John Farrington
Keyword(s):  
Gas Chromatography ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Aromatic Hydrocarbons ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Fuel Oil ◽  
Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry ◽  
Glass Capillary ◽  
Marsh Sediments ◽  
Insight Into

We have analyzed the two- and three-ring aromatic hydrocarbons from the Wild Harbor oil spill in September 1969 and the Winsor Cove oil spill in October 1974, in intertidal marsh sediments, using glass capillary gas-chromatographic and mass-fragmentographic analyses. Naphthalenes with 0–3 alkyl substitutions and phenanthrenes with 0–2 substitutions decreased in concentration with time in surface sediments. The more substituted aromatics decreased relatively less and in some cases actually increased in absolute concentration. The changes in composition of the aromatic fraction have potential consequences for the ecosystem and provide insight into geochemical processes of oil weathering. Key words: oil pollution, aromatic hydrocarbons; gas chromatography; gas chromatography–mass spectrometry; geochemistry; marsh; sediments; oil spills

scholarly journals Oil spill remote monitoring by using remotely piloted aircraft

2019 ◽  
Vol 91 (4) ◽  
pp. 648-653
Author(s):  
Aleksandrs Urbahs ◽  
Vladislavs Zavtkevics
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Multispectral Imaging ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Thickness Measurement ◽  
Quality Data ◽  
Atmospheric Conditions ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Remotely Piloted Aircraft

Purpose This paper aims to analyze the application of remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) for remote oil spill sensing. Design/methodology/approach This paper is an analysis of RPA strong points. Findings To increase the accuracy and eliminate potentially false contamination detection, which can be caused by external factors, an oil thickness measurement algorithm is used with the help of the multispectral imaging that provides high accuracy and is versatile for any areas of water and various meteorological and atmospheric conditions. Research limitations/implications SWOT analysis of implementation of RPA for remote sensing of oil spills. Practical implications The use of RPA will improve the remote sensing of oil spills. Social implications The concept of oil spills monitoring needs to be developed for quality data collection, oil pollution control and emergency response. Originality/value The research covers the development of a method and design of a device intended for taking samples and determining the presence of oil contamination in an aquatorium area; the procedure includes taking a sample from the water surface, preparing it for transportation and delivering the sample to a designated location by using the RPA. The objective is to carry out the analysis of remote oil spill sensing using RPA. The RPA provides a reliable sensing of oil pollution with significant advantages over other existing methods. The objective is to analyze the use of RPA employing all of their strong points. In this paper, technical aspects of sensors are analyzed, as well as their advantages and limitations.

“An Inevitable Consequence:” Changing Ideas of Prevention in the Wake of Catastrophic Events

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (4) ◽  
pp. 412-438
Author(s):  
TERESA SABOL SPEZIO
Keyword(s):  
Greenhouse Gases ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Industry ◽  
Visual Evidence ◽  
The Face ◽  
Policy Transformation ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
Oil Spill Cleanup ◽  
Spilled Oil

AbstractIn the face of technology failures in preventing oil from reaching beaches and coasts after catastrophic oil spills in the 1960s and early 1970s, the oil industry and governmental officials needed to quickly reconsider their idea of prevention. Initially, prevention meant stopping spilled oil from coating beaches and coasts. Exploring the presentations at three oil-spill conferences in 1969, 1971 and 1973, this idea of prevention changed as the technological optimism of finding effective methods met the realities of oil-spill cleanup. By 1973, prevention meant stopping oil spills before they happened. This rapid policy transformation came about because the oil industry could not hide the visual evidence of the source of their technology failures. In this century, as policymakers confront invisible pollutants such as pesticides and greenhouse gases, considering ways to visually show the source of the pollution along with the effects could quicken policy decisions.

OIL SPILL CLEANUP WITH DISPERSANTS: A BOOMED OIL SPILL EXPERIMENT

1981 ◽  
Vol 1981 (1) ◽  
pp. 263-268
Author(s):  
Joseph Buckley ◽  
David Green ◽  
Blair Humphrey
Keyword(s):  
Water Column ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Sea Water ◽  
Visual Observation ◽  
Oil Droplets ◽  
Oil Boom ◽  
Dispersed Oil ◽  
Vertical Density ◽  
Oil Spill Cleanup

ABSTRACT Three experimental oil spills of 200, 400, and 200 litres (l) were conducted in October, 1978, in a semiprotected coastal area on Canada's west coast. The surface slicks were restrained with a Bennett inshore oil boom. The spilled oil was chemically dispersed using Corexit 9527, applied as a 10-percent solution in sea water and sprayed from a boat. The dispersed oil was monitored fluorometrically for some hours. Surface and dispersed oil were sampled for chemical analysis. The highest recorded concentration of dispersed oil was 1 part per million (ppm). After a short time (30 minutes), concentrations around 0.05 ppm were normal, decreasing to background within 5 hours. The concentrations were low compared to those expected for complete dispersion which, as visual observation confirmed, was not achieved. The dispersed oil did not mix deeper into the water column with the passage of time, in contrast to predicted behaviour and in spite of the lack of a significant vertical density gradient in the sea water. This was attributed to the buoyancy of the dispersed oil droplets and the limited vertical turbulence in the coastal locale of the experiment. The integrated quantity of oil in the water column decreased more rapidly than either the mean oil concentration of the cloud or the maximum concentration indicating that some of the dispersed oil was rising back to the surface. The surfacing of dispersed oil was confirmed visually during the experiment. The mixing action of the spray boat and breaker boards apparently created large oil droplets that did not form a stable dispersion. Horizontal diffusion of the dispersed oil was initially more rapid than expected, but the rate of spreading did not increase with time as predicted. The results imply that the scale of diffusion was larger than the scale of turbulence which again can be attributed to the locale of the experiment.

OIL SPILL STRATEGY IN THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF GERMANY: NEW TECHNICAL DEVELOPMENTS IN MECHANICAL SPILL RESPONSE

1989 ◽  
Vol 1989 (1) ◽  
pp. 265-271
Author(s):  
Klaus Schroh
Keyword(s):  
Federal Republic ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Oil Recovery ◽  
Wadden Sea ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Federal Republic Of Germany ◽  
Technical Developments ◽  
Wave Heights ◽  
And Control

ABSTRACT Prevention and control of oil spills in the Federal Republic of Germany are based on an agreement between the federal government and the four coastal states. Comprehensive procurement and reconstruction programs for oil pollution personnel and equipment are realized and finalized within two years. The Federal Minister for Research and Technology contributed substantially toward using advanced oil spill response techniques at sea and for shoreline cleanup. Since the particular ecological conditions of the Wadden Sea on the German coastline greatly limit dispersant application, main emphasis was given to developing recovery systems meeting the following requirements:An extended scope of mechanical application at sea, for wave heights exceeding 1.2 m (4 feet)New types of recovery vessels with multiple functions, like bunkering services and floating reception facilitiesOil recovery with self-driven vessels for shallow waters close to the coastline and embankmentsDesign of an amphibious chain-driven vehicle for oil recovery in Wadden Sea areas. With the integration of these new types of oil recovery vessels or systems the German recovery fleet now consists of 6 high-sea-going vessels and 14 recovery vessel devices for shoreline cleanup.

PREVENTIVE SALVAGE: THE GAP IN OPA POLLUTION DEFENSES

1993 ◽  
Vol 1993 (1) ◽  
pp. 659-661
Author(s):  
John Arnold Witte
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
The United States ◽  
Strong Emphasis ◽  
The World ◽  
Oil Spill Cleanup ◽  
Marine Environmental

ABSTRACT Despite the strong emphasis on oil spill cleanup in the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, the United States still faces a major gap in its defenses against oil pollution: the lack of adequate professional ship salvage capability. Availability of preventive salvage capability would contribute to the most effective way of preventing a marine environmental catastrophe: keeping the oil, or chemicals, in the ship. This is especially important in view of the increasing age of the world tanker fleet.

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