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History Of Oil Spills In Australia

There was absolutely devastating damage to the ecosystems of Alaska caused by the Exxon Valdez tragedy. The crude oil covered a huge area of 460 miles in total, with 1300 miles of affected coastlines. 200 of these miles were affected very heavily. Over 11000000 gallons of oil escaped from the tanker and devastated the wildlife, mainly marine.
Carcasses of organisms killed by oil usually sink to the floor of the ocean, so no-one knows how many organisms were killed. Estimates soar at 250000 sea birds, 2800 sea otters, 300 harbor seals, 250 bald eagles, up to 22 killer whales and billions of salmon and herring eggs. The food webs were understandably disrupted, with all levels of consumers and producers being affected. The oil created a film over the water, through which neither oxygen nor light could penetrate. Without enough light, the producers in the environment could not photosynthesize, depriving all the organisms in the vicinity of food. The consumers could not breathe if they lived underwater, with the oil blocking the oxygen from the water. With so many eggs being destroyed, the populations of those fish are still recovering.

After the spill on March 24, a trial burn was conducted. A suitably uninhabited area was surrounded by a fireproof boom and lit. The burn worked relatively successfully, but weather conditions (i.e. storms) prevented any more burns during the clean up. After the burn, mechanical help was called in, with ships trailing massive booms and skimmers. The skimmers were not readily available for 24 hours after the spill however, and got clogged by the thick oil and kelp. The thickness and weight of the oil also made transporting it to permanent storage areas difficult. Dispersants were also trialed (i.e. chemicals which separated the oil as does detergent) but due to the lack of dispersants available in Alaska (only 15 000L), the lack of boats, aeroplanes and helicopters and the lack of waves to mix the chemicals with the oil, this method...