Exxon Valdez oil spill and

Gulf of Mexico oil spill

By: Felipe Luna.

Mariana Hurtado

Exxon Valdez oil spill:

• It occurred in Prince William Sound, Alaska, on March 24, 1989.

• An Exxon Valdez oil tanker hit Prince William Sound’s Bligh Reef.

• The oil tanker spilled an estimate minimum 10.8 million of gallons of crude oil.

• This oil spill is considerated one of the most devastating human-caused in environmental disasters.

• A study from NOAA concluded that this contamination can produce chronic low-level exposure, where the contamination is heavy and decrease de ‘wilderness character' of the area.

Cleanup measures:

• There was not enough waves to mix the oil and to make it disappear, so the first cleanup measure was to send an helicopter with a dispersant bucket; they also tried an explotion, it was kind of successful because it reduced 113,400 liters of oil to 1,134 liters of removable resource.

• Mechanical cleanup was started shortly afterwards using booms and skimmers.

• They also tried to displace oil with high-preassure and hot water, but this affected a lot the microscopic populations.

• 11,000 Alaska residents and some Exxon employees worked to restore the environment.

Consequences in the environment:

• Thousands of animal died immediately.• Some of them were: 250,000 seabirds, 2,800 sea

otters, approximately 12 river otters, 300 harbor seals, 247 bald eagles and 22 orcas.

• They destroyed billion of salmon and herring eggs.• Some reductions in population have been seen in

various ocean animals, including growth in pink salmon populations; in the following years there were several deaths in sea otters and ducks populations.

• 20 years later a group of scientists studied this oil spill once again and they discover that it will take approximately 30 years to recover some habitats.

Gulf of Mexico oil spill:

• It is also called the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.• Is a massive ongoing oil spill that started with an oil well

blowout on April 20,2010; it caused an explotion.• Eleven workers from platforms are missing and presumed

dead.• It’s originated 5,000 feet below the ocean floor.• On May 15, researchers discovered that there are immense

underwater plumes of oil, not visible from surface.• It is expected to eclipse the Exxon Valdez oil spill as the

worst US oil disaster in history.• It started with an explotion and a fire at 9:45 p.m and the

survivors said that the fire gave them less than five minutes to scape.

Consequences:

• More than 400 species live in the islands and marshlands at risk of being coated in oil, including the endangered Kemp’s Ridley turtle, whales and dolphins.

• About 34,000 birds were counted, including species like: gulls, pelicans, egrets, blue herons, and others.

• By April 30, oil begin washing up to wildlife refuges and seafood grounds.

• It is possible that the Gulf Stream spread oil to the Atlantic ocean.