............................................................................................................................................
5 Environmental Consequences of Oil Spills
By Larry West
Oil
spills caused by damaged tankers, pipelines, or offshore oil rigs often result
in immediate and long-term environmental damage that can last for decades.
These are
among the most notable areas of environmental damage caused by spills:
Beaches,
Marshlands, and Fragile Aquatic Ecosystems
Oil
spills coat everything they touch and become unwelcome but long-term parts of
every ecosystem they enter.
When an
oil slick from a large spill reaches a beach, oil coats and clings to every
rock and grain of sand.
If the
oil washes into coastal marshes, mangrove forests, or other wetlands, fibrous
plants and grasses absorb oil, which can damage plants and make the area
unsuitable as wildlife habitat.
When oil
eventually stops floating on the water's surface and begins to sink into the
marine environment, it can have similar damaging effects on fragile underwater
ecosystems, killing or contaminating fish and smaller organisms that are
essential links in the global food chain.
Despite
massive clean-up efforts following the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill, for
example, a 2007 study conducted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA) found that 26,000 gallons of oil were still trapped in
the sand along the Alaska shoreline.
Scientists
conducting the study determined that residual oil was declining at less than 4
percent annually.
Birds
Oil-covered
birds are a universal symbol of environmental damage wreaked by oil spills.
Some
species of shore birds might escape by relocating if they sense danger in time,
but sea birds that swim and dive for their food are most likely to be covered
in oil following a spill.
Oil
spills also damage nesting grounds, potentially causing serious long-term
effects on entire species.
The 2010
BP Deepwater Horizon offshore oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, for example,
occurred during prime mating and nesting season for many bird and marine
species, and long-term environmental consequences of that spill won't be known
for years.
Oil
spills can disrupt migratory patterns by contaminating areas where migrating
birds normally stop.
Even a
small amount of oil can be deadly to a bird.
By
coating feathers, oil not only makes flying impossible but also destroys birds'
natural waterproofing and insulation, leaving them vulnerable to hypothermia or
overheating.
As birds
frantically preen their feathers to restore their natural protections, they
often swallow oil, which can severely damage their internal organs and lead to
death.
The best
estimate of the Exxon Valdez oil spill is that it killed 250,000 seabirds.
Marine
Mammals
Oil
spills frequently kill marine mammals such as whales, dolphins, seals, and sea
otters.
Oil can
clog blowholes of whales and dolphins, making it impossible for them to breathe
properly and disrupting their ability to communicate.
Even when
marine mammals escape the immediate effects, an oil spill can contaminate their
food supply.
Marine
mammals that eat fish or other food exposed to an oil spill may be poisoned by
oil and die or experience other problems.
The Exxon
Valdez oil spill killed 2,800 sea otters, 300 harbor seals, and up to 22 killer
whales.
In the
years after the Exxon Valdez spill, scientists noted higher death rates among
sea otters and other species affected by the spill and stunted growth or other
damage among additional species.
Thirty-five
years after the disaster, researchers have found that the Prince William Sound
ecosystem seems to have finally recovered, and localized effects on sea otters
appear to have been resolved.
Fish
Oil
spills often take a deadly toll on fish, shellfish, and other marine life,
particularly if many fish eggs or larvae are exposed to oil.
Shrimp
and oyster fisheries along the Louisiana coast were among early casualties of
the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Similarly,
the Exxon Valdez spill destroyed billions of salmon and herring eggs.2 Fisheries impacted by the Exxon Valdez took over three decades to
recover.
Wildlife
Habitat and Breeding Grounds
Long-term
damage to species and their habitats and nesting or breeding grounds is one of
the most far-reaching environmental effects caused by oil spills.
Even
species that spend most of their lives at sea, such as various species of sea
turtles, must come ashore to nest.
Sea
turtles can be harmed by oil they encounter in the water or on the beach where
they lay their eggs, their eggs can be damaged by oil and fail to develop
properly, and newly hatched turtles may be oiled as they scurry toward the
ocean across an oily beach.
Ultimately,
the severity of environmental damage caused by an oil spill depends on many
factors, including the amount of oil spilled, type and weight of oil, location
of the spill, species of wildlife in the area, timing of breeding cycles and
seasonal migrations, and even the weather at sea during and after the oil
spill.
Larry West
Environmental Journalist
Education
B.A., Journalism and Creative Writing,
University of Washington
Introduction
Environmental journalist with 20+ years of
experience
Winner, Edward J. Meeman Award for
Environmental Reporting
Writer and editor for Go West Strategic
Communications since 2002
Experience
Larry West is a former writer for ThoughtCo
who contributed articles for five years. He is a principal and
professional writer and editor for Go West Strategic Communications. He has
written about environmental issues for leading newspapers, magazines, and
online publications.
During his 20-year career in newspapers,
Larry was part of an investigative team whose work was a finalist for the
Pulitzer Prize. He also received the Meeman Award for national
environmental reporting from the Scripps Howard Foundation. Later, Larry served
as press secretary and deputy chief of staff for a U.S. Representative and
served as communications director for a U.S. Senator. He also managed public affairs
for organizations including the Federal Aviation Administration, a global
technology company, and one of the largest ports in the United States. In each
of those positions, Larry was involved in environmental strategy, policy, and
communications.
Education
Larry studied journalism and creative writing
at the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington. He also taught research
and writing courses in continuing education programs at the University of
Washington and the University of Alaska.
Awards and Publications
While working as a journalist for "The
Seattle Times," Larry's work was awarded the Edward J. Meeman Award
for Environmental Reporting by Scripps Howard, and a finalist for the Pulitzer
Prize.
ThoughtCo and Dotdash
ThoughtCo is
a premier reference site focusing on expert-created education content. We are
one of the top-10 information sites in the world as rated by comScore, a
leading Internet measurement company. Every month, more than 13 million readers
seek answers to their questions on ThoughtCo.
For more than 20 years, Dotdash brands
have been helping people find answers, solve problems, and get inspired. We are
one of the top-20 largest content publishers on the Internet according to
comScore, and reach more than 30% of the U.S. population monthly. Our brands
collectively have won more than 20 industry awards in the last year alone, and
recently Dotdash was named Publisher of the Year by Digiday, a leading industry
publication.
No comments:
Post a Comment