How do oil spills impact the environment?
Oil destroys the insulating ability of fur-bearing mammals, such as sea otters, and the water repellency of a bird’s feathers, thus exposing these creatures to the harsh elements. Without the ability to repel water and insulate from the cold water, birds and mammals will die from hypothermia.
Why should we prevent oil spills?
Preventing spills We invest heavily in spill prevention and preparedness because the consequences of an oil spill are extremely high. Besides environmental harm, oil spills can halt commerce and cause severe economic consequences.
What chemical is used to clean-up oil spills?
Dispersants
Dispersants are chemicals that are sprayed on a surface oil slick to break down the oil into smaller droplets that more readily mix with the water. Dispersants do not reduce the amount of oil entering the environment, but push the effects of the spill underwater.
How do oil spills affect the environment?
What happened in the BP Gulf of Mexico oil spill?
Deepwater Horizon – BP Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill. On April 20, 2010, the oil drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, operating in the Macondo Prospect in the Gulf of Mexico, exploded and sank resulting in the death of 11 workers on the Deepwater Horizon and the largest spill of oil in the history of marine oil drilling operations.
What happens when an oil spill happens?
But these spills can still cause damage, especially if they happen in sensitive environments, like beaches, mangroves, and wetlands. Large oil spills are major, dangerous disasters. These tend to happen when pipelines break, big oil tanker ships sink, or drilling operations go wrong.
What happened to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill?
On April 20, 2010, an explosion occurred on the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform in the Gulf of Mexico, killing 11 people. Before it was capped three months later, approximately 134 million gallons of oil had spilled into the ocean. That is equivalent to the volume of over 200 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
How does NOAA predict oil spills?
During the threat of an oil spill, NOAA predicts where the oil might spread. To predict where oil might go, we model how weather, wind, tides and currents affect oil movement. But natural variability in wind, weather and water currents can change the trajectory of a spill in ways difficult to predict.