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The Causes And Effects Of Oil Spill Disasters

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Register to read the introduction… Serious, and potentially permanent, ecological damage is possible where chronic spills or spills of national significance occur ("Oil spill preperation," 2010). Oil spill disasters can occur when the crew workers are making mistakes and being careless, when the equipment messes up, hurricanes, and illegal dumpers. Oil floats on salt water and usually floats on fresh water. Oil will usually spread out rapidly across the water surface to form a thin layer that is called an oil slick. As the oil spreading process continues, the layer will become thinner and thinner, and then finally will become a very thin layer that is called a sheen, which often looks like a rainbow. Depending on the circumstances, oil spills can be very harmful to marine birds and mammals, and also can harm fish and shellfish. ("Oil spills- effect," …show more content…
Only about 25 percent of the oil was recovered, burned, or skimmed. Then another 25 percent of the oil evaporated or dissolved. Meanwhile, 24 percent of the oil remains dispersed in the water, while another 26 percent of the oil falls into a catch-all "residual" category. That includes oil sheen on the surface, weathered tar balls, oil that has been collected from shorelines, as well as oil that has seeped into sand and sediments, where under the right conditions it can have long-lasting ecological effects. (Spotts., …show more content…
(2010, August 7). Dispersants not hurting seafood, FDA says; No significant retention of substance found in fish, agency reports. The Washington Post,p. A.5. Retrieved August 20, 2010, from ProQuest Newsstand.
Gulf oil spill. (2010, August 20). Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/17/gulf-oil-spill-university_n_684343.html
Oil spill preperation and response. (2010, July 15). Retrieved from http://www.fws.gov/contaminants/Issues/OilSpill.cfm
Burke., C. (2010, June 17). Is Shell fish in caribbean safe to eat. Retrieved from http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/6100893-is-shell-fish-in-caribbean-safe-to-eat-oil-spill-contamination
NICOLA BARDON. (2010, August 23). THIS MESS WILL COST LESS THAN THIS MESS :Anglo bill '10 times spend on BP oil spill' [Eire Region]. The Sun,2. Retrieved August 23, 2010, from ProQuest Newsstand.
Amadeo., K. (2010). Bp gulf oil spill. Retrieved from http://useconomy.about.com/od/suppl1/tp/BP_Oil_Spill.htm
Breen., T. (2010, August 13). Relief drilling needed to kill bp's well. Retrieved from

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