Exxon Valdez Research Paper
Exxon Valdez
The devastating oil spill
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Exxon Valdez Report - 12 February, 2014
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What was the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill?
The Exxon Valdez was an oil tanker that gained notoriety after running aground in Prince William Sound spilling hundreds of thousands of barrels of crude oil in Alaska .The size of the spill is estimated at 40,900 to 120,000 m3 or 257,000 to 750,000 barrels.In 1989, the Exxon Valdez oil spill was listed as the 54th largest spill in history.At the time of the spill, Exxon Valdez was employed to transport crude oil from the Alyeska consortium’s pipeline terminal in Valdez, Alaska, to the lower 48 states of the United States.
EXXON VALDEZ - THE DEVASTATING OIL SPILL
1 …show more content…
The Oil Spill
On March 24, 1989, the Exxon Valdez ran aground in northern Prince William Sound, spilling 42 million litres of crude oil and contaminating 1,990 kilometres of shoreline.Some
2,000 sea otters, 302 harbour seals and about 250,000 seabirds died in the days immediately following the spill.
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The Exxon Valdez oil spill occurred in Prince William Sound, Alaska, on March 24,
1989, when Exxon Valdez was bound for Long Beach, California, struck Prince William
Sound’s Bligh Reef at 12:04 a.m. local time and spilled 260,000 to 750,000 barrels
(41,000 to 119,000 m3) of crude oil over the next few days. It is considered to be one of the most devastating human-caused environmental disasters. The Valdez spill was the largest ever in US waters until the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, in terms of volume released.
Effects of The Oil Spill
Economic Impact on the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill :-
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Fisheries for salmon, herring, crab, shrimp, rockfish and sablefish were closed, with …show more content…
some shrimp and salmon commercial fisheries remaining closed through 1990.
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•
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Over 2,000 Alaskan Native Americans and 13,000 other subsistence permit holders lost the source of their food.
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The tourism industry immediately lost over 26,000 jobs and more than $2.4 billion in sales.Passive use cost the state $2.8 billion, and it too has never fully recovered since vacationers still think of the area as contaminated.
EXXON VALDEZ - THE DEVASTATING OIL SPILL
2
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Now, 20 years after the spill, about 20 acres of Prince William Sound shoreline are still contaminated with oil. Two species have never come back, ten species haven’t quite come back, and five are unknown. Until all species recover, the economy that depends upon them cannot fully recover, either.
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Environmental Impact on the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill :!
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About 250,000 sea birds died, along with 22 killer whales, 2,800 sea otters, 300 harbour seals, and untold numbers of fish eggs.
!
•
Consequently, for the two pods of whales living along the southwest Alaskan coast each pod lost about
40% of their members directly following the spill. !
•Three
years later, the death toll estimates for sea birds increased from
250,000 to
approximately 435,000.
!
!
•
The spill contaminated more than 1,200 miles of Alaska’s shoreline with lots of oil.
•
According to Douglas Wolfe, head of the Bioeffects Assessment Branch of the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Ocean Service, by May 1st, 1989,
20% of the toxic compounds in the oil had evaporated into the atmosphere, and 20- 25% of the oil had dispersed into the ocean and was rapidly degraded through natural processes.
EXXON VALDEZ - THE DEVASTATING OIL SPILL
3
References
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1.”Ciencia Marina Y Otros Asuntos.” Ciencia Marina Y Otros Asuntos RSS. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2014. <http://www.madrimasd.org/blogs/ciencia_marina/
2013/12/12/133318>.
!
2.”Effect of Exxon Valdez Oil Spill on the Economy.” About.com US Economy.
N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb. 2014. <http://useconomy.about.com/od/suppl1/p/
Exxon_Valdez_Oil_Spill_Economic_Impact.htm>.
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3.”Environmental Effects of Exxon Valdez Spill Still Being Felt.” Scientific
American Global RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2014. <http:// www.scientificamerican.com/article/environmental-effects-of/>. !
4.”Exxon Valdez Oil Spill.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 02 Sept. 2014. Web.
09 Feb. 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exxon_Valdez_oil_spill>.
!
5.”Exxon Valdez.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 02 Nov. 2014. Web. 12 Feb.
2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exxon_Valdez>.
!
6.”Questions and Answers.” Oil Spill Facts. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Feb. 2014. <http:// www.evostc.state.ak.us/index.cfm?FA=facts.QA>. !
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!
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EXXON VALDEZ - THE DEVASTATING OIL SPILL
4
The devastating oil spill
!
Exxon Valdez Report - 12 February, 2014
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
!
What was the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill?
The Exxon Valdez was an oil tanker that gained notoriety after running aground in Prince William Sound spilling hundreds of thousands of barrels of crude oil in Alaska .The size of the spill is estimated at 40,900 to 120,000 m3 or 257,000 to 750,000 barrels.In 1989, the Exxon Valdez oil spill was listed as the 54th largest spill in history.At the time of the spill, Exxon Valdez was employed to transport crude oil from the Alyeska consortium’s pipeline terminal in Valdez, Alaska, to the lower 48 states of the United States.
EXXON VALDEZ - THE DEVASTATING OIL SPILL
1 …show more content…
The Oil Spill
On March 24, 1989, the Exxon Valdez ran aground in northern Prince William Sound, spilling 42 million litres of crude oil and contaminating 1,990 kilometres of shoreline.Some
2,000 sea otters, 302 harbour seals and about 250,000 seabirds died in the days immediately following the spill.
!
The Exxon Valdez oil spill occurred in Prince William Sound, Alaska, on March 24,
1989, when Exxon Valdez was bound for Long Beach, California, struck Prince William
Sound’s Bligh Reef at 12:04 a.m. local time and spilled 260,000 to 750,000 barrels
(41,000 to 119,000 m3) of crude oil over the next few days. It is considered to be one of the most devastating human-caused environmental disasters. The Valdez spill was the largest ever in US waters until the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill, in terms of volume released.
Effects of The Oil Spill
Economic Impact on the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill :-
!
•
Fisheries for salmon, herring, crab, shrimp, rockfish and sablefish were closed, with …show more content…
some shrimp and salmon commercial fisheries remaining closed through 1990.
!
•
.
Over 2,000 Alaskan Native Americans and 13,000 other subsistence permit holders lost the source of their food.
!
•
The tourism industry immediately lost over 26,000 jobs and more than $2.4 billion in sales.Passive use cost the state $2.8 billion, and it too has never fully recovered since vacationers still think of the area as contaminated.
EXXON VALDEZ - THE DEVASTATING OIL SPILL
2
•
Now, 20 years after the spill, about 20 acres of Prince William Sound shoreline are still contaminated with oil. Two species have never come back, ten species haven’t quite come back, and five are unknown. Until all species recover, the economy that depends upon them cannot fully recover, either.
!
Environmental Impact on the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill :!
•
About 250,000 sea birds died, along with 22 killer whales, 2,800 sea otters, 300 harbour seals, and untold numbers of fish eggs.
!
•
Consequently, for the two pods of whales living along the southwest Alaskan coast each pod lost about
40% of their members directly following the spill. !
•Three
years later, the death toll estimates for sea birds increased from
250,000 to
approximately 435,000.
!
!
•
The spill contaminated more than 1,200 miles of Alaska’s shoreline with lots of oil.
•
According to Douglas Wolfe, head of the Bioeffects Assessment Branch of the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Ocean Service, by May 1st, 1989,
20% of the toxic compounds in the oil had evaporated into the atmosphere, and 20- 25% of the oil had dispersed into the ocean and was rapidly degraded through natural processes.
EXXON VALDEZ - THE DEVASTATING OIL SPILL
3
References
!
1.”Ciencia Marina Y Otros Asuntos.” Ciencia Marina Y Otros Asuntos RSS. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2014. <http://www.madrimasd.org/blogs/ciencia_marina/
2013/12/12/133318>.
!
2.”Effect of Exxon Valdez Oil Spill on the Economy.” About.com US Economy.
N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb. 2014. <http://useconomy.about.com/od/suppl1/p/
Exxon_Valdez_Oil_Spill_Economic_Impact.htm>.
!
3.”Environmental Effects of Exxon Valdez Spill Still Being Felt.” Scientific
American Global RSS. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2014. <http:// www.scientificamerican.com/article/environmental-effects-of/>. !
4.”Exxon Valdez Oil Spill.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 02 Sept. 2014. Web.
09 Feb. 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exxon_Valdez_oil_spill>.
!
5.”Exxon Valdez.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 02 Nov. 2014. Web. 12 Feb.
2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exxon_Valdez>.
!
6.”Questions and Answers.” Oil Spill Facts. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Feb. 2014. <http:// www.evostc.state.ak.us/index.cfm?FA=facts.QA>. !
!
!
!
EXXON VALDEZ - THE DEVASTATING OIL SPILL
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