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Ecological impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill: implications for immunotoxicity
Citation:
BARRON, M. G. Ecological impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill: implications for immunotoxicity. TOXICOLOGICAL PATHOLOGY. Society of Toxicology, RESTON, VA, 40(2):315-320, (2012).
Impact/Purpose:
The Deepwater Horizon oil spill (DWH) was the largest environmental disaster and response effort in United States history, with nearly 800 million liters of crude oil spilled. Vast areas of the Gulf of Mexico were contaminated with oil, including deep ocean communities and over 1600 km of shoreline. Multiple species of pelagic, tidal, and estuarine organisms, sea turtles, marine mammals and birds were impacted by free product, dispersed oil, and weathered oil, and over 20M hectares (~40%) of the Gulf of Mexico were closed to fishing. Several large scale field efforts were undertaken both during the DWH spill and following capping and killing of the well, including assessments of shoreline oiling, wildlife oiling, and the condition of coastal waters and sediment. The assessment of injuries and damages from the DWH spill, including impacts on human well being, rates of oil weathering, and restoration options, is ongoing. Although petroleum and the PAH component of oils are known to affect the immune system of aquatic organisms and wildlife, immunotoxicity is not typically assessed during oil spills, and has not been a focus of the DHW assessment. The effects of oil spill contaminants on immune responses are variable and often exposure dependent, but immunotoxic effects seem likely from the DHW spill based on the reported effects of a variety of oils on both aquatic and wildlife species.
Description:
Summary of major Federal and multi-stake holder research efforts in response to the DWH spill, including laboratory oil dispersant testing, estimation of oil release rates and oil fate calculations, subsea monitoring, and post-spill assessments. Impacts from shoreline oiling, wildlife exposures, and the results of coastal condition assessments are also summarized, and implications of the Gulf oil spill for immunotoxicity to aquatic invertebrates, fish, birds, and mammals are discussed.