You are here:
Ecological Impacts during the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
Citation:
Barron, M. Ecological Impacts during the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. Presented at American College of Veterinary Pathologists Annual Meeting, Montreal, CANADA, November 16 - 20, 2013.
Impact/Purpose:
Extended abstract for invited symposium presentation at ACVP (American College of Veterinary Pathology)
Description:
The Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill was the largest spill and response effort in United States history. Nearly 800 million L of oil was spilled in the Gulf of Mexico, and nearly 7 million L of chemical dispersants were applied in at the ocean surface and subsea1. The DWH spill was a deep ocean well blowout that occurred on April 20, 2010 at a depth of 1600 meters, 66 km offshore of Louisiana. Estimates of the leak were continually revised from initial values of 795,000 L per day to final estimates of 9.8 million L per day. Approximately 180,000 km2 of the Gulf of Mexico had visible oiling of surface water (Fig. 1). Spill response countermeasures used to reduce or remove oil at the ocean surface included oil collection from the wellhead, surface oil skimming, in situ burning, and subsurface wellhead and aerial applications of chemical dispersants2. Multiple attempts to cap or close the well occurred during the three month spill, with successful capping on July 15, 2010; the well was declared closed on September 19, 2010. This presentation is focused on impacts and events during the three month spill, including major Federal and multi-stake holder research efforts that included dispersant testing, estimation of spill rate and oil fate, subsea assessments, shoreline and wildlife oiling determinations, and coastal condition assessment.