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RESPONSE OF A SALT MARSH TO OIL SPILL AND CLEANUP: BIOTIC AND EROSIONAL EFFECTS IN THE HACKENSACK MEADOWLANDS, NEW JERSEY
Citation:
Dibner, P. RESPONSE OF A SALT MARSH TO OIL SPILL AND CLEANUP: BIOTIC AND EROSIONAL EFFECTS IN THE HACKENSACK MEADOWLANDS, NEW JERSEY. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/7-78/109.
Description:
This study addresses the biological and erosional response of portions of the Hackensack Meadowlands estuarine marsh to the Wellen Oil Company number 6 crude oil spill of late May 1976, and the subsequent cleanup operations. Cleanup included cutting and removal of oiled grasses of the species Spartina alterniflora from the bank of the Hackensack River. Data were gathered from several locations along the river bank and in the inner marsh during four sampling sessions, at approximately 4 month intervals, throughout the year following the spill. The productivity of the marsh plants, the composition of marsh soil invertebrate communities, the presence of oil in the substrate, and erosional trends were monitored. Results suggest that cutting heavily oiled Spartina soon after contamination saved the plants from dying by root suffocation.