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The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: Response, Assessment, Impacts
Citation:
Barron, M. The Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: Response, Assessment, Impacts. Hebei Spirit 10th Anniversary Conference, Incheon, N/A, SOUTH KOREA, June 19 - 21, 2018.
Impact/Purpose:
The presentation will be a part of an international symposium that will summarize recent major oil spills across the globe, including spill response actions, ecological assessments, and impacts. The impact of this presentation is that it will be the only summary for the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, which was the largest spill in U.S. history, and the second largest in human history. The work will highlight the EPA research and the central role of the Agency of the spill. The presentation will reflect well on the Agency’s expertise and capabilities. The presentation will allow EPA to engage in an international forum on oil spill research, including interacting and learning from colleagues across the globe.
Description:
The Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill was the largest environmental disaster and response effort in U.S. history, with nearly 800 million liters of crude oil spilled from the wellhead at 1300 m in the deep ocean. Response activities including multiple attempts to cap the wellhead, 7 million liters of dispersant application at the surface and subsea, booming, in situ burning, mechanical recovery, and relief well drilling. Oil trajectories were determined from aerial surveys, remote sensing, and hydrodynamic modeling. Multiple large-scale field efforts were performed, including assessments of oiling of shorelines, wildlife, deep ocean, coastal waters, wetlands and sediments. Vast areas of the Gulf of Mexico were contaminated with oil, including deep-ocean communities and over 1,600 kilometers of shoreline. Multiple species of pelagic, tidal, and estuarine organisms; sea turtles; marine mammals; and birds were affected, and over 20 million hectares of the Gulf of Mexico were closed to fishing. The seminar will overview the U.S. experience in the DWH spill, including restoration efforts and lessons learned.