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An oil spill is the release of a liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the environment, especially the marine ecosystem, due to human activity, and is a form of pollution.The term is usually given to marine oil spills, where oil is released into the ocean or coastal waters, but spills may also occur on land.
Spilt oil penetrates into the structure of the plumage of birds and the fur of mammals, reducing its insulating ability, and making them more vulnerable to temperature fluctuations and much less buoyant in the water. Cleanup and recovery from an oil spill is difficult and depends upon many factors, including the type of oil spilled, the ...
Grace Audi, 37, lives with her partner and two-year-old in Ogale, where there have been at least 40 oil spills from Shell's infrastructure, according to Leigh Day, the UK-law firm representing the ...
Focused research on oil pollution toxicity to fish began in earnest in 1989, after the Exxon Valdez tanker struck a reef in Prince William Sound, Alaska and spilled approximately 11 million gallons of crude oil into the surrounding water. [6] At the time, the Exxon Valdez oil spill was the largest in the history of the United States. [6]
Birds coated with oil lose the insulation and waterproofing properties of their feathers, and can also ingest oil during preening. [2] Bird that are coated with oil lose the ability to thermo-regulate, fly, and float on water. [2] Ingestion of oil can result in lung, liver and kidney damage, often leading to death. [4]
The oil slick as seen from space by NASA's Terra satellite on 24 May 2010. The 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has been described as the worst environmental disaster in the United States, releasing about 4.9 million barrels (210 million US gal; 780,000 m 3) of crude oil making it the largest marine oil spill in history.
This is a reverse-chronological list of oil spills that have occurred throughout the world and spill(s) that are currently ongoing. Quantities are measured in tonnes of crude oil with one tonne roughly equal to 308 US gallons, 256 Imperial gallons, 7.33 barrels, or 1165 litres.
Water pollution also reduces the ecosystem services such as drinking water provided by the water resource. Sources of water pollution are either point sources or non-point sources . [ 4 ] Point sources have one identifiable cause, such as a storm drain , a wastewater treatment plant , or an oil spill .