Oil Spills
An oil spill can be defined as an accidental or deliberate dumping of oil or petroleum products into the ocean and its coastal waters, bays, and harbors, or onto land, or into rivers or lakes (Holum 1977). Between one and ten million metric tons (one metric ton is 1000 kilograms) of oil are put into the oceans every year. The oil is released, most often, in small yet consistent doses from tankers, industry, or on shore waste disposal (Boesh, Hersher, et al. 1974). Tanker spills cost the United States more than one hundred million dollars every year. Spill frequency increases proportionally with tonnage carried, in a linear manner. Non-tanker spills also increase linearly and account for thirty percent of all spills. The Atlantic area near Europe averages eight spills a year, the American area seven, and the Pacific two. Spills of more than ten thousand metric tons account for about two and a half percent of total spills, and spills above fifty thousand metric tons occur on average once a year. The average spill size is around seven thousand metric tons (Smets 1982). If left alone, oil spills will eventually break up naturally. The natural degradation is influenced by temperature, wind, wave action, the thickness of the
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Approximate Word count = 2403
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)
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