It is indeed an indisputable fact that the discovery of oil has dramatically changed human life. Oil dominates our daily life in several direct and indirect ways in a variety of forms. However, at the same time, petroleum and its by-products have become a major threat to the environment over the last two centuries. Most importantly, the spillages of oil from accidents involving tankers and oil rigs have polluted our seas as well as oceans and badly affected the marine ecosystem.
Over the period of the last two centuries, a number of accidents involving oil tankers and rigs have resulted in the spillage of millions of gallons of oil into our oceans. Among the oil spills occurred in the last five decades, Exxon Valdez Oil Spill remains a prominent one.
In the accident that took place almost 30 years ago, over 11 million gallons of crude oil was released into the waters of the Gulf of Alaska, hurting the ecosystem badly as it killed hundreds of thousands of species. It was on March 24, , the oil tanker Exxon Valdez struck the Bligh Reef in the Prince William Sound region of Alaska to begin one of the biggest maritime fatalities at that time.
The tanker was loaded with roughly 54 million gallons oil of which Exxon Valdez oil spill considered to be the second major oil spill occurred in the US territory after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Various reports following the accident have identified a number of factors that made Exxon Valdez ran aground on the reef under the command of Captain Joseph Hazelwood.
It was reported that the captain was not at the helm of the tanker when it met with the accident in a route that is known for its navigational hazards. The Third Mate, unfortunately, failed to manoeuvre the vessel properly and the vessel left the shipping lane to end up colliding with the reef, chiefly due to broken radar.
In fact, the radar was not working for more than a year before the oil spill accident. Further investigations also revealed that Hazelwood was under the influence of alcohol and he was asleep in his bunk during the time of the accident. Moreover, authorities found that Exxon, like many other shipping companies, was not following measures that had agreed upon, including the installation of iceberg monitoring equipment.
Reports also said the accident occurred as the ship took a route which was not prescribed under the normal shipping route. Because of this violation by the Exxon Valdez, owner Exxon Mobil charted out a clause which spoke about the strict following of the prescribed shipping routes and lanes so as to avoid any further marine accident of a magnitude like the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill. After a year-long investigation and trial, Hazelwood was acquitted of being drunk during the voyage.
However, the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill occurred in the non-continuous coastline of Alaska, its effects and ramifications were huge and enormous. As the collision of the supertanker with the reef ruptured 8 of its 11 cargo tanks, releasing 11 million gallons of crude oil, barrels-into the waters of Prince William Sound in the days to come, over 1, miles of coastline were contaminated.
It was reportedly a delay in initiating the cleanup efforts that made this accident catastrophic. The oil slick spread to more areas within days, making it no longer containable. As the oil slick spread, the ecosystem consisted of a variety of marine and other species was under threat.
Plants and marine mammals in the cold region, which were already facing the threat of extinction because of the rise in temperatures, had to deal with this human error.
In addition, seabirds were also forced to succumb to this disaster as the oil slick in the water trapped them to drown eventually. It is estimated that almost , seabirds, 2, sea otters, up to harbour seals, bald eagles and at least 22 killer whales were killed in this deadliest accident. Murphy left the tanker after passing through the narrows, and Captain Hazelwood took command.
Hazelwood then turned over command to third mate Gregory Cousins, left the bridge, and went below to his quarters. The tanker ran aground just west of Bligh Island, and rocks ruptured the tanks. An emergency containment crew did not arrive until 14 hours after the tanker ran aground, and no boom was placed around the tanker until more than 20 hours after the spill began. It took three or four days before the response came up to full speed.
Eventually, approximately airplanes, boats, and 10, workers were involved in the cleanup. The spill was an environmental disaster, especially because it occurred in a remote environment with hundreds of miles of pristine coastline and wildlife. Thousands of sea otters, harbor seals, bald eagles, seabirds, and harlequin ducks were killed. The population of sand lance herring, pink salmon, and other fish species were reduced in subsequent years. The spill adversely affected the commercial fishing industry and those people dependent on it, and it had some adverse effect on tourism in south-central Alaska.
If you dig a hole on the beach along the Sound today, you are likely to find oil. The grounding was investigated by the National Safety Transportation Board. With this last misfortune, the final countdown to oblivion began in earnest for the vessel-formerly-known-as- Exxon Valdez.
In March , the ship was sold for scrap to a U. Intending to bring the Oriental Nicety , as it had been renamed yet one last time, ashore at the infamous shipbreaking beaches of Alang, Gujarat, India , Best Oasis was blocked by a petition filed by Delhi-based ToxicsWatch Alliance with the Indian Supreme Court on the grounds that the ship could be contaminated with asbestos and PCBs.
ToxicsWatch Alliance invoked the Basel Convention, which restricts the transboundary movements of hazardous wastes for disposal. However, an environmental audit required by the court showed no significant contamination, and in July , the Oriental Nicety was cleared to be brought ashore for its final disposition.
The ship was reportedly beached on August 2, Shanta Barley, writing for Nature , penned a wry obituary as a lead-in to her article about the last days of the ship:. The last days of the Exxon Valdez: in the San Diego shipyard before the first name change. A Ship Singled Out? The End Is Near With this last misfortune, the final countdown to oblivion began in earnest for the vessel-formerly-known-as- Exxon Valdez. Photo by ToxicsWatch Alliance.
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