Legacies and lessons of the exxon valdez oil spill by john a. Exxon valdez case study crisis management and strategies. Apr 21, 1989 to be sure, exxon s biggest problem remains that the tanker ran aground, and that efforts to stem the flow of oil into the sea and then contain the spread of the spill were very slow. Reuters suzanne goldenberg, us environment correspondent.
The 1989 valdez accident was one of the lowest points in exxonmobil s long history. Rockefellers standard oil, and was formed on november 30, 1999 by the merger of exxon formerly the standard oil company of new jersey and mobil formerly the standard oil company of new york. Bp spill psychological scars similar to exxon valdez. Welcome to insideclimate news expert and comprehensive coverage of the exxon oil spill in arkansas. Government and industry plans, individually and collectively, proved to be wholly insufficient to control an oil spill of the magnitude of the exxon valdez incident. The exxon valdez oil spill occurred in prince william sound, alaska, march 24, 1989, when exxon valdez, an oil tanker owned by exxon shipping company, bound for long beach, california, struck prince william sounds bligh reef, 1.
He has been involved in the oil spill response industry for the last 14 years and gained considerable experience from responding to oil spill incidents around the world. Colls writing style is easy even when explaining oil extraction methods or the geopolitics of oil and natural gas rights. The field guide focuses on practical oil spill response strategies and tools for application to. Already 14 suits have been filed, and the exxon corporation, whose tanker exxon valdez ran aground. Jan 19, 2017 on march 24, 1989, shortly after midnight, the oil tanker exxon valdez struck bligh reef in prince william sound, alaska, spilling more than 11 million gallons of crude oil. The boom can also be used to help skim the oil off the surface. Selected fulltext books and articles 25 years after exxon valdez, the full extent of harm is still being discovered by meador, ron, march 25, 2014. The exxon valdez oil spill trustee council evostc is one of arliss eight founding partners and has entrusted arlis with its extensive collection of materials on the exxon valdez oil spill evos.
Exxon was widely criticized for its slow response to cleaning up the disaster and john. Exxon valdez spill profile emergency response us epa. Nineteen years ago, the supertanker exxon valdez ran aground in alaskan waters, resulting in the most notorious oil spill in modern times. Price new from used from ringbound, 2008 please retry. Oil spill response requires significant amounts of highvalue, robust information to allow. The leakage in the qua iboe oil field discharged about 232 barrels of crude into the atlantic ocean contaminating the waters and. Mar 16, 2017 march 24, 1989 the exxon valdez oil tanker was carrying more than 50 million gallons of crude oil when it left valdez, alaska, on march 23, 1989. Impact of the exxon oil spill disaster environmental. It was about 987 feet long and 166 feet wide, with a cargo capacity of 62 million gallons.
Exxonmobil still cant avoid oil spills 25 years after exxon valdez on the 25th anniversary of the terrible exxon valdez oil spill, yet another disaster is threatening exxonmobils business. Astm special technical publication volume 1219 of stp astm. Exxonmobil oel for gasoline is 100 ppm twa, 200 ppm stel. The valdez oil spill was a tragic accident that exxonmobil deeply regrets.
Sakhalin on a shared basis with exxon neftegas ltd enl, the operator of the. The first response step once an oil spill has occurred is to try to minimize its spread. On may 1st, 2010, a ruptured exxonmobil pipeline in the state of akwa ibom, nigeria, spilled more than a million gallons into the delta. Oil spill facts exxon valdez oil spill trustee council. Inside the exxon oil spill in arkansas insideclimate news. The exxon valdez oil spill occurred in prince william sound, alaska, march 24, 1989, when. One of the major lessons of the exxon valdez oil spill was that the spill prevention and response capability in prince william sound was fundamentally inadequate in march 1989, nearly 11 million gallons of oil spread slowly over open water during three days of flat calm seas. Arlis even has works of poetry, novels, childrens books, a theatrical play, and. It is very well organized, covering in sequence topics from oil chemistry to effects on shoreline biota, fish, seabirds and marine mammals. Exxon mobil is one of the top oil refinery houses in the universe. The exxon valdez oil spill was a manmade disaster that occurred when exxon valdez, an oil tanker owned by the exxon shipping company, spilled 11 million gallons of crude oil into alaskas prince.
The oil spill liability trust fund fund, administered by the coast guard, pays for costs not paid for by the responsible party. Yellowstone river oil spill throws spotlight on exxonmobil. Exxon has used the legal system to avoid paying damages for the valdez spill by shelby, ashley the nation, vol. The spill the exxon valdez was a supertanker, an enormous ship that can carry millions of gallons of oil. Here noaas office of response and restoration has gathered 10 photos that help tell the story of the exxon valdez oil spill and its impacts, not only on the environment but also on science.
Exxon mobil declared force majeure on qua iboe oil shipments due to the pipeline damage. Lessons learned from the exxon valdez and deepwater horizon. Exxon valdez oil spill on march 24, 1989, the tanker exxon valdez grounded on bligh reef in alaskas prince william sound, rupturing its hull and spilling nearly 11 million gallons of prudhoe bay crude oil into a remote, scenic, and biologically productive body of water. An eighteen foot wide hole was ripped into the hull, and 10. The response capabilities of alyeska pipeline service company to deal with the spreading sea of oil would be tested and found to be both unexpectedly slow and woefully inadequate. The action spans the globefeaturing kidnapping cases, civil wars, and highstakes struggles. Preparedness consultancy services oil spill response. The tanker carried crude oil from alaska to oil refineries on the west coast of the united states. The 1989 valdez accident was one of the lowest points in exxonmobils long. Exxon owned the tanker that was damaged during valdez disaster in 1989. An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the exxon valdez spill was the worst oil spill in north america until the 2010 deepwater horizon accident. In 1994, the chemical response to oil spills ecological effects research.
Crucial time passed before containment and cleanup efforts began. 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. Issues issues before the crisis background lessons learned responding to the crisis spill prevention and response capability inadequate. Apr 07, 1989 the oil that is causing widespread damage in prince william sound is raising new legal questions. It shows the effects on the sea animals and how the spill was dealt with. Oil spill response 25 years after the exxon valdez and in the wake of deepwater horizon. A comparison of psychosocial impacts article pdf available in natural hazards 743.
Mar 23, 2012 exxon valdez oil spill the oil tanker hit rocks travelling from alaska to l. The exxon valdez oil spill collection at arlis is the most comprehensive of its kind. Exxon mobil corporation, doing business as exxonmobil, is an american multinational oil and gas corporation headquartered in irving, texas. Case study summary for the exxon valdez spill li li. The company took immediate responsibility for the spill, cleaned it up and voluntarily compensated those who claimed direct damages. The very large spill size, the remote location, and the character of the oil all tested spill preparedness and response capabilities. A portable spray unit has been developed for the application of dispersants.
Coast guard and exxon responders and others trying to control the effects of the huge oil slick used noaas predictions of the spilled oils trajectory in prince william sound. A field and laboratory assessment of oilspill effects on survival. Petroleum engineers guide to oil field chemicals and fluids second. Overview in march of 1989, the exxon valdez oil tanker ran aground on bligh reef in prince william sound, alaska. The oil, originally extracted at the prudhoe bay oil field, eventually affected. Oct 14, 2014 this manual produced by exxon mobil is title response guidance for first responders to maritime petrochemical spills and provides valuable information for oil spill responders. The exxon valdez was an oil tanker, thought to be carrying 200 million litres 53 million gallons of crude oil, en route to long beach, california when it ran aground on the bligh reef in prince william sound, alaska on the 24th march 1989 in turn causing the ship to spill 43 million litres 11 million gallons of its crude oil into the sea. Exxonmobil criticised over response to bass strait oil spill. This book has been printed on paper certified by the programme for the.
No one anticipated any unusual problems as the exxon valdez left the alyeska pipeline terminal at 9. Oil is less dense than water, so it floats on the surface of the water. On march 24, 1989, the tanker exxon valdez runs aground in prince william sound in alaska. Fingerprinting hydrocarbons in the biological resources of the exxon valdez. Private empire pulls back the curtain, tracking the corporations recent history and its central role on the world stage, beginning with the exxon valdez accident in 1989 and leading to the deepwater horizon oil spill in the gulf of mexico in 2010. Whilst the risk of spills is low, high performance in oil spill response osr is essential. Tank vessel, exxon valdez, 032489, bligh reef, prince william sound. List of books and articles about exxon valdez oil spill.
Jul 07, 2011 an emergency response crew in laurel, montana, clean a section of the yellowstone river affected by the exxonmobil oil spill. Exxonmobil still cant avoid oil spills 25 years after exxon valdez on the 25th anniversary of the terrible exxon valdez oil spill, yet another disaster is threatening exxonmobil s business. The exxon valdez oil spill a report to the president by. Five years ago this week, engineers stopped the deepwater horizon dwh oil spill the largest one in u. Book recommendations, author interviews, editors picks, and more. This field manual is intended for use by responders at an oil spill. This bibliography is a select list of books, videos and dvds, websites and articles from a. The oil, originally extracted at the prudhoe bay oil field, eventually affected 1,300 miles. Jan 01, 2012 starting with the the exxon valdez spill and bookending with the deepwater horizon disaster private empire details the arrogance that is exxonmobil. Exxonmobil oil spill response field manual ringbound 2008. According to the associated press bp owned a controlling interest in the alaska oil industry consortium that was required to write a cleanup plan and respond to the spill two decades agoinvestigations that followed the valdez disaster blamed both exxon and alyeska for a response that was bungled on many levels. Spill prevention and response exxon valdez oil spill. Darren holds a background in engineering and has previously managed the osrl training function and business development teams.
Ingratefulrecognitionofyearsofservicetothe petroleumindustrythroughtirelesseffortsto improveresponsetechnologyandminimize environmentalimpacts,thiseditionofthe. We could not have stopped gulf oil gusher, exxonmobil. The earliest trajectory studies undertaken for the piltunastokh field ptc. The exxon valdez oil spill in prince william sound. The exxon valdez oil spill is termed as the most gruesome oil spill in the history of shipping. Within six hours the exxon valdez spilled approximately 10. Paradise lost the wreck was the environmental story of the year, not just because of the tragic consequences in prince william sound, but because of the deeper. Free shipping on due to covid19, orders may be delayed. Opposition to the proposed merger of exxon and mobil. Often a large boom barrier is placed around a portion of the spill or the tanker. Excellent book to inform the public of the dangers of oil spills. A selected bibliography on the exxon valdez oil spill april 2002 the following bibliography is the result of a broadbased literature search of dissertations, journal articles, conference papers, and other sources. Exxon valdez oil spill case study by josh oneski on prezi.
Exxonmobil oil spill response field manual coastal response. Exxonmobil still cant avoid oil spills 25 years after exxon. Exxonmobil begins oil production in guyana irving, texas exxonmobil today announced that oil production has started from the liza field offshore guyana ahead of schedule and less than five years after the first discovery of hydrocarbons, which is well ahead of the industry average for deepwater developments. Given its breadth and authority, the book will likely become a classic in oil spill literature. Tv exxon valdez response, or applying conventional salvage tech niques with temporary. A carefully written book on the iconic 1989 exxon valdez oil spill in prince william sound, alaska. Exxon valdez oil spill in twelvemonth 1989 at prince william sound is one of the most terrific incident which took topographic point in the center of the ocean. Rockefellers standard oil, 2 and was formed on november 30, 1999 by the merger of exxon formerly the standard oil company of new jersey and mobil formerly the standard oil company of new york.
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