Ship carrying 1.4 million litres of oil sinks near Philippines: How oil spills impact the environment

Ship carrying 1.4 million litres of oil sinks near Philippines: How oil spills impact the environment

Subject: Env

Sec: Pollution           

Context:

Major oil spills from the past point to the complex challenges of recovery and a devastating impact on marine life.

Anatomy of an oil spill:

• The environmental consequences are influenced by factors such as the type of oil, the volume of the spill, weather conditions, and proximity to sensitive ecosystems.
• Due to its lighter density compared to water, it forms a layer that obstructs sunlight and disrupts photosynthesis in marine plants and phytoplankton, which are crucial for oxygen production. The microscopic algae are consumed by fish and other marine animals, and form the base of multiple food chains.
• Marine animals, especially those near the surface, face immediate dangers from toxic exposure. With oil coating the feathers of birds, they may lose their insulation abilities, leading to hypothermia and drowning.
• Oil-Spill:
  • An oil spill refers toany uncontrolled release of crude oil, gasoline, fuels, or other oil by-products into the environment.
  • Oil spills can pollute land, air, or water.
• Major Causes:
  • Chiefly as a result of intensified petroleum exploration and productionon continental shelves and the transport of large amounts of oils in vessels.
  • Oil spills that happen in rivers, bays and the ocean most often are caused by accidentsinvolving tankers, barges, pipelines, refineries, drilling rigs and storage facilities, but also occur from recreational boats and natural disasters.
• Environmental Impacts:
  • Threat to Indigenous people:
    • Oil pollution poses health hazards for the indigenous population who depend on seafood.
  • Harmful to aquatic life:
    • Oil on ocean surfaces is harmful to many forms of aquatic life because it prevents sufficient amounts of sunlight from penetrating the surface,and it also reduces the level of dissolved oxygen.
  • Hypothermia:
    • Crude oil ruins the insulating and waterproofing properties of feathers and fur of birds, and thus oil-coated birds and marine mammals may die from hypothermia (decrease in body temperature to below-normal levels).
  • Toxic:
    • Moreover,ingested oil can be toxic to affected animals, and damage their habitat and reproductive rate.
  • Threat to Mangroves:
    • Saltwater marshes and Mangroves frequently suffer from oil spills.
  • Economic Impacts:
    • Tourism:
      • If beaches and populated shorelines are fouled, tourism and commerce may be severely affected.
    • Power Plants:
      • The power plants and other utilities that depend on drawing or discharging sea water are severely affectedby oil spills.
    • Fishing
      • Major oil spills are frequently followed by the immediate suspension of commercial fishing.
    • Remedies:
      • Bioremediation:
        • Bacteria can be used to clean up oil spills in the oceanthrough bioremediation. Specific bacteria can be used to bioremediate specific contaminants, such as hydrocarbons, which are present in oil and gasoline.
        • Using bacteria such asParaperlucidibaca, Cycloclasticus, Oleispira, Thalassolituus Zhongshania and some others can help remove several classes of contaminants.
      • Containment Booms:
        • Floating barriers, called booms, are used to restrict the spread of oil and to allow for its recovery, removal, or dispersal.
      • Skimmers:
        • They are devices used for physically separating spilled oil from the water’s surface.
      • Sorbents:
        • Various sorbents (e.g., straw, volcanic ash, and shavings of polyester-derived plastic) that absorb the oil from the water are used.
      • Dispersing agents:
        • These arechemicals that contain surfactants, or compounds that act to break liquid substances such as oil into small droplets. They accelerate its natural dispersion into the sea.
      • Related Laws in India:
        • Presently, there is no law covering oil spill as such and its consequential environmental damage in India but India has “the National Oil Spill Disaster Contingency Plan of 1996 (NOS-DCP)”to handle such situations.
          • The document was issued by the Ministry of Defense in 1996; it was last updated in March 2006.
          • It gives the Indian Coast Guard the mandate to coordinate with state departments, ministries, port authorities and environmental agencies to assist in oil spill cleaning operations.
        • In 2015 India ratified the International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage, 2001(Bunker Convention). Convention ensures adequate, prompt and effective compensation for damage caused by oil spills.
          • It was administered by the International Maritime Organization (IMO).