The company responsible for one of the largest inland oil spills in U.S. history will restore or create 300 acres of wetlands as part of a sweeping agreement to improve the Kalamazoo River watershed in southwestern Michigan. The settlement comes nearly five years after a broken pipeline released more than 800,000 gallons of oil. Enbridge […]
Bio-remediation – a practical tool for oil clean-ups
Bio-remedation consists of utilizing living organisms (such as bacteria, fungi and plants) to absorb organic-molecules, converting them into safer byproducts such as carbon dioxide and water. The process can be carried out on either land or water, but has gained some attention in recent years, especially following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon (Gulf of Mexico) Oil […]
More study needed on chemical dispersants
A new commentary in Nature Reviews Microbiology by Samantha Joye of the University of Georgia and her colleagues argues for further in-depth assessments of the impacts of dispersants on microorganisms to guide their use in response to future oil spills. Chemical dispersants are widely used in emergency responses to oil spills in marine environments as […]
Comment: Want to blame someone for killing pipeline projects-blame Stephen Harper
An oil leak right in Vancouver harbour, with slicks washing up on the pristine shores of English Bay and Stanley Park — that certainly gets voters paying attention to the environment in an election year. April’s spill from a cargo ship’s own fuel tank was small as these things go — less than 3,000 litres, […]
Oil spill cleanup made easier
In Ohio, scientists are experimenting with a mesh that could clean up oil spills and save a lot of money in the process. Research out of Ohio State University’s nano lab has developed a type of steel mesh which traps oil, while letting water flow through it. The high-tech mesh is coated in a nearly […]
Spill clean up a messy business
Marine oil spills can be extremely difficult to deal with. In the sea of Cardiff, Wales engineers from a European research project are testing a new prototype that cleans oil spills quickly, efficiently and more cheaply than existing methods. “What we’ve developed is a net which can float on the surface of the water, without […]
Hungry bacteria could be answer to oil spill clean ups
Chemicals are regularly used to help clean up oil disasters, to break up the oil/water emulsion, making oil more soluble and thus removing it from the surface water. Scientists in Germany are looking at away to get away from the chemicals and use an oil eating bacteria instead Having said that, oil-degrading bacteria are not […]
Lingering impact of the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill
The dispersant most often used during the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill might cause damage to cells in human lungs and in the gills of fish and crabs, according to a study published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal. The study by researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, published in the PLOS One online […]
How the major players all (mis?)handled the Deepwater Horizon oil spill
Howard Ramos chats with Rob about his research into how BP,environmentalists, the media and government handled the BP Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Comment: Which better represents an oil spill?
When it comes to oil spills, how would you like to see them reported? Some media outlets use litres, while others go with the measurement common to the industry – barrels. This months oil spill at a Canadian Natural Resources Ltd site in northern Alberta near Red Earth has been reported in both. Something that is not […]