L1537C01 PDF
L1537C01 PDF
L1537C01 PDF
Major oil spills attract the attention of the public and the media. In recent years,
this attention has created a global awareness of the risks of oil spills and the damage
they do to the environment. However, oil is a necessity in our industrial society, and
a major sustainer of our lifestyle. Most of the energy used in Canada and the United
States is for transportation that runs on oil and petroleum products. According to
trends in energy usage, this is not likely to decrease much in the future. Industry
uses oil and petroleum derivatives to manufacture such vital products as plastics,
fertilizers, and chemical feedstocks, which will still be required in the future.
In fact, the production and consumption of oil and petroleum products are
increasing worldwide and the threat of oil pollution is increasing accordingly. The
movement of petroleum from the oil fields to the consumer involves as many as 10
to 15 transfers between many different modes of transportation including tankers,
pipelines, railcars, and tank trucks. Oil is stored at transfer points and at terminals
and refineries along the route. Accidents can happen during any of these transpor-
tation steps or storage times.
Obviously, an important part of protecting the environment is ensuring that there
are as few spills as possible. Both government and industry are working to reduce
the risk of oil spills, with the introduction of strict new legislation and stringent
operating codes. Industry has invoked new operating and maintenance procedures
to reduce accidents that lead to spills. Intensive training programs have been devel-
oped to reduce the potential for human error.
There are also many deterrents to oil spills, including government fines and the
high cost of cleanup. In Canada, it costs an average of $20 to clean up each litre of
oil spilled. In the United States, these costs average about $100 per litre spilled. The
average cost of cleanup worldwide ranges from $20 to $200 per litre, depending on
the type of oil and where it is spilled. Cleaning up oil on shorelines is usually the
most expensive cleanup process.
Oil spills are a frequent occurrence, particularly because of the heavy use of oil
and petroleum products in our daily lives. About 260,000 tons of oil and petroleum
products are used in Canada every day. The United States uses about 10 times this
amount and, worldwide, about 10 million tons are used per day.
Most domestic oil production in Canada is from approximately 50,000 oil wells
in Alberta and Saskatchewan. There are 22 oil refineries in Canada, 5 of which are
classified as large.
Canada imports about 130,000 tons of crude oil or other products per day but
exports about 220,000 tons per day, mostly to the United States.
In the United States, more than half of the approximately 2.6 million tons of oil
and petroleum products used per day is imported, primarily from Saudi Arabia,
Canada, and Venezuela. About 40% of the daily demand in the U.S. is for automotive
gasoline and about 15% is for diesel fuel used in transportation. About 40% of the
energy used in the United States comes from petroleum, 35% from natural gas, and
24% from coal.
Spill statistics are collected by a number of agencies in Canada and the United
States. In Canada, provincial offices collect data and Environment Canada maintains
a database of spills. In the United States, the Coast Guard maintains a database of
spills into navigable waters, while state agencies keep statistics on spills on land
that are sometimes gathered into national statistics. The Minerals Management
Service (MMS) in the United States maintains records of spills from offshore
exploration and production activities.
Despite the large number of spills, only a small percentage of oil used in the
world is actually spilled. Oil spills in Canada and the United States are summarized
in Figures 1 and 2 in terms of the volume of oil spilled and the actual number of
spills. In terms of oil spills, it can be seen from these figures that there are certainly
differences between the two countries.
There are more spills into navigable waters in the United States proportionately
than in Canada because more oil is imported by sea and more fuel is transported by
barge. In fact, the largest volume of oil spilled in water in the U.S. comes from
barges, while the largest number of spills comes from vessels other than tankers,
bulk carriers, or freighters.
In Canada, most spills take place on land and this accounts for a high volume
of oil spilled. Pipeline spills account for the highest volume of oil spilled. In terms
of the actual number of spills, most oil spills happen at petroleum production
facilities, wells, production collection facilities, and battery sites. On water, the
greatest volume of oil spilled comes from marine or refinery terminals, although the
largest number of spills is from the same source as in the U.S. — vessels other than
tankers, bulk carriers, or freighters.
The sources of oil spills, the types of oil spilled into the sea, and the causes of
spills from any type of ship or vessel worldwide are shown in Figure 3. Half of the
oil spilled in the seas is the runoff of oil and fuel from land-based sources, usually
from wastewater. Much lubricating oil finds its way into wastewater, which is often
discharged directly into the sea. About 24% of oil spilled into the sea comes from
the transportation sector, which includes tankers, freighters, barges, and other ves-
sels. Natural sources of oil constitute about 11% of the input. Natural sources include
the many natural “seeps” or discharges from oil-bearing strata on the ocean floor
that reach the surface. Atmospheric sources constitute 13% of oil pollution in the
sea. This pollution is the result of hydrocarbons in the air from a variety of sources
and causes such as inefficient combustion. Much of the material is re-precipitated
onto land and subsequently ends up in the sea.
As shown in Figure 3, most oils spilled into the sea worldwide are fuels (48%)
and then crude oils (29%). Fuels consist primarily of Bunker oils and intermediate
fuel oils (IFO) which consist of Bunker oils mixed with fuels such as diesel. Figure
3 also shows that grounding is the leading cause of oil spills from vessels (26%),
followed by collision at 22%. Some other accidental causes of oil spills are explo-
sion/fire (9%), ramming (9%), and sinking (7%), with human error (5%) and mechan-
ical failure (2%) causing the least number of spills.
A list of the largest oil spills in the last 30 years is provided in Table 1. Data
are derived from Environment Canada, the Oil Spill Intelligence Report, the general
literature on oil spills, the United States Coast Guard, and industry associations such
as the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation (ITOPF) and the American
Petroleum Institute (API). The spills are listed according to their volume, beginning
with the largest spill to date — the release of oil during the Gulf War in 1991. There
have been several large oil spills from pipelines, storage tanks, and blowouts at
production wells.
People often have the misconception that oil spills from tankers are the primary
source of oil pollution in the marine environment. While it is true that most of the
large spills are from tankers, it must be recognized that these spills still make up
less than about 5% of all oil pollution entering the sea. The sheer volume of oil
spilled from tankers and the high profile given these incidents in the media have
contributed to this misconception. In fact, as stated earlier, half of the oil spilled in
the seas is the runoff of oil and fuel from land-based sources rather than from
accidental spills.
In conclusion, it is important to study spill incidents from the past to learn how
the oil affected the environment, what cleanup techniques worked and what improve-
ments can be made, and to identify the gaps in technology. Photographs of many of
the incidents listed in Table 1 appear throughout this book as examples of oil
behaviour and cleanup techniques.
Photo 6 Rapid action to remove remaining oil can prevent further loss as was the case
during the Exxon Valdez incident. (Foss Environmental)
• About 10 million tons of oil and petroleum products are used worldwide each day.
Despite the large number of oil spills, however, only a small percentage of oil used
is actually spilled.
• While most of the large oil spills in the marine environment are from tankers, these
spills make up less than about 5% of all oil pollution entering the sea. Most oil
pollution in the oceans comes from the run-off of oil and fuel from land-based
sources rather than from accidental spills.
• In Canada, about 12 spills of more than 4000 L are reported each day, of which
only about one spill is into navigable waters. In the U.S., about 25 such spills occur
each day into navigable waters and about 75 occur on land.
• 30 to 50% of oil spills are directly or indirectly caused by human error, with 20
to 40% of these caused by equipment failure or malfunction.
• The average cost of cleaning up oil spills worldwide varies from $20 to $200 per
litre of oil spilled.
Photo 8 The Haven burns off the coast of Italy. (Oil Spill Response Limited)