Effects Of Oil Pollution Research Articles

The effects of oil pollution on Antarctic benthic diatom communities over 5 years

Although considered pristine, Antarctica has not been impervious to hydrocarbon pollution. Antarctica’s history is peppered with oil spills and numerous abandoned waste disposal sites. Both spill events and constant leakages contribute to previous and current sources of pollution into marine sediments. Here we compare the response of the benthic diatom communities over 5years to exposure to a commonly used standard synthetic lubricant oil, an alternative lubricant marketed as more biodegradable, in comparison to a control treatment. Community composition varied significantly over time and between treatments with some high variability within contaminated treatments suggesting community stress. Both lubricants showed evidence of significant effects on community composition after 5years even though total petroleum hydrocarbon reduction reached approximately 80% over this time period. It appears that even after 5years toxicity remains high for both the standard and biodegradable lubricants revealing the temporal scale at which pollutants persist in Antarctica.

Effect of oil pollution on underground organs of Frankenia thymifolia and Poa bulbosa Turf in drought stress conditions

Petroleum contamination of soil is a serious problem and of the most important pollutants of the soil throughout the world and country especially sides of oil refinery like Khuzestan province of Iran. The soil contamination could damage the organisms of the soil, including plants and microorganisms. Some plants and microorganisms are able to degrade the oil in the soil. Two types of plants including legumes and grasses have higher potential to be used for phytoremediation. Since grasses used in landscaping to cultivate these plants could achieve two aims: first clean the soil second have a green space. In the present study, a green house experiment was performed on Frankenia Thymifolia and Poa Bulbosa root yield to introduce these plants to spread the green space on contaminated and hot region in a factorial experiment with a randomized complete block design and eight replicates per treatment. Treatments have done on four levels of different rates of crude oil (0, 1%, 2% and 3%

English

This study researched on crude oil pollution effects on crop farms in Rivers State, Nigeria using stochastic translog production function. Data were collected in the state, using multi-stage sampling technique. A total of 296 structured questionnaires retrieved from farmers in crude oil polluted and non-polluted areas of the state were used. Stochastic translog production interaction between land and heavy, medium and light oil spillages resulted in crops output reduction by 0.255, 1.257 and 1.027 units, respectively. Interaction across heavy, medium and light oil spillages and fertilizers usage indicated farm crops output decrease by 0.805, 0.586 and 0.729 units, respectively. This study therefore concluded that crude oil pollution on crops farms reduced crops output significantly, hence detrimental to crop production in Rivers State, Nigeria.   Key words: Crude oil, pollution, stochastic translog production function, crops output, Nigeria.

Oil Pollution in the Marine Environment II: Fates and Effects of Oil Spills

Part I of this three-part set of articles focused on the various types and amounts of oil inputs to the marine environment. The complexity of the mixture of chemicals making up crude oils, fuel oil...

Arctic Oiled Wildlife Response: Exploring Potential and Limitations

ABSTRACT The Arctic is an extremely vulnerable area for oil pollution. Because of global warming and the resulting retreating ice, new economic shipping and Exploration & Production activities are likely to develop in the coming years and decades. Both governments (e.g. Arctic Council) and the oil industry (e.g. Arctic Response Technology Joint Industry Programme) are preparing for increased oil spill response capabilities in the Arctic region, and are looking to join forces for more efficiency and effectiveness. In connection to oil spill response planning in the Arctic both onshore and offshore, attention should be given to oiled wildlife response preparedness in this region. The Arctic is characterized by unique ecosystems and biodiversity, either marine or terrestrial, with a large proportion of migratory species. So although species diversity is assumed to be low compared to other regions, Arctic wildlife is very sensitive to the effects of oil pollution. Additionally the Arctic is a remote and extreme area for setting up a wildlife response in the framework of an oil spill response. This paper explores what the limitations of an Arctic oiled wildlife response would be (physical/logistical, health & safety, environmental monitoring, ecosystems understanding, biodiversity data, sensitivity mapping, etc.), and identifies how current gaps in response preparedness could be filled. Special emphasis is laid on investments into the capabilities of specialised responders and their equipment, including creation of a specialised Arctic Wildlife Response Strike Team.

Oil Pollution in the Marine Environment I: Inputs, Big Spills, Small Spills, and Dribbles

The BP Deepwater Horizon Macondo Oil Well spill in the Gulf of Mexico three years ago renewed and reinforced concerns about oil pollution in the marine environment. This article is intended to prov...

Sub chronic exposure to crude oil, dispersed oil and dispersant induces histopathological alterations in the gills of the juvenile rabbit fish (Siganus canaliculatus)

There is little existing information on the sub-lethal effects of experimental exposure of Arabian Gulf fish to oil pollution. This study investigated the potential sub-lethal effects of the water accommodated fraction (WAF) of light Arabian crude oil, dispersed oil and dispersant (Maxi Clean 2) on the gills of the juvenile rabbit fish (Siganus canaliculatus), observing several histopathological biomarkers at different time points and different doses. These laboratory exposures simulated a range of possible oil pollution events. Significant alterations in four health categories (circulatory, proliferative, degenerative and inflammatory) were identified and form the basis for understanding the short-term response of fish to oil. Evaluations of histopathological lesions in gill tissue were carried out following 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18 and 21 days of exposure. The main lesions observed and quantified were lamellar capillary aneurysms, vasodilatation of lamellae, hemorrhage, edema, lifting of lamellar and filamentary epithelium and epithelium necrosis, epithelial and chloride cell hypertrophy and hyperplasia, fusion of adjacent lamellae, epitheliocystis and inflammatory infiltration. Exposure of juvenile fish to WAF, dispersant oil and dispersant caused significant changes in the gill lesions and reaction patterns. Dispersed oil caused the most significant effect followed by WAF and then dispersant. The present study is one of the first which explores the relationship between oil pollution and epitheliocystis and reports that exposure to crude oil and dispersed oil increases the prevalence of epitheliocystis formation under controlled laboratory conditions.

Initial impacts of the Hebei Spirit oil spill on the sandy beach macrobenthic community west coast of Korea

Petroleum hydrocarbon contamination and macrobenthos in the sandy tidal flats of Taean were monitored for 1year to assess the impacts of Hebei Spirit oil on the macrobenthic community. A total of 207 macrobenthic fauna was collected, and the mean density and biomass of macrobenthic fauna continued to decrease until 12months after the oil spill, but macrobenthic density at the most heavily affected sites increased by about twofold. In January 2008, the dominant species occurred at very low densities in strongly affected sites. The macrobenthic communities differed between oil-affected and unaffected sites. In particular, differences in community structure at Mallipo beach were larger than those at Shinduri. We suggest that long-term monitoring is needed to assess the specific effects of oil pollution on the sandy intertidal macrobenthic community.

Soil TPH Concentration Estimation Using Vegetation Indices in an Oil Polluted Area of Eastern China

Assessing oil pollution using traditional field-based methods over large areas is difficult and expensive. Remote sensing technologies with good spatial and temporal coverage might provide an alternative for monitoring oil pollution by recording the spectral signals of plants growing in polluted soils. Total petroleum hydrocarbon concentrations of soils and the hyperspectral canopy reflectance were measured in wetlands dominated by reeds (Phragmites australis) around oil wells that have been producing oil for approximately 10 years in the Yellow River Delta, eastern China to evaluate the potential of vegetation indices and red edge parameters to estimate soil oil pollution. The detrimental effect of oil pollution on reed communities was confirmed by the evidence that the aboveground biomass decreased from 1076.5 g m−2 to 5.3 g m−2 with increasing total petroleum hydrocarbon concentrations ranging from 9.45 mg kg−1 to 652 mg kg−1. The modified chlorophyll absorption ratio index (MCARI) best estimated soil TPH concentration among 20 vegetation indices. The linear model involving MCARI had the highest coefficient of determination (R 2 = 0.73) and accuracy of prediction (RMSE = 104.2 mg kg−1). For other vegetation indices and red edge parameters, the R2 and RMSE values ranged from 0.64 to 0.71 and from 120.2 mg kg−1 to 106.8 mg kg−1 respectively. The traditional broadband normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), one of the broadband multispectral vegetation indices (BMVIs), produced a prediction (R 2 = 0.70 and RMSE = 110.1 mg kg−1) similar to that of MCARI. These results corroborated the potential of remote sensing for assessing soil oil pollution in large areas. Traditional BMVIs are still of great value in monitoring soil oil pollution when hyperspectral data are unavailable.

Effects of oil pollution and persistent organic pollutants (POPs) on glycerophospholipids in liver and brain of male Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua)

Fish in the North Sea are exposed to relatively high levels of halogenated compounds in addition to the pollutants released by oil production activities. In this study male Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) were orally exposed to environmental realistic levels (low and high) of weathered crude oil and/or a mixture of POPs for 4weeks. Lipid composition in brain and in liver extracts were analysed in order to assess the effects of the various pollutants on membrane lipid composition and fatty acid profiles. Transcriptional effects in the liver were studied by microarray and quantitative real-time RT-PCR. Chemical analyses confirmed uptake of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and chlorinated pesticides, polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS) in the liver and excretion of metabolites of polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the bile. Treatment with POPs and/or crude oil did not induce significant changes in lipid composition in cod liver. Only a few minor changes were observed in the fatty acid profile of the brain and the lipid classes in the liver. The hypothesis that pollution from oil or POPs at environmental realistic levels alters the lipid composition in marine fish was therefore not confirmed in this study. However, the transcriptional data suggest that the fish were affected by the treatment at the mRNA level. This study suggests that a combination of oil and POPs induce the CYP1a detoxification system and gives an increase in the metabolism and clearing rate of PAHs and POPs, but with no effects on membrane lipids in male Atlantic cod.

Histopathological Changes in the Livers of Rabbit Fish (Siganus canaliculatus) Following Exposure to Crude Oil and Dispersed Oil

The present study aimed to assess the impact of acute exposure to crude oil, dispersed oil, and dispersant alone on the liver of the rabbit fish (Siganus canaliculatus). Histopathological effects in the liver were observed at different time points (3 to 21 days) and different concentrations (3-100% water accommodated fraction [WAF]) to simulate a range of possible oil pollution events. The main alterations observed in this study include lipid accumulation, necrosis, bile stagnation, megalocytosis, cholangitis, and spongiosis hepatis. The liver of fish exposed to WAF, dispersed oil, or dispersant showed significant histopathologic alterations compared with the control fish (Mann-Whitney U test; p < .01). Reaction pattern indices (circulatory, degenerative, proliferative, and inflammatory changes) of treated fish differed significantly from the control groups. There was a significant correlation between exposure time and the occurrence of most lesions (Spearman correlation; p > .05). The present study indicates that oil pollution can cause important alterations to livers of adult rabbit fish and that the dispersed oil is slightly more toxic than crude oil or dispersant.

Long-term effects of oil pollution in mangrove forests (Baixada Santista, Southeast Brazil) detected using a GIS-based multitemporal analysis of aerial photographs

Oil spills are potential threats to the integrity of highly productive coastal wetlands, such as mangrove forests. In October 1983, a mangrove area of nearly 300 ha located on the southeastern coast of Brazil was impacted by a 3.5 million liter crude oil spill released by a broken pipeline. In order to assess the long-term effects of oil pollution on mangrove vegetation, we carried out a GIS-based multitemporal analysis of aerial photographs of the years 1962, 1994, 2000 and 2003. Photointerpretation, visual classification, class quantification, ground-truth and vegetation structure data were combined to evaluate the oil impact. Before the spill, the mangroves exhibited a homogeneous canopy and well-developed stands. More than ten years after the spill, the mangrove vegetation exhibited three distinct zones reflecting the long-term effects of the oil pollution. The most impacted zone (10.5 ha) presented dead trees, exposed substrate and recovering stands with reduced structural development. We suggest that the distinct impact and recovery zones reflect the spatial variability of oil removal rates in the mangrove forest. This study identifies the multitemporal analysis of aerial photographs as a useful tool for assessing a system's capacity for recovery and monitoring the long-term residual effects of pollutants on vegetation dynamics, thus giving support to mangrove forest management and conservation.

Soil Microarthropods in a Secondary Rainforest, Rivers State, Nigeria - IV- The Impact of Oil Pollution on Their Vertical Distribution

Studies were undertaken, May, 2007-April, 2009, to document species richness, bioindicator species, abun- dance, density, vertical distribution, etc. of soil microarthropods (mites, collembolans) in unpolluted and polluted habitats in a secondary rainforest, Rivers State, Nigeria. This paper focuses on the effects of oil pollution on the vertical distribution of these mesofauna. Sampling was effected monthly by a bucket-type auger to a depth of 15.0cm in four habitat-types (un- polluted, polluted by oil spills approximately 1yr, 3yrs and 6yrs pre-study). The modified Bukard model of the Ber- lese-Tullgren funnel was used for extraction. Identifications were undertaken using standard keys and unidentified speci- mens were compared to type specimens. In the unpolluted and polluted (3 and 6yrs pre-study) habitats, there was an inverse relationship between mite/ collembolan abundance/density (except in the Prostigmata) and soil depth; however, the correla- tions were not significant. In contrast, there was a significant direct correlation between mite abundance/density and depth in the habitat, polluted 1yr pre-study (F=29.11; df=1.3; p 0.05). In the unpolluted habitat, approximately 90% of all collembolans were found above a depth of 10.0cm; this declined to 30% in the habitat, polluted 1yr pre-study, and rose to 50% and 85% in the habitats, polluted 3 and 6yrs pre-study.

Effect of oil types as pollutants on physiognomic characteristics of Gmelina arborea in the tropical rainforest zone of Nigeria

The research was designed at studying the effect of oil pollution on the physiognomic characteristics of Gmelina arborea and the pollutants used are diesel oil and spent engine oil respectively. The experiment lasted for 6 months before analysis was done. Five treatments were carried out separately for diesel oil and spent engine oil in which the application of pollutants was at the rate 0, 400, 800, 1200 and 1600 mls. Each pollutant and each treatment was replicated three times and subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA). Internode differences, number of leaves, number of branches were measured as part of the physiognomic characteristics that are observable for the experiment. Results show that all treatments have significant effects after the analysis. Both pollutants have a significant role to play in the physiognomic properties and characteristics of the tested crop G. arborea. At one week after application and three weeks after application, spent engine oil only had a minimal effect on branching pattern of G. arborea wildling but as from six weeks after application, the effect was phenomenal on all vegetative parameters of the plant. At one week after application, diesel oil had no effect on G. arborea wildling but at three weeks after application, diesel oil had a significant effect on the vegetative parameters of G. arborea wildling. A further research is needed on the recovery possibility of G. arborea if reconditioned after the effect of pollutants. This will help in environmental stability of parts of the world where oil pollution is rife.

The effect of oil extraction on ground cover of West Siberian taiga forests

The study explored the effect of oil pollution, soil salinization, and waterlogging on ground cover of green-moss forests in West Siberian middle and northern taiga. These disturbances reduce the total abundance and biological productivity of ground cover, taxonomic richness, and change roles of some species and plant groups in communities.

Histopathological liver alterations in juvenile rabbit fish ( Siganus canaliculatus) exposed to light Arabian crude oil, dispersed oil and dispersant

With the heavy transport of crude oil there is an increasing risk of a major oil spill in the Gulf waters; however, there have been few studies on the impact of oil spills and subsequent remedial action on Gulf fish. The aim of the experiment was to investigate the effects of acute exposure to water soluble fraction (WAF) of light Arabian crude oil, dispersed oil and dispersant on the liver of the juvenile rabbit fish ( Siganus canaliculatus), observing several histopathological biomarkers of the liver at different time points and different doses. The concentrations used (3–100 percent WAF) simulated a range of possible oil pollution events. The main alterations observed in this study include hepatocyte swelling and cytoplasmic vacuolisation, megalocytosis, coagulative dispersed necrosis, lymphocytic infiltration, melanomacrophage aggregates, spongiosis hepatis, pericholangiitis, and bile stagnosis. Treated livers showed significantly higher total index values than the control group ( p<0.01). According to the total liver index, liver exposed to WAF, dispersed oil or dispersant showed significant histopathologic alterations compared with the control fish (Mann–Whitney U-test; p<0.01). Components of the total liver index, (circulatory, degenerative, proliferative, and inflammatory changes) differed significantly from the control groups. There was a significant correlation between exposure time and the total liver index values and the different reaction pattern indexes of treated fish (Spearman correlation; p>0.05). The present study indicates that dispersed oil is not more toxic, to livers of juvenile rabbit fish, than crude oil or dispersant.

Effect of oil pollution on serum growth hormone (GH) levels,histology and Ultrastructure of muscles of the Nile Tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)

ver the last decades, there has been a growing interest in studying the main problems that could be harmful to the River Nile system in Egypt. Attention was paid to one of the most important problems that face the River Nile, this is called River Nile transport project. So the main objective of the present study was to investigate the adverse effects that can result from spilled gasoline as petroleum product from various motor ships into the River Nile on one of the most important popular fishes in Egypt, Oreochromis niloticus to ascertain whether spilled gasoline into aquatic ecosystems can affect on the aquatic biota or not and to identify any potential public health risks that can be associated with dietary intake of such fish by histological and ultrastructural studies on its edible muscles. Levels of the growth hormone secreted by the pituitary gland which is essential to the development of skeletal muscles and growth rate was also examined. So, the fish were exposed to increasing concentrations of gasoline: 0 (control), 100, 200 and 500 mg/L for 30 days. Unexposed fish exhibited significantly higher levels of serum GH compared to that of tested fish. The GH levels decreased significantly with increasing gasoline concentrations. These data together indicate that Gasoline presents a hazardous substance for both the fish as well as the human consumers . Finally, the results revealed that the River Nile transport project can lead to serious harm to fish community that eventually become unsafe for human consumption. Therefore, this project must be carefully revised forbidden by health agencies.

Effect of oil-pollution of water on delayed fluorescence of the algae Chlorella vulgaris Beijer and survival rate of the cladoceran Daphnia magna Str.

The paper gives the results of the laboratory experiments on the influence of different concentrations of oil in water environment over the chlorella and daphnia. It is shown that as the oil content in water increases, the intensity of delayed fluorescence of test-culture of chlorella and the survival rate of the daphnia decrease. However, for the chlorella the decrease in fluorescence as the indicator of its photosynthetic activity is observed only at very high concentrations of oil (1000–2000 MPC), whereas the survival rate of the cladocerans begins to drop at 4 MPC. A similar dependence is observed when sunflower-seed oil is introduced into the environment as an imitator of the oil pollution. We suppose that the negative influence of oil over the microalgae and cladocerans is conditioned more by the physical factors than by chemical ones.

Acute toxicity of qua iboe light crude oil on a fresh water fish, Oreochromis niloticus

The process of Crude oil exploration and exploitation is known to result in wide ranging negative environmental impacts, despite its huge benefits. Oil spillage, in particular, has been implicated in the pollution of aquatic and terrestrial environments resulting in severe harm and damage to organisms inhabiting them. The degree of pollution is measured by the damage potential or toxicity of the crude oil. The knowledge of toxicity of a particular blend of crude oil facilitates proper management of its spillages as has been widely reported in the Nigeria aquatic ecosystem.Acute toxicity of Qua Iboe Light Crude Oil against a fresh water fish, Oreochromis niloticus was determined in laboratory bioassay.Toxicity measurement based on 72hrs LC50 and 96hrs LC50 showed an average toxicity of 1.25ml/l. Specifically, 96hrs LC50 value was shown to be 1.069ml/l while 72hrs LC50 value was 1.432ml/l. The relevance of acute toxicity studies against sensitive aquatic organisms in the management of oil pollution events in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria is discussed in the paper.KEY WORDS: Acute toxicity, Qua Iboe Light Crude Oil, Oreochromis nilotilus.

Coastal Vulnerability to Oil Spill Pollution: the Case of Noirmoutier Island (France)

Over the last 30 years, oil spills have contributed significantly to coastal and marine pollution, causing disturbance of the coastal environment. This recurrent hazard has increasingly been taken into account through prevention plans in Coastal Zones Integrated Management. Numerous studies have attempted to analyse the effects of oil pollution, in particular to identify those areas that are the most vulnerable. Although several studies have considered both environmental and socioeconomic issues, most of them have focused only on environmental vulnerability. The aim of our research is to formalise an alternative approach to map global vulnerability, using both environmental and socioeconomic factors. This article describes and discusses the methodology used to identify the critical variables required to assess coastal vulnerability to oil spills. The first part introduces previous research and identifies the parameters that have been used to map this type of vulnerability. The study area is presented in the second part of the paper. The third part presents the method we used to compute a spatialised vulnerability index that is based on a multicriteria analysis including both environmental and socioeconomic parameters. The final part of this paper describes and discusses the results of the implementation of this method on Noirmoutier Island located off the west coast of France. The resulting synthetic mapping for risk monitoring, carried out using a geographical information system, seems to be a relevant and useful complementary tool to improve the management of oil spill crises.