Team Working to Safeguard the Shoreline
Published on by Water Network Research, Official research team of The Water Network in Academic
NJIT Research Team Has Estimated the Total Mass of Oil That Reached the Gulf of Mexico Shore in the Wake of the BP Deepwater Horizon Blowout
The researchers found that 22,000 tons of oil reached the Gulf shoreline in 2010. This finding will help officials determine the persistence of oil on the shore and identify potential harm to the ecosystem.
The study was conducted bythe Center for Natural Resources Development and Protection(NRDP) at NJIT, whose director, Michel Boufadel, is known internationally for oil-spill research. Three researchers from the center -- Xiaolong Geng, Ali Abdollahi Nasab, and Jagadish Torlapati - assisted Boufadel in the study.
The researchers found that the mass of oil reaching the shoreline was between 10,000 and 30,000 tons, with an average value of 22,000 tons. That amount represents about 5% of the total oil released in the Gulf from the blowout. More than 90% of the oil mass, moreover, landed in Louisiana, suggesting the severe impact on Louisiana in comparison to other states.
In comparison, the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989 deposited 15,000 tons of oil on the shorelines of Prince William Sound, Alaska. Boufadel, who researched the Exxon spill, said the amount of oil reaching the shore from Deepwater is comparable to the Exxon Valdez spill.
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