The Washington Post | Newspapers in Education | June 2010

A Washington Post NIE graphic presentation based on The Washington Post coverage of Gulf Oil Spill

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Why drill here? Oil-rich states surround

the Gulf of Mexico.

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The Gulf is a sedimentary basin formed during Jurassic and Cretaceous periods of rising and lowering sea level which buried organic material and formed natural gas.

USGS

Why is oil found in the Gulf of Mexico?

Oil Fuels More Than Cars

JAHI CHIKWENDIUTHE/WASHINGTON POST

Oil prices fuel economic growth and opportunity

• Increase in drilling

• Expansion of refineries

• Additional building permits

• Hiring of skilled and specialized labor

• Growth in housing and hospitality industries

What are sources of oil pollution?• Natural – cold seeps• Ballast water• Waste oil

pumping• In-port oil loss• Tanker accidents• Exploration loss• Motor oil

Oil rigs are numerous in the Gulf of Mexico.JAE C. HONG/ASSOCIATED PRESS

Oil Spilled into the Gulf …

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… Occurred During Exploration

• Blowout of wells• Accidental damage to offshore drilling rigs• Cracks, punctures and erosion to transport pipelines

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How does oil affect wildlife?Depends on• Type of oil• Location of the spill • Depth/distance from shore• Weather at sea• Local wildlife• Breeding cycles• Seasonal migrations

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Oil May Cause• Damage to estuaries,

wetlands, coral and oyster reefs, algae, plankton, seagrass, and mangrove habitats

• Destruction of breeding and feeding grounds for many fish, mammals, birds and invertebrates such as oysters and crabs

MARY HOLLINGER/NOAA

Why are these habitats important?Oyster reefs, wetlands, and mangroves…• Buffer shorelines from storm surge• Prevent erosion of wetlands• Provide feeding grounds for birds at low tide• Filter water, removing excess nutrients, sediment, and algae• Provide shelter and food for invertebrates and fish• Attract commercial and recreational fishing

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How does the oil spill affect the food web?

ARIEL DEUTCH/Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology

Zooplankton or Oil Droplet?• Drifting plankton form a substrate for dispersed oil

droplets to cling to, tainting food used at higher levels of the food chain.

• Oil droplets may be confused by consumers as fish eggs

What eats zooplankton?

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Plankton Soup Zooplankton are primary consumers in the food web.

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Oyster Reefs Provide a Habitat … How many

organisms can you find on this clump of oysters?

STEFAN CLAESSON/NOAA

… Rich in BiodiversityBoth sessile organisms as well as free-swimming ones find refuge in the reef

DR. JAMES P. MCVEY/NOAA

How does your oyster grow?• Release spat (juvenile

oysters) May-August• Attach one generation

atop another• Form mountains of

oysters

PHOTOS NOAA

How will the oil spill affect the production of gametes, settlement of juveniles, and growth of the next generation?

Invertebrates Such as Blue Crabs …• Females undergo a single

mating, storing sperm to periodically fertilize eggs from April to October

• Food tainted with oil would affect egg and sperm viability since both contain high levels of lipids (fats)

• Less feeding means less growth

• Oil dispersants target lipids (also found in eggs)

How would dispersants affect the next generation of crabs?

PHOTOS NOAA

… and Shrimp• Spawn off shore in

the summer-fall seasons

• Feed on zooplankton —dispersed oil affects shrimps’ food source

• Toxins in food source affects health and reproduction

PHOTOS NOAA

At the Top of the Food Chain Biomagnification is

the accumulation of toxins in the tissues of top consumers such as the tuna or dolphin.

NOAA

What is the effect of oil on marine birds?

• Illness may prevent breeding

• Number of eggs laid or thickness of egg is reduced

WILLIAM B. FOLSOM/NMFS, NOAA

Other Effects on Birds• Insulation and

water-proofing of feathers destroyed

• Unable to fly or dive• Hypothermia• Dehydration• Starvation• Ulcers (if oil is ingested)• Damage to adrenal

systems affecting bloodpressure and fluid

• Stress

GERALD HERBERT/ASSOCIATED PRESS

Marine Mammals, Reptiles and BirdsMay experience respiratory problems from breathing fumes from oil or droplets of dispersed oil, causing damage to the airways and lungs – congestion, pneumonia, emphysema and even death

Sperm whale surfaces off the coast of MississippiNOAA

Whales• Biomagnification

accumulates toxins in fatty tissue of a mother

• Fatty tissue is converted into milk

• Young calves absorb oil through a mother’s milk

• Oil causes ulceration of skin, mouth and airways

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Filter-feeding Whales• Tar-like oil clogs the

baleen as whales skim the surface of the water, interfering with feeding

• Suppression of the immune system may cause secondary bacterial or fungal infections

• Damage to red blood cells impact oxygen transport and metabolism

Humpback whales breaching out of the GulfNOAA

Additional Health Impact• Liver damage• Stress

NOAA

What are the functions of the liver?

Why would theliver be a likely organ to fail?

In Marine Reptiles Such as Turtles, Oil Can

• Damage eyes, causing ulcers, conjunctivitis and blindness, making it difficult for them to find food, sometimes causing starvation

• Irritate or cause ulceration of skin, mouth and nasal cavities

G. McFALL/OAR

Contamination of Beaches

Causes contamination of eggs, adult turtles and newly hatched turtles

BONNIE STRAWSER,/USFWS TIM REID/NOAA

What are the countermeasures for oil spills?

• Skimmers• Booms• Chemical dispersants• Burning• Relief wells

COURTESY BP

What might be the effect of oil spill countermeasures on marine life?

Dolphins swim alongside a boom.

Oil dispersing chemicals are dropped from an aircraft.

CARDIZ/USAFNOAA

What is the reach of the oil spill?Current research includes• Scientists are comparing the amount of

toxins found in shellfish collected from the Gulf Coast area in the 1930's to samples being collected from areas affected by the recent oil spill.

• Toxins found in May will be compared to August collections.

• The quantity of oil absorbed and whether the source was from water or food can be determined.

PHOTOS NOAA

Regeneration

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