Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill III
While cleanup strategies were enforced, the damage was already done. With the extended periods of time required with cleaning up oil spills of such an extensive nature, it means that harmful impacts will continue to affect the marine ecosystem even after the oil spill has already occurred.
Before the spilled oil is skimmed or burned from the water surface, the floating oil can contaminate sargassum mats. These sargassum mats are an important micro-habitat in the Gulf of Mexico for various marine life. With the contamination of these sargassum mats, marine life risks coming into direct contact with the spilled oil. Besides potentially swimming through spilled oil, there is also the possibility of ingesting or inhaling the spilled oil, leading to potentially hazardous or even, deadly consequences.
Figure 1: Oiled Sargassum in the Gulf of Mexico following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (NOAA, 2010)
In fact, according to the NOAA (n.d.), “Between 4,900 and 7,600 large juvenile and adult sea turtles, and between 56,000 and 166,000 small juvenile sea turtles, were killed by the spill” (p. 11). Sea turtles who were not killed directly by the oil spill also suffered from reduced mobility and dehydration, which reduced their ability to find food and escape from predators, which eventually also led to more deaths.
Aside from sea turtles, many fish species were also negatively affected by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. This includes the Gulf sturgeon, which is listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. According to research by the University of South Florida (2020), the Deepwater Horizon oil spill is still affecting fish species in the Gulf of Mexico even after a decade, despite cleanup efforts. Out of the 91 fish species that were sampled, all were discovered to have been exposed to oil.
Interestingly, the Gulf menhaden species experienced a population boom after the oil spill. This was attributed to the reduced seabird population, which is the main contributor to feeding on the Gulf menhaden (Short et al., 2017). This also goes to show that the devastating impacts of the oil spill not only affected aquatic life but also seabirds who rely heavily on the marine environment and can also suffer from oil contamination as a direct result of floating oil on the water surface. Nevertheless, the boom of Gulf menhaden offers a refreshing insight as to how the oil spill disaster may not necessarily be bad news for everyone.
References
NOAA. (n.d.). Affected Gulf Resources. Gulf Spill Restoration. Retrieved February 16, 2022, from https://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/affected-gulf-resources/
NOAA. (2010). Surveying Oiled Sargassum [Photograph]. https://www.flickr.com/photos/usoceangov/4700293367/
Short, J. W., Geiger, H. J., Haney, J. C., Voss, C. M., Vozzo, M. L., Guillory, V., & Peterson, C. H. (2017). Anomalously high recruitment of the 2010 gulf menhaden (Brevoortia patronus) year class: Evidence of indirect effects from the deepwater horizon blowout in the gulf of mexico. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology, 73(1), 76–92. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00244-017-0374-0
University of South Florida. (2020, April 13). USF Marine Scientists Conclude 10 Years of Unprecedented Studies on the Impacts of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. https://www.usf.edu/news/2020/10-year-deepwater-horizon-oil-spill-research-concludes.aspx