Exxon Valdez Oil Spill 1989 Introduction The Exxon Valdez was a supertanker that transported oil for Exxon Mobil from Prince William Sound, Alaska, to California. On March 24, 1989, the tanker collided with a reef, leading to a massive oil spill that would eventually pollute nearly 1,990 km2 of shoreline after spilling 38 million litres into the sea. Estimates of the crude oil lost by the Exxon Valdez are imprecise, but around 30–40% evaporated, 10–25% was recovered, and the rest remains in the marine environment. There are many factors that contributed to the scale of the disaster, almost all of which are Exxon’s fault. The ships captain had a drinking problem and on the night of the incident he was unfit to be in charge of the tanker and so left an unqualified crewmember in control.
BP Oil Spill Environmental Disaster- Lessons Bp oil spill was the largest disaster in American history; occurring on April 20, 2010 pumping over 200 million gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The oil rig explosion killed 11 people, injuring 17. Moreover, till date the oil continues to be washing up on shores; creating long-term damages to residential areas. In addition, the Bp Oil Spill was responsible for the death of over 8,000 animals, including many endangered species. The immediate effect of the Oil spill impacted the wildlife which included oil-coated birds (Ducks) and sea turtles.
Four kilometers of pine trees turned reddish-brown after the accident. This is where the name “Red Forest” was earned. Animals near the badly affected areas either died or stopped reproducing. The radiation caused numerous problems to humans as well, including Down's Syndrome, chromosomal aberrations, mutations, leukemia, thyroid cancer, and birth defects. Social & Economic Effect The tragic accident cost a huge sum of money.
Another problem is trash lifted by the tsunami waters from anywhere and everywhere, including debris from the earthquake disaster, has also been released and swept out to the ocean. The ocean’s waves and currents distribute the trash, along with the nuclear waste, throughout the waters, polluting the environment, near and far. Along with the physical devastation of getting infrastructure usable again, Japan is faced with environmental issues and daunting health concerns that must be improved, if not solved. The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant is one of the largest and oldest plants in the world existing for over 40 years now. It is now facing great threat due to the recent natural disasters.
It has claimed the lives of over fifteen thousand people and destroyed cities. Located along fault lines, it has the deadly combination of earthquakes as well as pyroclastic lava. The most deadly event occurred in 1792 causing a landslide and subsequent tsunami. This event is said to have killed approximately fifteen thousand. Unzen went dormant after that and remained so for almost two hundred years.
A reef started to form over 6 thousand years ago. While it is still forming today, it might not be for long. Slowly but surely this great reef is falling apart and losing many kinds of animals. There are three main reasons for the deterioration and changing of The Great Barrier Reef: climate change, human activities, and endangered species. We all know some of the causes of global warming: aerosols, foam cups, fumes from cars; they’re all put into the category of CFCs.
The run-off from higher elevation combined with melt water from lower elevation was so forceful it broke levees and caused one of the most damaging floods the region has ever seen. The West Walker River caused extensive damage in Topaz, Coleville, California, Wellington and Nevada. It’s estimated that twelve miles of US Highway 395 have been destroyed and are going to be closed for around seven months! In Yerington and in the Mason Valley nearly 500 homes have been damaged and public and private property damaged substantially. Floodwaters deposited debris on Farmland and Damaged irrigation gates, ditches and canals.
Mountaintop Removal Mountaintop Removal as a Social Problem William Moores Kaplan Career Institute-Nashville Mountaintop Removal as a Social Problem There is an ecological problem of mammoth proportions happening right now in our state. Our streams are being polluted, wildlife killed at an astounding rate, and the landscape changed in the blink of an eye. What is causing all of this you ask? It is a mining process known as mountaintop removal and it is having an astounding effect on not just our local environment, but also the entire world. The practice of Mountaintop Coal Mining (MCM) began in the 1960’s and 1970’s in West Virginia and later expanded into Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee.
Air pollution from government facilities, such as the Hanford nuclear testing facility, is causing harmful effects to people and the environment (OEM 1). Some side effects are damage to local wildlife, cardiovascular health problems and global warming (OEM). According to the American Lung Association, “The human toll is profound. They cited one 2010 study that estimated fine particles (PM2.5) contribute to 223,000 deaths from lung cancer worldwide.” (ALA, Par. 3).
Little was known about volcanos in 1883, so, although there were tell-tale signs of an eruption of Krakatoa, the signs went unheeded. According to my research, with over 36,000 dead from smoke inhalation and a massive tsunami, as well as destroying over 165 coastal villages, the eruption of Krakatoa off the coast of Indonesia became one of the most devastating volcano eruptions in recorded history. It was 6am on August 26 in 1883, when the volcano on Krakatoa catastrophically erupted (Bagley n.p). This earth-shattering event became the greatest natural disaster of the 19th century: “the sky was bathed in an unearthly red glow and the fallout was felt around the world.” (Bagley n.p) The force of the eruption created the loudest noise ever recorded: it was heard 4,500km away in Perth Australia and some 4,800km away in Alice Springs The power of the actual explosion is unfathomable. The total blast had a VEI of 6, which is equivalent to 200 megatons of TNT.