Project Information

Title: Nearshore Transport of Hydrocarbons and Sediments Following EVOS ST03-B

Project Year and Number: 1992: ST03-B

Other Fiscal Years and Numbers for this Project: 1992: ST03-A, 1991: ST03, 1990: AW03, 1989: AW03

Principal Investigator (PI): Dave Sale (ECO Resource Group)

Managing Agency: ADEC

Assisting Personnel: Jim Gibeaut, Jeff Short

Research Location: Prince William Sound

Restoration Category: Damage Assessment

Injured Resources Addressed: Intertidal Organisms, Sediments

Abstract: The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) has deployed sediment traps in Prince William Sound since November 1989 to monitor near shore sedimentation in the wake of the Exxon Valdez oil spill. These sediment traps capture particulates settling out of the water column, which are then analyzed for hydrocarbon chemistry, organic carbon/nitrogen and mineralogy. The analysis and interpretation of the data collected from 1989 through 1992 from this study should be completed and published because: 1) this study represents the longest monitoring of settling particulates after a major oil spill; 2) the study provides a potential connection between shoreline and subtidal oiling and uptake by marine organisms; and, 3) because the results may shed light on questions regarding the efficacy and environmental benefit of shoreline treatment and the possible continuing inputs of oil from remaining shoreline contamination. Results to date found significant quantities (>200 ppm) of oil in settling particulates two years after the oil spill at several of the study sites where there is a continued presence of subsurface shoreline oiling.


Proposal: View (17 KB)

Reports:
Final Report: View (3,991 KB)

Publications from this Project: None Available

Datasets:
Auke Bay Laboratory (Hydrocarbon Samples): Hydrocarbon sample results from this project are included in the NOAA final hydrocarbon database. The database includes sample collection information, hydrocarbon analyses and numerical correlations directly related to oil. dbf Availability: This database is accessible through Auke Bay Lab (907) 789-6000 and will be included on the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council Information Management CD-ROM available fall 1996.