Shoreline Processes, Stranded Oil and Cleanup Activities

OWENS, EDWARD H., Woodward-Clyde Consultants, Seattle, WA

The initial character of stranded oil is a function of a large number of interactive variables that include the volume and character of the oil as it reaches the shore zone, nearshore oceanographic conditions at the time of stranding, and the character of the zone substrate. The fate of stranded oil on the shoreline is a function of weathering processes, natural removal, and of treatment activities. The presentation will review each of the major components described above and will present summary models to describe relative rates of natural change for selected scenarios. The role of coastal processes will be considered and used to illustrate how shoreline dynamics can remove or bury stranded oil. Examples will be provided to show some of the characteristic processes that cause changes in the distribution of stranded oil. Some shoreline treatment activities involve disturbance and relocation or removal of beach substrate; the effects of such activities will be illustrated and evaluated.

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #91004 © 1991 AAPG Annual Convention Dallas, Texas, April 7-10, 1991 (2009)