15 ms·

What was the process after similar catastrophes, like Exxon Valdez, or Deepwater Horizon?

• marginalia_nu 4y ago
  If you find a bunch of dead birds covered in crude oil, there's not much need for further analysis. I mean I guess a few could have died of unrelated causes just as they were contaminated by the oil, but if they hadn't, they still most likely would have died. Also, are they really similar catastrophes? The Deepwater Horizon is a spill the size of about 10,000 train cars. Obviously the effect of different materials differs, but the sheer area contaminated is in an entirely different ballpark.
  • voisin 4y ago
    For Deepwater Horizon at least, there was a lot of concern that the dispersant they used to break up the oil would cause a catastrophe not visible in the same way as an oil covered bird. This stuff in Ohio is burning up into the sky and being dispersed by wind. Not as bad as Deepwater Horizon given the much lower volume, but the perimeter of the consequences will be quite large and similarly difficult to delineate.