Petroleum: Tar Quantities Floating in the Northwestern Atlantic Taken with a New Quantitative Neuston Net

The neuston net has been modified to obtain quantitative samples of surface zooplankton. Petroleum lumps are commonly taken with these nets, and quantities of tar up to almost 0.1 gram (wet weight) per cubic meter of filtered surface water have been taken in the northwestern Atlantic. This informati...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science
Main Author: Morris, Byron F.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) 1971
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.173.3995.430
https://www.science.org/doi/pdf/10.1126/science.173.3995.430
Description
Summary:The neuston net has been modified to obtain quantitative samples of surface zooplankton. Petroleum lumps are commonly taken with these nets, and quantities of tar up to almost 0.1 gram (wet weight) per cubic meter of filtered surface water have been taken in the northwestern Atlantic. This information is used to estimate the quantity of tar lumps present in the North Atlantic and to indicate the probable limits of the degree of existing oil pollution in this region. It is suggested that previous estimates of ocean oil pollution may be too low.