The Fate of Oil in the Water Column Following Experimental Oil Spills in the Arctic Marine Nearshore

• Published in: ARCTIC
• Main Authors: Humphrey, B., Green, D.R., Fowler, B.R., Hope, D., Boehm, P.D.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: The Arctic Institute of North America 1987
• Subjects: Canada. Baffin Island Oil Spill Project; Marine oil spills; Oil spill cleanup; Oil spill dispersants; Hatt; Cape; waters; Nunavut; Ragged Channel; Arctic; Baffin Island; Canada; Baffin
• Online Access: https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/arctic/article/view/64862

Petroleum hydrocarbon concentrations in the water column were monitored after a release of crude oil onto the water surface and a subsurface release of chemically dispersed oil. During the surface release, petroleum hydrocarbons did not disperse into the water column deeper than 1 m. The highest concentrations observed under the slick were less than 2 mg/l. The chemically dispersed oil released resulted in concentrations over 50 mg/l in the Bay 9 study area for 12 hours. Estimated exposures of the benthic communities to oil in the three experimental bays were 3 mg/l/h, 30 mg/l/h, and 300 mg/l/h respectively. The highest exposures were to oil retaining many of its more toxic components.Key words: dispersant, oil, fluorometry, gas chromatography, oil spill Mots clés: agent de dispersion, fluorométrie, chromatographie en phase gazeuse, déversement de pétrole