The project is a JIP with many agencies involved in updating this document. This document is the 1989 National Research Council's Using Oil Spill Dispersants on the Sea. Agencies in this JIP are MMS, NOAA, API, and US Coast Guard. Review and evaluate existing information regarding the efficacy and effects of dispersants as an oil spill response technique. Focus will be on understanding the limitations imposed by the various methods used in these studies and to recommend steps that should be taken on effects of dispersed oil on freshwater, estuarine, and marine environments.
1) Review and evaluate ongoing research and existing literature on dispersant use in environmental, equipment and oil properties, short and long term fate of dispersed oils, and toxicology of the dispersed oil(s).
2) Evaluate the adequacy of information to support risk assessment frameworks as a heuristic to inform decision makers on oil spill response options.
3) Recommend steps that should be taken to fill existing knowledge gaps. Emphasis on laboratory and meso-scale experiments to inform potential field trials.
The Final Report is complete and MMS has distributed copies to our regional offices. To order copies of the final report, contact the National Research Council, Ocean Studies Board.