The Minerals Management Service initiated a cooperative effort with Environment Canada (EC) which has identified knowledge gaps in the application of cleanup techniques to the beaches characteristic of the Pacific coastline, from southern California to the Aleutian chain. This project evaluated the effectiveness of minimizing biological damage of spilled oil to such beaches and attempted to establish a correlation between cleanup effectiveness and environmental damage caused by various cleanup techniques. The objective of this program allows spill response personnel to choose shoreline cleanup strategies that will minimize the ecological effects of the spill and increase recovery potential for the affected ecological community.
Environment Canada (EC) conducted a meeting of shoreline cleanup experts in Victoria, British Columbia, January 17-19, 1994. Participants prioritized studies and products necessary to improve the effectiveness of response to oil spills on shorelines. The proceedings from this meeting will identify knowledge gaps and recommend specific research projects. Project Number: 158 (cont.)