Responding to Oil Spills in the U.S. Arctic Marine Environment
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THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS This PDF is available at http://nap.edu/18625 SHARE Responding to Oil Spills in the U.S. Arctic Marine Environment DETAILS 210 pages | 7 x 10 | PAPERBACK ISBN 978-0-309-29886-5 | DOI 10.17226/18625 AUTHORS BUY THIS BOOK Committee on Responding to Oil Spills in the U.S. Arctic Marine Environment; Ocean Studies Board; Polar Research Board; Division on Earth and Life Studies; Marine Board; Transportation Research Board; National Research Council FIND RELATED TITLES Visit the National Academies Press at NAP.edu and login or register to get: – Access to free PDF downloads of thousands of scientific reports – 10% off the price of print titles – Email or social media notifications of new titles related to your interests – Special offers and discounts Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the National Academies Press. (Request Permission) Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. Responding to Oil Spills in the U.S. Arctic Marine Environment Committee on Responding to Oil Spills in the U.S. Arctic Marine Environment Ocean Studies Board Division of Earth and Life Studies Polar Research Board Division of Earth and Life Studies Marine Board Transportation Research Board Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. R02581--Oil Spills.indd 1 7/17/14 11:14 AM Responding to Oil Spills in the U.S. Arctic Marine Environment THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS • 500 Fifth Street, NW • Washington, DC 20001 NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance. Funding for this study was provided by the U.S. Arctic Research Commission, the American Petroleum Institute under grant number 2011-105958, the U.S. Coast Guard under cooperative agreement number DTMA1H11001, U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management under purchase order number M11PX00116 and Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement under purchase order num- ber E12PX00061, the Marine Mammal Commission under purchase order number DC-260-79EC085782, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration under contract number WC133R-11-CQ-0048, the Oil Spill Recovery Institute under grant number 12-10-02, and the National Academy of Sciences. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the project. International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-29886-5 International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-29886-5 Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2014942825 Cover photograph provided by Richard Glenn, Arctic Slope Regional Corporation. Additional copies of this report are available for sale from the National Academies Press, 500 Fifth Street, NW, Keck 360, Washington, DC 20001; (800) 624-6242 or (202) 334-3313; Internet, http://www.nap.edu/. Copyright 2014 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. R02581--Oil Spills.indd 2 7/17/14 11:14 AM Responding to Oil Spills in the U.S. Arctic Marine Environment The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars en- gaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone is president of the National Academy of Sciences. The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. C. D. Mote, Jr., is president of the National Academy of Engineering. The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Victor J. Dzau is president of the Institute of Medicine. The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Ralph J. Cicerone and Dr. C. D. Mote, Jr., are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council. www.national-academies.org Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. R02581--Oil Spills.indd 3 7/17/14 11:14 AM Responding to Oil Spills in the U.S. Arctic Marine Environment Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. R02581--Oil Spills.indd 4 7/17/14 11:14 AM Responding to Oil Spills in the U.S. Arctic Marine Environment COMMITTEE ON RESPONDING TO OIL SPILLS IN ARCTIC MARINE ENVIRONMENTS MARTHA R. GRABOWSKI, Chair, Le Moyne College, Syracuse, New York, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York THOMAS COOLBAUGH, ExxonMobil Research and Engineering, Fairfax, Virginia DAVID F. DICKINS, DF Dickins Associates, LLC, La Jolla, California RICHARD GLENN, Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, Barrow, Alaska KENNETH LEE, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Australia WILLIAM (LEE) MAJORS, Alaska Clean Seas, Prudhoe Bay MARK D. MYERS, University of Alaska, Fairbanks BRENDA L. NORCROSS, University of Alaska, Fairbanks MARK REED, SINTEF, Norway BRIAN SALERNO,1 BIMCO, Washington, D.C. ROBERT SUYDAM, North Slope Borough, Barrow, Alaska JAMES M. TIEDJE (NAS), Michigan State University, East Lansing MARY LOUISE TIMMERMANS, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut PETER WADHAMS, Cambridge University, United Kingdom POLAR RESEARCH BOARD LIAISONS MOLLY MCCAMMON, Alaska Ocean Observing System, Anchorage CARYN REA, ConocoPhillips, Anchorage, Alaska NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL STAFF DEBORAH GLICKSON, Senior Program Officer LAUREN BROWN, Associate Program Officer, Polar Research Board STACEE KARRAS, Research Associate HEATHER CHIARELLO, Senior Program Assistant (until April 2013) PAYTON KULINA, Program Assistant (from June 2013) 1 Resigned from the committee. v Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. R02581--Oil Spills.indd 5 7/17/14 11:14 AM Responding to Oil Spills in the U.S. Arctic Marine Environment Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. R02581--Oil Spills.indd 6 7/17/14 11:14 AM Responding to Oil Spills in the U.S. Arctic Marine Environment Preface Balance. This is an important word in the Arctic, an area that serves as an integrator of many of the Earth’s large-scale systems and processes, and also an area where choices made have substantial impact on the Arctic and its neighbors. Many competing forces coexist and collide in the Arctic: harsh environmental conditions, economic drivers, science and technology capabilities, logistical and infrastructure challenges, ecosystem protection needs, food security concerns, and the needs of traditional cultures and societies. Balancing the needs and requirements of these forces is part of the challenge and opportunity presented in the complex, large-scale system that is the Arctic. Within this context, the National Research Council was asked by eight sponsors who represent many of these drivers to consider the adequacy and sufficiency of resources, technology, research, human resources, funding, and logistics to respond to an Arctic oil spill. The committee sought to balance in its work traditional and scientific knowledge of the Arctic and of oil spill response operations, engineering, technology, policies, procedures, and equipment. It considered the needs and concerns of the committee’s sponsors; government, public, private, for-profit and not-for-profit organizations; citizens and organizations with Arctic interests; and the needs and interests of Arctic inhabitants. The committee also considered