Percepción de la población sobre el derrame de petróleo en la Refinería laPampilla en las costas del litoral marino, Perú / Percepção da população sobre o derramamento de petróleo na Refinaria La Pampilla nas costas do litoral marinho, Peru / Public perception of the oil spill at the La Pampilla Refinery in the marine coast of Peru

The oil spill at the La Pampilla refinery, managed by REPSOL, will have strong environmentalimpacts on the Peruvian coast, damaging marine life and other biological elements. This study seeks toanalyze the population's perception of the oil spill at the La Pampilla Refinery through a nonexperimental quantitative-descriptive method. The people who participated in the survey, composed of 7items, amounted to 1554 individuals, considering it a representative sample for the study's purpose. The results show that more than 90% of the population identifies REPSOL as responsible for the oil spill. Inaddition, they consider that this environmental disaster will have severe consequences for theenvironment, causing the disappearance of some marine species. Likewise, they conclude that thecontamination will take between two to five years to be eradicated due to the toxic components of thehydrocarbon. (AU)

El derrame ocurrido, en la refinería La Pampilla, administradas por la empresa REPSOL, dejaráfuertes impactos ambientales en la costa peruana, dañando la vida marina y otros componentes bióticos.El estudio analiza la percepción de la población sobre el derrame de petróleo en la Refinería La Pampillaa través de un método de tipo cuantitativo-descriptivo no experimental. La población que participó en laencuesta, compuesta por 7 ítems, ascendió a un total de 1554 personas, considerándose una muestrarepresentativa para el objeto del estudio. Los resultados muestran que la población identifica comoresponsable del derrame petrolero a la empresa REPSOL, con más 90%. Consideran que este desastreambiental acarreará consecuencias muy graves al medio ambiente, ocasionando la desaparición dealgunas especies marinas. Asimismo, concluyen que la contaminación tardará entre dos a cinco años paraser erradicada, debido a los componentes tóxicos del hidrocarburo. (AU)

O derramamento acontecido na refinaría La Pampilla, administrada pela empresa REPSOL,deixará fortes impactos ambientais na costa peruana, danificando a vida marinha e outros componentesbióticos. O estudo analiza a percepção da população sobre o derramamento de petróleo na Refinaria LaPampilla através de um método quantitativo-descriptivo não experimental. A população que participounos questionários de 7 itens foi de 1554 pessoas, sendo considerado uma amostra representativa para oobjeto de estudo. Os resultados demonstram que a população identifica como responsável doderramamento de petróleo à empresa REPSOL, com mais de 90%. Consideram que este desastreambiental acarretará conseqüências muito graves para o meio ambiente, ocasionando o desaparecimentode algumas espécies marinhas. Asim também, concluem que a poluição poderia ser erradicada entre doisa cinco anos, a causa dos componentes tóxicos do hidrocarboneto. (AU)

The iconic Torrey Canyon oil spill of 1967 - Marking its legacy.

March 2017 marks the 50th anniversary of the SS Torrey Canyon oil spill and cleanup, off the Cornwall coast in the English Channel. It was the world's first major supertanker disaster. It was a signature event in the marine pollution field, especially related to oil spill response and the initiation of scientific studies of monitoring and researching the fate and effects of oil in the sea. This paper recalls this event, notes our growing understanding of marine pollution and global efforts for cleaner seas, and encourages further work on both oil and the many emerging environmental issues affecting the marine environment.

An in-depth survey of the oil spill literature since 1968: Long term trends and changes since Deepwater Horizon.

In order to characterize the state of oil spill research and describe how the field has changed since its inception in the 1960s and since the Deepwater Horizon spill in 2010, we examined approximately 10% of oil spill literature (1255 of over 11,000 publications) published from 1968 to 2015. We find that, despite its episodic nature, oil spill research is a rapidly expanding field with a growth rate faster than that of science as a whole. There is a massive post-Deepwater Horizon shift of research attention to the Gulf of Mexico, from 2% of studies in 2004-2008 to 61% in 2014-2015, thus ranking Deepwater Horizon as the most studied oil spill. There is, however, a longstanding gap in research in that only 1% of studies deal with the effects of oil spills on human health. These results provide a better understanding of the current trends and gaps within the field.

Ambient air concentrations exceeded health-based standards for fine particulate matter and benzene during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

UNLABELLED: The Deepwater Horizon oil spill is considered one of the largest marine oil spills in the history of the United States. Air emissions associated with the oil spill caused concern among residents of Southeast Louisiana. The purpose of this study was to assess ambient concentrations of benzene (n=3,887) and fine particulate matter (n=102,682) during the oil spill and to evaluate potential exposure disparities in the region. Benzene and fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations in the targeted parishes were generally higher following the oil spill, as expected. Benzene concentrations reached 2 to 19 times higher than background, and daily exceedances of PM2.5 were 10 to 45 times higher than background. Both benzene and PM2.5 concentrations were considered high enough to exceed public health criteria, with measurable exposure disparities in the coastal areas closer to the spill and clean-up activities. These findings raise questions about public disclosure of environmental health risks associated with the oil spill. The findings also provide a science-based rationale for establishing health-based action levels in future disasters. IMPLICATIONS: Benzene and particulate matter monitoring during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill revealed that ambient air quality was a likely threat to public health and that residents in coastal Louisiana experienced significantly greater exposures than urban residents. Threshold air pollution levels established for the oil spill apparently were not used as a basis for informing the public about these potential health impacts. Also, despite carrying out the most comprehensive air monitoring ever conducted in the region, none of the agencies involved provided integrated analysis of the data or conclusive statements about public health risk. Better information about real-time risk is needed in future environmental disasters.

Los halos de inhibición en la remediación de suelos amazónicos contaminados con petróleo / Inhibition halos in the remediation of Amazon soils contaminated with petroleum

Resumen Se analiza la historia de la biorremediación de suelos contaminados con petróleo en la Amazonía ecuatoriana desde 1994 hasta 2014. Constatamos que si bien hubo “éxitos” tecnocientíficos, la oportunidad de cimentar un proceso de excelencia científica se vio frustrada por la carencia de voluntad política para gestionar la investigación. Parecen haber influido la dependencia de tecnología extranjera, la poca articulación interna entre programas de investigación e instituciones, la corrupción, la poca tradición innovadora en la biotecnología nacional, el predominio de biobraceros y una dicotomía construida entre petróleo y ambiente. Se articulan estos resultados en torno a debates sobre ciencia y tecnología en la periferia y se reflexiona sobre aspectos necesarios para consolidar procesos tecnocientíficos de excelencia en estos territorios.

Abstract We analyze the history of bioremediation of soils contaminated with petroleum in the Ecuadorian Amazon from 1994 to 2014. Although there were some technoscientific “successes,” we argue that the opportunity to develop a process of scientific excellence was thwarted by lack of an institutional framework and the political will to oversee research and innovation. Dependence on foreign technology, insufficient internal coordination among research programs and institutions, corruption, lack of a national tradition of biotechnological innovation, the predominance of “biopeons,” and a dichotomy between oil and the environment all influenced this process. We discuss these issues in relation to science and technology on the periphery and examine what is needed to consolidate technoscientific processes of excellence in those territories.

Tourism and its hypersensitivity to oil spills.

The sinking of the Don Pedro merchant ship in 2007 near the island of Ibiza is a good example of the extreme sensitivity of the tourism sector to oil spills. Despite the limited scale of the spill (only some 20 tonnes), its minimal ecological impact, and the rapid deployment of personnel and equipment to contain it, the accident nonetheless caused significant economic damage to the island's tourism sector. This particular case demonstrates the importance of the beach as a factor of production in the holiday tourism sector, and the capacity of even small amounts of oil to render it unusable and cause heavy losses to holiday firms.

Inhibition halos in the remediation of Amazon soils contaminated with petroleum.

We analyze the history of bioremediation of soils contaminated with petroleum in the Ecuadorian Amazon from 1994 to 2014. Although there were some technoscientific "successes," we argue that the opportunity to develop a process of scientific excellence was thwarted by lack of an institutional framework and the political will to oversee research and innovation. Dependence on foreign technology, insufficient internal coordination among research programs and institutions, corruption, lack of a national tradition of biotechnological innovation, the predominance of "biopeons," and a dichotomy between oil and the environment all influenced this process. We discuss these issues in relation to science and technology on the periphery and examine what is needed to consolidate technoscientific processes of excellence in those territories.

Changes in the concentration and relative abundance of alkanes and PAHs from the Deepwater Horizon oiling of coastal marshes.

We determined changes of 28 alkanes and 43 different PAHs in 418 wetland soil samples collected on ten sampling trips to three Louisiana estuaries before and after they were oiled from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster. There was a significant decline in 22 of the 28 alkane analytes (0.42% day(-1)), no change in 6, over 2.5 years. The concentration of five aromatic petroleum hydrocarbons (PAHs) increased (range 0.25-0.70% day(-1)), whereas the total PAH pool did not change. Of these five, naphthalene and C-1-naphthalenes are suggested to be of higher toxicity than the other three because of their relatively higher volatility or solubility. The relative proportions of alkane analytes, but not PAHs, does not yet resemble that in the pre-oiled marshes after 3 years, The trajectories of nine indicators for degradation/weathering were either inconclusive or misleading (alkanes) or confirmed the relatively meager degradation of PAHs.

Vertical distribution and source identification of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in southwest of the Caspian Sea: most petrogenic events during the late Little Ice Age.

In this study, 75 samples of two (210)Pb-dated cores from the southwest of the Caspian Sea were analysed for 30 compounds of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The TPAH29 flux of the last six centuries ranged from 16.3 to 177.3 and 22.3 to 426.2 ng cm(-2)y(-1) in the Rezvanshahr and Anzali core sediments, respectively. Prior to 1840, four distinct maxima in PAH fluxes (61-426.2 ng cm(-2)y(-1)) with a low weathered petrogenic pattern were found in each of the core sediments. Simultaneity of distinct peaks of PAH fluxes before 1840 and Caspian Sea level high-stands during the Little Ice Age (LIA), revealed the high importance of this phenomenon in washing and transport of land-based oil pollution into the Caspian Sea. An overall increase in some diagnostic ratios (Flu/202, IP/276 and BaA/228), especially after 1940, indicated increase of pyrogenic PAHs as a result of industrial development in the catchment area.

Deepwater Horizon crude oil impacts the developing hearts of large predatory pelagic fish.

The Deepwater Horizon disaster released more than 636 million L of crude oil into the northern Gulf of Mexico. The spill oiled upper surface water spawning habitats for many commercially and ecologically important pelagic fish species. Consequently, the developing spawn (embryos and larvae) of tunas, swordfish, and other large predators were potentially exposed to crude oil-derived polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Fish embryos are generally very sensitive to PAH-induced cardiotoxicity, and adverse changes in heart physiology and morphology can cause both acute and delayed mortality. Cardiac function is particularly important for fast-swimming pelagic predators with high aerobic demand. Offspring for these species develop rapidly at relatively high temperatures, and their vulnerability to crude oil toxicity is unknown. We assessed the impacts of field-collected Deepwater Horizon (MC252) oil samples on embryos of three pelagic fish: bluefin tuna, yellowfin tuna, and an amberjack. We show that environmentally realistic exposures (1-15 µg/L total PAH) cause specific dose-dependent defects in cardiac function in all three species, with circulatory disruption culminating in pericardial edema and other secondary malformations. Each species displayed an irregular atrial arrhythmia following oil exposure, indicating a highly conserved response to oil toxicity. A considerable portion of Gulf water samples collected during the spill had PAH concentrations exceeding toxicity thresholds observed here, indicating the potential for losses of pelagic fish larvae. Vulnerability assessments in other ocean habitats, including the Arctic, should focus on the developing heart of resident fish species as an exceptionally sensitive and consistent indicator of crude oil impacts.

Impact of crude oil exposure on nitrogen cycling in a previously impacted Juncus roemerianus salt marsh in the northern Gulf of Mexico.

This study investigated potential nitrogen fixation, net nitrification, and denitrification responses to short-term crude oil exposure that simulated oil exposure in Juncus roemerianus salt marsh sediments previously impacted following the Deepwater Horizon accident. Temperature as well as crude oil amount and type affected the nitrogen cycling rates. Total nitrogen fixation rates increased 44 and 194 % at 30 °C in 4,000 mg kg(-1) tar ball and 10,000 mg kg(-1) moderately weathered crude oil treatments, respectively; however, there was no difference from the controls at 10 and 20 °C. Net nitrification rates showed production at 20 °C and consumption at 10 and 30 °C in all oil treatments and controls. Potential denitrification rates were higher than controls in the 10 and 30 ºC treatments but responded differently to the oil type and amount. The highest rates of potential denitrification (12.7 ± 1.0 nmol N g(-1) wet h(-1)) were observed in the highly weathered 4,000 mg kg(-1) oil treatment at 30 °C, suggesting increased rates of denitrification during the warmer summer months. These results indicate that the impacts on nitrogen cycling from a recurring oil spill could depend on the time of the year as well as the amount and type of oil contaminating the marsh. The study provides evidence for impact on nitrogen cycling in coastal marshes that are vulnerable to repeated hydrocarbon exposure.

Rapid degradation of Deepwater Horizon spilled oil by indigenous microbial communities in Louisiana saltmarsh sediments.

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill led to the severe contamination of coastal environments in the Gulf of Mexico. A previous study detailed coastal saltmarsh erosion and recovery in a number of oil-impacted and nonimpacted reference sites in Barataria Bay, Louisiana over the first 18 months after the spill. Concentrations of alkanes and polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) at oil-impacted sites significantly decreased over this time period. Here, a combination of DNA, lipid, and isotopic approaches confirm that microbial biodegradation was contributing to the observed petroleum mass loss. Natural abundance (14)C analysis of microbial phospholipid fatty acids (PLFA) reveals that petroleum-derived carbon was a primary carbon source for microbial communities at impacted sites several months following oil intrusion when the highest concentrations of oil were present. Also at this time, microbial community analysis suggests that community structure of all three domains has shifted with the intrusion of oil. These results suggest that Gulf of Mexico marsh sediments have considerable biodegradation potential and that natural attenuation is playing a role in impacted sites.

Extent and degree of shoreline oiling: Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Gulf of Mexico, USA.

The oil from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico was documented by shoreline assessment teams as stranding on 1,773 km of shoreline. Beaches comprised 50.8%, marshes 44.9%, and other shoreline types 4.3% of the oiled shoreline. Shoreline cleanup activities were authorized on 660 km, or 73.3% of oiled beaches and up to 71 km, or 8.9% of oiled marshes and associated habitats. One year after the spill began, oil remained on 847 km; two years later, oil remained on 687 km, though at much lesser degrees of oiling. For example, shorelines characterized as heavily oiled went from a maximum of 360 km, to 22.4 km one year later, and to 6.4 km two years later. Shoreline cleanup has been conducted to meet habitat-specific cleanup endpoints and will continue until all oiled shoreline segments meet endpoints. The entire shoreline cleanup program has been managed under the Shoreline Cleanup Assessment Technique (SCAT) Program, which is a systematic, objective, and inclusive process to collect data on shoreline oiling conditions and support decision making on appropriate cleanup methods and endpoints. It was a particularly valuable and effective process during such a complex spill.

Oil biodegradation and bioremediation: a tale of the two worst spills in U.S. history.

The devastating environmental impacts of the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989 and its media notoriety made it a frequent comparison to the BP Deepwater Horizon spill in the popular press in 2010, even though the nature of the two spills and the environments impacted were vastly different. Fortunately, unlike higher organisms that are adversely impacted by oil spills, microorganisms are able to consume petroleum hydrocarbons. These oil degrading indigenous microorganisms played a significant role in reducing the overall environmental impact of both the Exxon Valdez and BP Deepwater Horizon oil spills.

[Political change, disease and healthcare reform: the response to the Toxic Oil Syndrome (Spain, 1981-1998)]. / Cambio político, enfermedad y reforma sanitaria: la respuesta asistencial al Síndrome del Aceite Tóxico (España, 1981-1998).

In 1981, Spain was threatened by the sudden appearance of an epidemic-like disease, one which was unknown to that date. The Toxic Oil Syndrome, as it was later named after the oil that caused it, thus demanded a response that became conditioned by the fact that the biological nature of the disease was unknown, but also, significantly by the complex situation in the country at that time. Spain was immersed in process of great political change, as well as a difficult economic situation, the authorities were obliged to react in not ideal conditions and in accordance with the very values that the new model of social relations that was being developed. This paper aims to look at the way in which the Toxic Oil Syndrome acted as a catalyst and accelerated the healthcare reform that, already prior to the outbreak of the epidemic, had been deemed necessary. This work focuses mainly on the response of the health system regarding those affected by the epidemic, as it was forced to treat a group of people with severe physical side effects which would lead to disability within a new framework of social relations. It thus aims to illustrate how many of the measures adopted were in accordance with the main ideas behind the reform, and also how these measures were precursors of those which were later applied to the population as a whole.