An international group is poised for an extensive survey of the Persian Gulf, including an assessment of the long term effects of last year's oil spill, a legacy of the Persian Gulf war.
Saudi Arabia plans a $450 million cleanup program on beaches fouled by the massive spill (see map, OGJ, Nov. 18, 1991, p. 116).
Plans for the survey were disclosed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco). It is to be carried out under the auspices of the Regional Organization for the Protection of the Marine Environment (Ropme), Unesco's Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, and the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Ropme member countries are Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.
WHAT'S PLANNED
The survey, which is to take 100 days, will be conducted by the Mount Mitchell, a 231 ft U.S. research vessel. About 100 researchers from Ropme countries, Europe, and the U.S. will work on part or all of the survey.
Mount Mitchell is to begin the survey Feb. 21.
The survey, which will be divided into six legs, will assess oceanography, near shore processes, fisheries, and seafood.
Unesco pegged the volume of the Persian Gulf at about 6-8 million bbl, 25 times the size of the Exxon Valdez spill off Alaska in 1989. There has been very little done to combat the effects of the spill on gulf shores.
Unesco said U.S. scientists are particularly interested in comparing the conditions of Persian Gulf shores to those in Alaska, which were extensively cleaned after the Valdez spill.
Scientists believe about half the Persian Gulf spill evaporated in the first 5 days, before reaching shore. Another 1.0 million bbl were recovered from the Saudi coast.
About 1.5-2.5 million bbl remain in shallow water near the Kuwaiti and Saudi coasts. Much of that oil has sunk and become covered by sand. Unesco said it has hardened in pockets that will leak for many years.
Those leaks will cause constant contamination with unknown long term effects on fisheries, sea grass, coral reefs, sea birds, and other marine life.
Researchers will try to assess the role of sediment transport in dispersing oil and the effectiveness of natural biodegradation in removing oil. They will look for bacteria most effective in accelerating biodegradation and assess the limits and drawbacks of that process and its effect on seafood.
Researchers on board the Mount Mitchell will get an assist from the crew of the U.S. space shuttle Atlantis late this month. The shuttle will fly over the Persian Gulf and provide information on things such as river plumes and pollution outfalls.
The survey is to end May 27.
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