title: Extent and degree of shoreline oiling: Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Gulf of Mexico, USA.
abstract: 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.
authors.affiliation: Emergency Response Division, Office of Response and Restoration, National Ocean Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Seattle, Washington, United States of America. jmichel@researchplanning.com
authors.forename: Jacqueline
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Michel
authors.forename: Edward H
authors.initials: EH
authors.lastname: Owens
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zengel
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Graham
authors.forename: Zachary
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Nixon
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Allard
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Holton
authors.forename: P Doug
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Reimer
authors.forename: Alain
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lamarche
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: White
authors.forename: Nicolle
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Rutherford
authors.forename: Carl
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Childs
authors.forename: Gary
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mauseth
authors.forename: Greg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Challenger
authors.forename: Elliott
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Taylor
mesh_terms: D052918:Environmental Restoration and Remediation / Q000266:history* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D060851:Gulf of America; D049674:History, 21st Century; D059392:Petroleum Pollution / Q000266:history* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D014481:United States