The transport and fate of hydrocarbons in the sea is governed by complex oceanographic and physico-chemical processes which make oil spill research one of the most difficult challenges in science. The risk of spills still continues to overwhelm prevention measures and to create potential danger in sensitive natural environments. Seeking to close the gap between theoretical developments and practical application, this work presents state-of-the-art techniques designed to model, prevent and control oil spills on land and in water. The papers featured come from the Second International Conference on this subject and include discussion of: spills in estuaries and delta areas; operational procedures for storage, handling and transportation of oil; biological impact of oil pollution; biological control methods; use of dispersants; oil spill treating agents; in-situ burning; experimental and laboratory analysis; sensitivity maps; rehabilitation of oil-damaged resources; and recovered oil management.
Section 1: Modelling of Trajectory and Fate of Spills - Environmental spill modelling and risk assessment of Orimulsion 400 and Heavy Fuel Oil; Oil spill modelling near the Portuguese coast; The influence of oil particle size distribution as an initial condition in oil spill random walk models; Expected impact of oil spills in the Southern Ocean; Oil spill scenario modelling for Sakhalin shelf; Numerical simulation of oil spills and oil combating techniques. Section 2: Spills in Estuaries and Coastal Areas - Modelling of oil spill evolution in estuaries and coastal regions; The integrated use of chemical and biochemical markers for assessing the effects of the Aegean Sea oil spill in the Galicia coast (NW Spain); Bioavailability and metabolism of pyrene in sediments with the polychaete Arenicola marina; A numerical tool for hydrocarbon pollution forecasting in the autonomous port of Bilbao. Section 3: Biological Impact of Oil Pollution - Stress responses and vibriosis induced by petroleum hydrocarbons in the penaeid shrimp Metapenaeus dobsoni (Miers); Have efforts to clean up the marine environment been successful? German beached bird surveys provide an index for oil pollution levels in the southern North Sea. Section 4: Cleanup Measures and Recovery - Groundwater clean-up: the optimization perspective; Gel-like protective coating for keeping oil and petroleum products from evaporation; Rehabilitation of waste lagoons from petroleum and coal processing; Basic study on recovery of spilled oil in the sea by the use of buckets; Biological cleanup of oil spills on sandy beaches by land farming techniques; Potentials for use of biosurfactants in oil spills cleanup and oil bioremediation. Section 5: Experimental and Laboratory Analysis - Development and application of a hyphenated analytical and chemometric method in petroleum characterisation, identification and degradation studies; Identification of oil spills by GC/MS finger-printing in relation to the Danish maritime oil spill response. Section 6: Oil Spill Detection and Prevention - Correlation of weathered and unweathered oil samples using the carbon isotopic composition of individual components in the crude oil; A fibre optic sensor for the detection of hydrocarbon fuel spills; Sensitivity mapping of particular sensitive areas; Design of a program for the protection of small islands from oil spill and waste.