Atlas of Contaminated Sites

Notable case, Bligh Reef, Prince William Sound, Alaska, United States

Exxon Valdez oil spill (Prince William Sound)

On 24 March 1989 the tanker Exxon Valdez grounded on Bligh Reef and lost 10.8 million gallons of crude oil. It is the case in which bioremediation with fertilisers was first applied to a shoreline on a large scale.

Microbial bioremediation

Status
Contained
Activity
1989–1989
Media
surface water, sediment, living organisms
Kind of site
oil, accident
  1. Area. About 1,300 miles (2,100 km) of coastline reached by oil, 200 miles of it heavily or moderately oiled.

Contaminants

Organic compounds

Status

Contained

A 2014 federal estimate put 16,000–21,000 gallons of oil still on beaches, up to 450 miles from the accident. In the same year sea otters were back to pre-spill numbers, while several bird species and one orca pod still showed effects.

Story

The ship was carrying 53.1 million gallons of Prudhoe Bay crude; 10.8 million (41,000 m³, about 37,000 tonnes) escaped. The oil reached 2,100 km of coastline. Estimates of immediate losses are 100,000–250,000 seabirds, more than 2,800 sea otters, 300 harbour seals, 247 bald eagles and 22 orcas.

The response combined dispersants, booms and skimmers, and high-pressure hot-water washing of beaches, which moved the oil but destroyed the shoreline's microbial communities. Less than 10% of the oil was recovered. EPA specialists trialled bioremediation: nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients were spread along the coast to stimulate the native microorganisms that degrade hydrocarbons.

Exxon put the cost of cleanup at about $2 billion; punitive damages, set at $5 billion in 1994, were cut to $507.5 million by the Supreme Court in 2008. A 2001 NOAA study estimated that about 90 tonnes of oil remained in beach sediments.

Timeline

  1. 1989Exxon Valdez grounds (24 March); cleanup operations.
  2. 1990Oil Pollution Act: phased requirement for double-hulled tankers.
  3. 1994A jury sets punitive damages at $5 billion.
  4. 2001A NOAA study estimates about 90 tonnes of oil remaining in beaches.
  5. 2008The Supreme Court cuts punitive damages to $507.5 million.

Remediation

  1. 1989mechanical recovery and shoreline washingBooms, skimmers, dispersants and high-pressure hot-water washing of beaches.

Plants and fungi at this site

Microbial bioremediationField scale, 1989–

Biostimulation of oiled shorelines: nitrogen and phosphorus fertilisers were applied to raise the nutrients available to the native oil-degrading microorganisms, with the help of EPA specialists. The work is described by Pritchard (1991), 'Bioremediation as a technology: experiences with the Exxon Valdez oil spill', Journal of Hazardous Materials 28, 115–130 (doi:10.1016/0304-3894(91)87011-P), which was not read directly for this record.

Outcome According to Wikipedia's summary, citing Pritchard (1991), the added nutrients doubled the rate of decomposition.

From the literature

Species that acted on one of this site's contaminants in at least one study. The list is automatic and takes no account of this site's soil, concentrations or climate.

Plants

Fungi

The rest are on the contaminant pages.

Sources

  1. Exxon Valdez Spill Profile, US EPA, 2026
  2. Exxon Valdez Oil Spill, NOAA Office of Response and Restoration, 2026
  3. Exxon Valdez oil spill, Wikipedia, 2026

Draft compiled from public sources, not yet reviewed.