GUIDELINES FOR OIL SPILL FOLLOW-UP STUDIES

(relating to HELCOM Recommendation 12/9, adopted in March 1991)

The guidelines consist of the studies and research tasks which are of importance to be implemented in cases of major oil spills. The guidelines are divided into five functional parts, namely (1) organization of research work, (2) physical and chemical studies, (3) ecological studies, (4) fishery studies and (5) documentation. It must be recognized that the guidelines do not give exact information or detailed methods for the way the studies must be practically and technically carried out and arranged in the Contracting Parties to the Helsinki Convention because these matters depend on the readiness of the responsible research and combatting organizations of the Countries.

The guidelines will introduce the research work as an essential and useful part of the total response operation involving every large oil spill incident for purpose to assist combatting operations and to provide necessary evidence linking oil pollution damage and an oil spill at hand, and furthermore, to assess impacts of oil on the marine environment and natural resources.

The studies shall be carried out by responsible research institutes. Research actions must be started immediately after a major oil spill simultaneously with the combatting operation. The national Contingency Plan should also cover the plans for follow-up studies. In the research plan an expert group or institute with responsible names of persons is nominated to take care of necessary research tasks.

The cooperation between the research and combatting staffs should be active and kind of mutual exchange of information. The scientific input to the combatting operation is characterized as to make analyses and summaries on cumulated data and to try to translate it in relation to a real situation.

How extensive the research work will be depends on the severity of the oil spill situation. Several extra studies are needed to be carried out if the oil has sunk or been intensively dispersed and disappeared in a margin sea area or a dispersant has been used as a combatting measure.

1. ORGANIZATION OF RESEARCH WORK

It is necessary to make in advance a research plan which contains information on research resources applicable and available for oil spill follow-up studies. In such a plan the responsible person (coordinator) for this purpose should be nominated in advance. The plan shall include procedures on how the research organization can be alerted and activated in the event of an oil spill.

In every severe oil spill situation a senior research scientist or specialist group will coordinate and take care of the necessary research tasks in accordance with the research plan. She/he is responsible:

(1) for making a detailed plan of research actions in regard to severity and development of an actual spill situation;

(2) for arranging cooperation between responsible national research organizations, research and combatting organizations and to take care of administrative and financial matters related to the research work. A cooperative group of members of research and combatting organizations may be established for the purpose to assist in the cooperation between the organizations;

(3) for contracting other responsible research organizations and delegating the necessary research tasks to be carried out;

(4) for arranging, in case the oil has spread into the territorial waters of the neighbouring countries, cooperation between the research organizations of the countries involved;

(5) for participating in a surveyor group which will always be established by the authorities in a severe oil spill incident for the purpose to investigate and gather the claims from those who have suffered pollution damage;

(6) for providing information on the environmental effects of an oil accident;

(7) for preparing a final research report based on the results of the studies carried out during an oil spill incident.

2. PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL STUDIES

Physical and chemical studies to be implemented in every severe oil spill incident concern the following research tasks:

(1) To establish data on the type and quality of a spilled oil immediately after a spill. If data is missing or the oil type is unknown, analyses of physical and chemical properties, such as density, viscosity, pour point, water and wax content of oil, must be carried out as soon as possible. Pure (fresh) oil from the ruptured tanks or containers must be saved and be available for use as a reference oil for identification purpose and other analyses.

(2) To predict the behaviour and to estimate the spreading of oil on the basis of the first-hand data on physical and chemical properties and in regard to prevailing conditions as soon as possible. The use of available computerized spreading models is encouraged to help the combatting operations and as well as the research work on impact assessments as general.

(3) To determinate the degree of alteration and to estimate the behaviour of weathered oil in slicks at sea. Oil samples for physical and chemical analyses will be collected following a strict timetable, if the oil is moving uncontrolled within a very wide sea area, e.g. oil drifting with ice.

(4) To identify the origin of the oil in slicks detected at sea, on shores and e.g. in damaged fish traps. Although it would seem clear that the detected oil originates from an actual oil spillage at hand, it must be proven by chemical analyses. Results of these analyses are necessary evidence for the documentation of the oil spill situation and for compensation matters.

(5) To provide evidence on the fate of oil, degree and extent of oil pollution/contamination in the marine environment. Water and sediment samples will be collected for chemical analyses of petroleum hydrocarbons, e.g. of total petroleum hydrocarbons (by UV/F) or more qualitatively of aliphatic fractions (by GC) and aromatic hydrocarbons (by GC/MS or HPLC). This should always be done in the oil spill situations when the oil has intensively dispersed, sunk or disappeared or a dispersant has been used as a combatting measure.

(6) To summarize and establish the spreading area of oil according to available data on oil observations, combatting and clean-up operations, reconnaissances of oil on shores, chemical analyses of seawater and sediments etc. It must be noted that a spreading area of oil is probably not the same as an oil-influenced sea area. This can be established only after some of the studies pointed out in chapters 3 and 4 have been performed.

3. ECOLOGICAL STUDIES

The ecological studies to be implemented in cases of severe oil spills concern the following research tasks:

(1) To verify the vulnerability of the nature protection areas of archipelagos and coast, important nesting islands of sea birds, breeding zones of seals, fishing zones which are of priority to be protected against oil pollution. There is always a need for up-to-date information on sensitivity of sea bird communities, seal populations and fish stocks which are depending on seasons. This information will assist a combatting organization to concentrate their protection measures on the right targets and areas. To prepare Environmental Atlases over the vulnerable areas is of priority and will promote not only the oil pollution control but also other kinds of research and monitoring programs.

(2) To quantify and document losses of natural resources e.g. kills of sea birds, fish and seal pups, damage on vegetation as well as the degree of oil pollution in the oil-affected areas and results of clean-up actions there, damages on fish traps/catches and other damages. Furthermore, expected impacts on affected targets will be estimated.

(3) To quantify the degree and extent of oil-contamination in marine organisms. Indicator organisms should always be collected and studied in the oil spill situations when a dispersant has been used or oil has intensively dispersed or sunk or disappeared in a margin sea area. Some good indicator species are the amphipods, Gammarus sp. and Pontoporeia sp., which are also an important food source for fish. These have been proven to be very sensitive for oil pollution. Oil droplets are visible and the degree of contamination can easily be determined by using microscope technique. Also the gastropod Lymnaea sp., which is common for the whole basin of the Baltic Sea, can be sampled for chemical and histopathological analyses as well as the bivalves, common blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) and the Baltic clam (Macoma balthica). Analyses of petroleum hydrocarbons as pointed out in chapter 2 (paragraph 5) will give more comprehensive data on the extent of a sea area influenced by oil. Fish species useful for oil spill follow-up studies are listed in chapter 4.

Additional studies on the quantitative effects on the sea-floor fauna and also on zooplankton and phytoplankton should be carried out in relation to the severity of the spill situation and the need for these kind of studies.

The results of the ecological studies are of importance when considering the need for restoration of the nature damaged by oil.

4. FISHERY STUDIES

(1) To quantify and document the damage on fisheries. All the reported damages on fisheries must be confirmed and documented at the place of damage by authorities of a research or combatting organization. Damaged traps will be photographed and an oil sample will be taken for identification. If there is a doubt about the tainting of the catches a sample of the fish can be delivered to a laboratory specialized e.g. in analyses of petroleum hydrocarbons or in odour and flavour tests. Furthermore, collecting and studying statistics on catches will also bring evidence on the possible effects of oil, e.g. diminished catches are always of biological interest but these can have also economical consequences.

(2) To study biological effects on fish. Fish species to be pointed out are flounder (Platichtys flesus L.), Baltic herring (Clupea harengus membras L.) and Smelt Osmerus eperlanus L. and their larvae. Also other fish species common in an oil-affected sea area can be chosen, e.g. perch (Perca fluviatilis L.). These fish species can be sampled for different purposes; to study diseases, physiological changes, reproduction disturbances, abnormalities and tainting, and as a whole to bring evidence into which degree the oil has affected fish.

5. DOCUMENTATION

(1) A final report shall be prepared on the basis of different research documents delivered by sub-organizations.

(2) Research documents (reports) will consist of the results of the follow-up studies and other investigations and all necessary data to be of importance for final consideration and for preparation of strategy for continuing research work, e.g. to study recovery of affected sea areas.

(3) For instance, a documentation of analytical and circumstantial evidence can be done with maps consisting of all information on oil movements and dates, relevant wind and current data, spreading area of oil, oil polluted areas of archipelagos and coastline and degree of pollution and results of clean-up actions of shores. The maps will be designed so that they serve as necessary documents for compensation applications addressed to polluters, insurance companies and the International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund. Furthermore, the maps will serve the planning of further studies in the affected sea area months after an oil spill incident.

(4) The final report should:

describe the geographical distribution of the oil and the degree of oil pollution in the affected sea areas,
estimate the fate of the oil,
provide evidence linking the actual oil spill and the documented damage of the oil pollution,
identify the sensitive and affected targets,
assess the ecological effects and the impact on fisheries,
predict the long-term effects and
establish a strategy for continuing research work with the aim to recover the affected parts of a marine ecosystem.

(5) The final document should also provide feedback information on the unexpected environmental effects of the oil combatting operations performed during the acute phase of an oil spill situation.