Oil and Chemical Spills
Every year NOAA responds to more than a hundred oil and chemical spills in U.S. waters, which threaten life, property, and public natural resources. Spills into our coastal waters, whether accidental or intentional, can harm people and the environment and substantially disrupt marine transportation with potential widespread economic impacts.
The Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R) is charged with responding to oil spills, chemical accidents, and other emergencies in coastal areas. Under the National Contingency Plan, NOAA is responsible for providing scientific support to the Federal On-Scene Coordinator for oil and hazardous material spills. To support this mandate, OR&R provides 24-hour, seven-day-a-week response to spills.
Addressing the Issue
OR&R's expertise spans oceanography, biology, chemistry, and geology, allowing the response team to estimate oil and chemical trajectories, analyze chemical hazards, and assess risks to coastal animals, habitats, and important areas to humans. This team, led by regional Scientific Support Coordinators, provides scientific support to the U.S. Coast Guard for spills in coastal waters.
When OR&R scientists respond to a spill, they work to answer specific questions:
- What got spilled?
- Where will it go and what will it hit?
- What damage will it cause and how can the effects of the spill be reduced?
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During an oil spill in coastal waters, OR&R's role is to provide scientific support to the U.S. Coast Guard officers in charge of response operations. In addition to spill response software and mapping tools, OR&R provides standard techniques and publishes guidelines for observing oil, assessing shoreline... |
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Chemicals can be an important part of manufacturing valuable economic goods—but they can also create dangerous situations if accidentally released. OR&R develops several free tools, such as the CAMEO software suite, to help emergency responders and planners assess hazardous material releases... |
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For significant spills, OR&R is responsible for providing scientific support to the Federal On-Scene Coordinator overseeing the response. Find news and information for notable incidents in which OR&R has been involved, including the 2010 Deepwater Horizon/BP... |
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The Gulf of Mexico Disaster Response Center will deliver state-of-the-art science and response information to emergency managers and other critical stakeholders to help them make timely decisions to protect and restore the Gulf Coast before, during, and after emergencies. The 15,000-square-foot facility in Mobile, Ala., which opened in December 2011, will serve... |
