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Black tide rising. The wreck of the Amoco Cadiz
Volume 12/Number 3/March 1981
Dutch Chemical Tests Degradability, Ecotoxicity and Bioaccumulation: The Determination of the Possible Effects of Chemicals and Water on the Aquatic Environment. Government Publishing Office, The Hague, Netherlands, 1980. ISBN 90 12 02801 9. To aid the implementation of some procedures in the Oslo and London Conventions for the prevention of marine pollution, the Dutch Authorities have drawn up a series of test protocols to be used for the screening of wastes dumped at sea for their biodegradability, bioaccumulation potential and ecotoxicity. This volume contains their approach as formulated by TNO during 1973-1976 and published, in Dutch, in 1977. Because of the extension of these tests to support other legislation, such as EEC Directives in this field, the procedures have been translated into English for wider dissemination. Although the procedures as described were designed primarily for organochlorines and tested against trichloroethane, dieldrin, pentachlorophenol and dichloroaniline, they are clearly applicable to other substances and industrial wastes. The volume is separated into three parts, of which the major section is Part II which contains the details of the test methods. Chapter 1 includes methods for determining the chemical composition of substances and for measuring their physico-chemical properties, in particular lipophilicity. Chapter 2 is a major chapter which describes the basic analytical techniques for organoclorine substances in water and animal tissues, for various chemical and physical parameters of test dilution water, and a variety of respirometric techniques. Chapter 3 contains a useful review of the methods used for the measurement of biological degradability of substances, whereas Chapter 4 on determining the eutrophic potential of substances is a half page with two references. Chapter 5, the second major chapter, describes seventeen types of organisms used in toxicity tests with techniques for breeding some of them in the laboratory; it outlines the basic methodology of toxicity tests, both acute and chronic, and describes a large number of tests with different species. These descriptions tend to become repetitious as much of the test protocols are common to all species. It is unfortunate that the table of air saturation values of dissolved oxygen in fresh and sea water on p. 180 is at considerable variance with that given in Chapter 2, p. 96. However there is much useful practical information on the care and culture of test species in this chapter. Chapter 6 on bioaccumulation and bioelimination was disappointing in that the importance of expressing concentration of lipophilic substances in terms of the tissue lipid content, and the use of the octanol:water partition coefficient for prediction of bioaccumulation potential, are barely mentioned. Finally, Chapter 7 on ecotoxicity studies in the field is again slightly disappointing in the superficial coverage given to this complex subject, and the importance of good chemical analytical data is not mentioned, but this may be a reflection of the lack of experience of TNO in this field. These chapters contain a wealth of practical experience in a wide range of chemical and biological test procedures which will be of considerable value for both experienced and
inexperienced practitioners in this field. However, this information is of a qualitative nature only, and although it is stated that some of these procedures were tested against four reference substances, no data are given on the precision of the tests, nor where appropriate on their accuracy. There will be little incentive therefore for other countries to change their test protocols and adopt those described in this document. Also lacking in this volume is a conceptual framework of hazard assessment within which the function of the various tests can be seen in their practical context. Although a description of a step sequence programme of tests is given in Part I of the volume, its main function is to classify the various characteristics of a substance into a 5 point scale (A-E) of increasing potential harmfulness to aquatic life. The usefulness of this exercise is unclear; it is stated subsequently that the hazard assessment has to be made by an expert who will use all the available information. In fairness to the authors, it should be mentioned that in the three years since this volume was written, considerable advances have been made in this field, particularly in North America. Finally, Part III lists the main features of published standard protocols for biodegradability (11 bacterial tests), eutrophication (4 algal tests) and toxicity (51 tests with various species). This is a useful compilation although no tests published after 1975 are listed, and the draft status of the ISO toxicity tests for fish and Daphnia is not made clear. In summary, this volume contains much useful practical information which will be of considerable value to experimental workers in this field. Because it is based on actual experience gained at the TNO laboratory, it does not claim to be a comprehensive account of the subject, and therefore some areas are inadequately described. The looseleaf binding of the volume will enable additional material to be included at a later date; it will also assist in the replacement of those pages which contain minor typographical and other errors.
R. LLOYD
Black Tide Black Tide Rising. The Wreck of the Amoco Cadiz by David FairhaU and Philip Jordan, ISBN 0-223-971-475. 1980. Andre Deutsch, London. 248 pp. Price £8.95. Every year, over 500 million tonnes of oil are brought eastwards through the Channel to the refineries of North West Europe. To enter that Channel, tankers have to traverse a gateway bounded by the Scillies in the North and by Ushant in the South. On 18 March 1967, the Torrey Canyon collided with the former gate-post; almost exactly 11 years later, on 16 March 1978, the Amoco Cadiz hit the latter. In both accidents the ships were lost, and the white sands of Brittany were befouled with black oil that drowned birds, poisoned shell fish, greatly harmed the tourist industry and that was both laborious and costly to remove. This book tells in detail the story of the wreck of the Amoco Cadiz and places this incident in the context of what had been done by Governments, since the first shock of Torrey Canyon, to prevent, anticipate and counteract oil pollution of the sea. It is a fascinating tale, told with the literary polish, skill and accuracy one expects from two senior members of The Guardian's staff. It also brings out 103
Marine Pollution Bulletin to the full the strange frustrating amalgam of well-meaning IMCO conventions that are ratified only after long delays, safety legislation that cannot be adequately monitored, and the inter-Departmental rivalries and jurisdictional disputes that prevent prompt and efficient response once pollution has occurred. The book begins by describing the changes that have taken place in the world of shipping in the past quarter century since the developed world's economy became increasingly based on oil, analyses a number of accidents to tankers that have resulted in oil pollution of the sea and discusses the hazards to the environment posed by this pollution. I confess that I approached these pages with some trepidation: so often, an accurate and dispassionate account is synonymous with a dull one and, in discussing the environmental consequences of oil pollution, it is not easy to remain within the evidence and avoid emotive hyperbole. In the event, my forebodings were groundless. The analysis that is presented in these pages is scrupulously fair, reasonable, and written in a style that engages and retains the attention of the general reader. It also provides the flame in which the consequences of the drama that follows (and the Chapters that describe the actual wreck have all the pace of a thriller and the dreadful inevitability of Greek tragedy) can be seen in some sort of perspective. Although the full reckoning is not yet in, and both the financial costs and the longer-term effects of the black tide that coated over 249 miles of coastline remain to be established, the authors' accounts permit certain conclusions to be tentatively drawn. The stricken tanker spewed forth a massive 223 000 tonnes of oil. Yet, though the wreck was only about 3 miles from the shore, more than 74 000 tonnes of this oil evaporated from the surface of the stormy sea and, of the remainder, less than 50°7o was visible on that shore. This is an eloquent demonstration of the power of the sea to disperse oil. The Torrey Canyon's oil had killed over 30,000 birds; the much larger spill from the Amoco Cadiz was estimated to have cost the lives of fewer than 20 000; clearly, it is when and where oil is spilled, and not just the quantity, that determines its lethality. The damage to fisheries and particularly to the crustaceans for which Brittany is famous was, in the event, less than feared initially and relatively short-lived; however, the oyster industry was virtually wiped out. In addition to the actual damage attributable to oil, the Bretons had also to cope with 'consumer psychosis': housewives stopped buying produce from the region, and tourists stayed away.
104
What do these observations signify? I believe that there are certain deductions that can be made. In the first place, it is clear that of the utmost importance is speed of response. The massive clean-up 'Operation Teaspoon', which involved over 8000 people for 3 months, shifted 206 000 tonnes of material - but this contained only 25 000 tonnes of oil. This low recovery was largely due to the initial 12 days of what the official enquiry called 'irresolution' while the authorities tried to put together a response to the oil; this delay also permitted a shift in the wind to blow much of the oil out to sea again so that it was re-deposited on the coast further south. Secondly, a clear chain of command, that coordinates operations at sea and on land, is essential. This has been acknowledged in the modifications that have since been made to the Plan Polmar, and by the creation of an Interministerial Mission for the Sea, under a Minister who is directly responsible to the French Prime Minister. Thirdly, although dispersants have their place, they must be used sparingly: as early as 4 months after the wreck, one distinguished scientist could optimistically predict "that, if the ban on dispersants continues, a fairly complete recovery is possible in three years". And f o u r t h l y - b u t I should probably have listed this as first p r i o r i t y - i t is clear that prevention is not only better but, in the long run, cheaper than cure. Virtually all the actions that have been taken by the French since Amoco Cadiz (many unilaterally, and in anticipation of the ratification of IMCO conventions) are dedicated to that end. One of the many things I liked about this book is that these and other wider aspects of marine oil pollution are discussed, sensibly and lucidly, in a long final Chapter entitled "Wisdom after the event". Of course, time has not stood still since the book was written: Britain ratified the 1978 MARPOL convention in May 1980, and there is hope for a breakthrough in the deliberations of the UN Commission on the Law of the Sea. But the main problems have not gone away, nor are they all technical ones. " H o w do you cost the miserable death of one oiled sea bird? Or of a thousand sea birds? Does it matter to most of us that the traditional Breton oyster is replaced on the menu by some strange new variety, or that if you dig beneath the bright yellow sand you find a dark layer of residual oil?" ask the authors. It is up to all of us to help find answers to these questions. I am grateful to this absorbing book for raising them.
H A N S KORNBERG
Dutch Chemical Tests Degradability, Ecotoxicity and Bioaccumulation: The Determination of the Possible Effects of Chemicals and Water on the Aquatic Environment. Government Publishing Office, The Hague, Netherlands, 1980. ISBN 90 12 02801 9. To aid the implementation of some procedures in the Oslo and London Conventions for the prevention of marine pollution, the Dutch Authorities have drawn up a series of test protocols to be used for the screening of wastes dumped at sea for their biodegradability, bioaccumulation potential and ecotoxicity. This volume contains their approach as formulated by TNO during 1973-1976 and published, in Dutch, in 1977. Because of the extension of these tests to support other legislation, such as EEC Directives in this field, the procedures have been translated into English for wider dissemination. Although the procedures as described were designed primarily for organochlorines and tested against trichloroethane, dieldrin, pentachlorophenol and dichloroaniline, they are clearly applicable to other substances and industrial wastes. The volume is separated into three parts, of which the major section is Part II which contains the details of the test methods. Chapter 1 includes methods for determining the chemical composition of substances and for measuring their physico-chemical properties, in particular lipophilicity. Chapter 2 is a major chapter which describes the basic analytical techniques for organoclorine substances in water and animal tissues, for various chemical and physical parameters of test dilution water, and a variety of respirometric techniques. Chapter 3 contains a useful review of the methods used for the measurement of biological degradability of substances, whereas Chapter 4 on determining the eutrophic potential of substances is a half page with two references. Chapter 5, the second major chapter, describes seventeen types of organisms used in toxicity tests with techniques for breeding some of them in the laboratory; it outlines the basic methodology of toxicity tests, both acute and chronic, and describes a large number of tests with different species. These descriptions tend to become repetitious as much of the test protocols are common to all species. It is unfortunate that the table of air saturation values of dissolved oxygen in fresh and sea water on p. 180 is at considerable variance with that given in Chapter 2, p. 96. However there is much useful practical information on the care and culture of test species in this chapter. Chapter 6 on bioaccumulation and bioelimination was disappointing in that the importance of expressing concentration of lipophilic substances in terms of the tissue lipid content, and the use of the octanol:water partition coefficient for prediction of bioaccumulation potential, are barely mentioned. Finally, Chapter 7 on ecotoxicity studies in the field is again slightly disappointing in the superficial coverage given to this complex subject, and the importance of good chemical analytical data is not mentioned, but this may be a reflection of the lack of experience of TNO in this field. These chapters contain a wealth of practical experience in a wide range of chemical and biological test procedures which will be of considerable value for both experienced and
inexperienced practitioners in this field. However, this information is of a qualitative nature only, and although it is stated that some of these procedures were tested against four reference substances, no data are given on the precision of the tests, nor where appropriate on their accuracy. There will be little incentive therefore for other countries to change their test protocols and adopt those described in this document. Also lacking in this volume is a conceptual framework of hazard assessment within which the function of the various tests can be seen in their practical context. Although a description of a step sequence programme of tests is given in Part I of the volume, its main function is to classify the various characteristics of a substance into a 5 point scale (A-E) of increasing potential harmfulness to aquatic life. The usefulness of this exercise is unclear; it is stated subsequently that the hazard assessment has to be made by an expert who will use all the available information. In fairness to the authors, it should be mentioned that in the three years since this volume was written, considerable advances have been made in this field, particularly in North America. Finally, Part III lists the main features of published standard protocols for biodegradability (11 bacterial tests), eutrophication (4 algal tests) and toxicity (51 tests with various species). This is a useful compilation although no tests published after 1975 are listed, and the draft status of the ISO toxicity tests for fish and Daphnia is not made clear. In summary, this volume contains much useful practical information which will be of considerable value to experimental workers in this field. Because it is based on actual experience gained at the TNO laboratory, it does not claim to be a comprehensive account of the subject, and therefore some areas are inadequately described. The looseleaf binding of the volume will enable additional material to be included at a later date; it will also assist in the replacement of those pages which contain minor typographical and other errors.
R. LLOYD
Black Tide Black Tide Rising. The Wreck of the Amoco Cadiz by David FairhaU and Philip Jordan, ISBN 0-223-971-475. 1980. Andre Deutsch, London. 248 pp. Price £8.95. Every year, over 500 million tonnes of oil are brought eastwards through the Channel to the refineries of North West Europe. To enter that Channel, tankers have to traverse a gateway bounded by the Scillies in the North and by Ushant in the South. On 18 March 1967, the Torrey Canyon collided with the former gate-post; almost exactly 11 years later, on 16 March 1978, the Amoco Cadiz hit the latter. In both accidents the ships were lost, and the white sands of Brittany were befouled with black oil that drowned birds, poisoned shell fish, greatly harmed the tourist industry and that was both laborious and costly to remove. This book tells in detail the story of the wreck of the Amoco Cadiz and places this incident in the context of what had been done by Governments, since the first shock of Torrey Canyon, to prevent, anticipate and counteract oil pollution of the sea. It is a fascinating tale, told with the literary polish, skill and accuracy one expects from two senior members of The Guardian's staff. It also brings out 103
Marine Pollution Bulletin to the full the strange frustrating amalgam of well-meaning IMCO conventions that are ratified only after long delays, safety legislation that cannot be adequately monitored, and the inter-Departmental rivalries and jurisdictional disputes that prevent prompt and efficient response once pollution has occurred. The book begins by describing the changes that have taken place in the world of shipping in the past quarter century since the developed world's economy became increasingly based on oil, analyses a number of accidents to tankers that have resulted in oil pollution of the sea and discusses the hazards to the environment posed by this pollution. I confess that I approached these pages with some trepidation: so often, an accurate and dispassionate account is synonymous with a dull one and, in discussing the environmental consequences of oil pollution, it is not easy to remain within the evidence and avoid emotive hyperbole. In the event, my forebodings were groundless. The analysis that is presented in these pages is scrupulously fair, reasonable, and written in a style that engages and retains the attention of the general reader. It also provides the flame in which the consequences of the drama that follows (and the Chapters that describe the actual wreck have all the pace of a thriller and the dreadful inevitability of Greek tragedy) can be seen in some sort of perspective. Although the full reckoning is not yet in, and both the financial costs and the longer-term effects of the black tide that coated over 249 miles of coastline remain to be established, the authors' accounts permit certain conclusions to be tentatively drawn. The stricken tanker spewed forth a massive 223 000 tonnes of oil. Yet, though the wreck was only about 3 miles from the shore, more than 74 000 tonnes of this oil evaporated from the surface of the stormy sea and, of the remainder, less than 50°7o was visible on that shore. This is an eloquent demonstration of the power of the sea to disperse oil. The Torrey Canyon's oil had killed over 30,000 birds; the much larger spill from the Amoco Cadiz was estimated to have cost the lives of fewer than 20 000; clearly, it is when and where oil is spilled, and not just the quantity, that determines its lethality. The damage to fisheries and particularly to the crustaceans for which Brittany is famous was, in the event, less than feared initially and relatively short-lived; however, the oyster industry was virtually wiped out. In addition to the actual damage attributable to oil, the Bretons had also to cope with 'consumer psychosis': housewives stopped buying produce from the region, and tourists stayed away.
104
What do these observations signify? I believe that there are certain deductions that can be made. In the first place, it is clear that of the utmost importance is speed of response. The massive clean-up 'Operation Teaspoon', which involved over 8000 people for 3 months, shifted 206 000 tonnes of material - but this contained only 25 000 tonnes of oil. This low recovery was largely due to the initial 12 days of what the official enquiry called 'irresolution' while the authorities tried to put together a response to the oil; this delay also permitted a shift in the wind to blow much of the oil out to sea again so that it was re-deposited on the coast further south. Secondly, a clear chain of command, that coordinates operations at sea and on land, is essential. This has been acknowledged in the modifications that have since been made to the Plan Polmar, and by the creation of an Interministerial Mission for the Sea, under a Minister who is directly responsible to the French Prime Minister. Thirdly, although dispersants have their place, they must be used sparingly: as early as 4 months after the wreck, one distinguished scientist could optimistically predict "that, if the ban on dispersants continues, a fairly complete recovery is possible in three years". And f o u r t h l y - b u t I should probably have listed this as first p r i o r i t y - i t is clear that prevention is not only better but, in the long run, cheaper than cure. Virtually all the actions that have been taken by the French since Amoco Cadiz (many unilaterally, and in anticipation of the ratification of IMCO conventions) are dedicated to that end. One of the many things I liked about this book is that these and other wider aspects of marine oil pollution are discussed, sensibly and lucidly, in a long final Chapter entitled "Wisdom after the event". Of course, time has not stood still since the book was written: Britain ratified the 1978 MARPOL convention in May 1980, and there is hope for a breakthrough in the deliberations of the UN Commission on the Law of the Sea. But the main problems have not gone away, nor are they all technical ones. " H o w do you cost the miserable death of one oiled sea bird? Or of a thousand sea birds? Does it matter to most of us that the traditional Breton oyster is replaced on the menu by some strange new variety, or that if you dig beneath the bright yellow sand you find a dark layer of residual oil?" ask the authors. It is up to all of us to help find answers to these questions. I am grateful to this absorbing book for raising them.
H A N S KORNBERG