CHARACTERISTICS OF OIL SPILLS: INLAND VERSUS COASTAL

Dana Stalcup
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Oil Pollution Response and Prevention Center (5203-G)
401 MStreet, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20460
Gary Yoshioka, Ellen Mantus, and Brad Kaiman
ICF Incorporated
9300 Lee Highway
Fairfax, Virginia 22031
lons in coastal waters is considered a major discharge. This difference
reflects a concern about environmental damage from smaller spills in
inland waters. The 1995 ERNS data show that over 95% of spills to
inland waters and over 99% of spills to coastal waters have been
minor discharges. Fewer than 1% of spills to inland waters have been
major discharges.
Spill sources. A previous literature review and analysis of oil
spills into inland waters found that spills from pipelines outnumbered
all spills from other sources (Taylor et ah, 1993). The summary of
1995 spill reports from ERNS illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, however,
shows that pipelines are a relatively minor source of spills in both
inland and coastal waters and that vessels (e.g., barges) are a major
source in both areas. This difference is partly attributable to the fact
that many pipeline spills do not enter surface waters, but all vessel
spills do. As might be expected, offshore facilities are one of the
largest sources of spills in coastal waters, whereas fixed facilities and
motor vehicles are more important sources for inland waters than for
coastal waters.
Materials spilled. Earlier studies have suggested that oils spilled
into inland waters are "more likely to be lighter-weight crude oils and
refined products" (Walker et al., 1995). The results of the present
analysis, which compiled data from ERNS reports where the type of
oil spilled was known, are shown in Table 1. The ERNS data provide
some support for the earlier studies. Although these data do not distinguish crude oil by weight, they do indicate that refined petroleum
products are commonly spilled in inland waters. The ERNS data also
show that crude oil accounts for nearly one-third of coastal spills.
Furthermore, oils of animal and vegetable origin represent only a
small fraction of spills into either type of waterway, although they are
the subject of recent legislation (i.e., the Edible Oil Regulatory
Reform Act).

ABSTRACT: The Emergency Response Notification System database was searched for information on the size of spills, the sources
of spills, and the types of oils spilled for both inland and coastal
waters. The results of this analysis indicate that the vast majority of
spills for both inland and coastal waters are minor discharges, that
the sources of the spills differ for inland versus coastal waters, with
pipelines representing a minor source for both water systems, and
that a wide variety of materials are spilled in both inland and
coastal water systems, with crude oil being a more significant contributor for coastal waters.

Discussion
Oil spills occur in both inland and coastal waters. The environmental effects for either water system include death of waterfowl
from drowning or hypothermia, fish kills resulting from coating of
gill surfaces or depletion of oxygen from the water, and asphyxiation
of benthic organisms due to settling of oil on the floor of the water
body (U.S. EPA, 1987). Although many of the environmental effects
are similar, important differences exist. Oil spills into inland waters
"have a greater probability of contaminating water supplies, impacting population centers, and affecting other shoreline structures or
facilities" (Walker et ah, 1995). Furthermore, the ecosystems of
inland and coastal water systems differ, and therefore the species
affected will differ. The extent of the deleterious environmental
effects of an oil spill will depend on many factors, including the
ecosystem's or the organisms' sensitivity to the type and amount of
oil spilled.
To develop data that might help predict the environmental effects to
inland versus coastal waters, the Emergency Response Notification
System (ERNS) database was searched for information related to the
size of the spill, the source of oil, and the type of oil spilled in these
different areas. ERNS contains more than 5000 oil spill reports for
1995 that include information on these variables and identify the waterway affected. Therefore, differences or similarities between coastal and
inland waters associated with these variables can be determined.
Spill sizes. The National Contingency Plan (NCP) distinguishes
between oil discharges to inland waters and those to coastal waters
for purposes of federal agency responsibilities. The NCP defines a
minor discharge as one that is less than 1000 gallons of oil in inland
waters or less than 10,000 gallons in coastal waters. A discharge of
more than 10,000 gallons in inland waters or more than 100,000 gal-

Conclusions
The ERNS data indicate that both similarities and differences exist
in the characteristics of coastal and inland oil spills. First, the vast
majority of spills are minor discharges for both inland and coastal
waters. Second, offshore facilities and vessels are the major sources
of spills for coastal waters, whereas fixed facilities and vessels are the
major sources of spills for inland waters. Pipelines are minor sources
of spills for both coastal and inland waters. Finally, a wide variety of
materials are spilled in both inland and coastal waters, but the majority are refined petroleum products as opposed to crude oil.

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1997 INTERNATIONAL OIL SPILL CONFERENCE

Table 1. Distributk>n(%) by types of ospiHed in coastal :
inland waters

Unknown
4%
Onshore

35%

^^^w

^ ^ ^

^^^^B

^^^M

PijWaincs
2%

Fixed
Facilities
16%

Vessels

41%

Highway,
Raj], Aircraft
2%

Type of oil
Crude oil
Gasoline and jet fuel
Fuel oil
Hydraulic, transformer,
and lubricating oil
Waste oil
Animal and vegetable oil
Other oil

Coastal

Inland

32.3
3.2
35.7
15.5

17.6
5.1
41.2
20.1

5.7
0.1
7.5

5.2
0.8
10.0

Figure 1. Sources of spills to coastal waters

Biography
Dana Stalcup is a chemical engineer for the Oil Pollution Response
and Prevention Center of EPA headquarters. He has significant experience in the development of oil pollution prevention and response regulations and is current]y heading an interagency (Ml Characterization Workgroup. He also manages the Emergency Response Notification System

*B&m&,
Pipelines Unknown
5
Ra, Aircraft
e%
*

io%

^^^^^fl|

^m ^ ^ f e f e ^ .

Vessels
^ ^ ^ ^ ^
39%

Fixed
39%

Figure 2. Sources off spills to inland waters

Onshore
1%

Kdcrciiccs
1. Taylor, E., E. Owens, A. Craig, A. Steen, and D. Fritz, 1993. Oil
spills into freshwater environments: literature review of fate and
effects. Proceedings of the 14th Annual Meeting of the Society of
Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, Pensacola, Florida, pi 73
2. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 1987. Rnal Rule on
Discharge of Oil. 52 FR 10712, April 2
3. Walker, Ann H., Janet H. Kuckuck, Alexis E. Steen, and David Fritz,
1995. Oil spill chemicals in freshwater environments: Technical
issues. Proceedings of the 1995 Oil Spill Conference. American
Petroleum Institute, Washington, D.C., pp373-379