Location: Block Island Sound off Moonstone Beach, R.I. Material spilled: No. 2 fuel oil Amount spilled: approx. 828,000 gallons Spill extent: Of the 14 fuel compartments in the barge, eight breached during the grounding. Because of the high winds (60 mph) and rough seas (16 to 23 feet), the oil was well mixed and dispersed throughout the local area within 24 hours. The spill closed approximately 250 square miles of fishing and shellfishing areas for as long as five months and killed more than 10 million lobsters, approximately 500 birds (including the federally-endangered piping plover), over 40 million surf clams, and many other benthic and pelagic animals, resulting in the most damaging man-made accident in the history of the state of Rhode Island. PublicationsReddy, C.M. and JG Quinn, “The North Cape oil spill: hydrocarbons in Rhode Island coastal waters and Point Judith pond,” Marine Environmental Research 52(2001), 445–461.Reddy, CM and JG Quinn, “GC-MS analysis of total petroleum hydrocarbons and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in seawater samples after the North Cape oil spill,” Marine Pollution Bulletin 38(1999):126-135. | |||||||||||||||
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