Oil Spill Effect on Environment and Community - Essay Example

? Oil spill affect on environment and community Oil spill affect on environment and community One environmental factor can have an adverse effect on not only the environment but also on the entire community. Talking about oil spills, it causes long term damages along with a lot of small damages which affect the entire environment. Some damages can also last for years which are caused by oil spills. Oil which is spilled by tankers which are damages along with damaged oil rigs and also pipelines ends up in coating everything which is touched by it causing a bad affect on the entire ecosystem (environment.about.com). Oil slick which is taken out of the large oil spills and is basically touching the beach along with the coats of oil and the entire sand and rocky area is touched by it as well. There are grasses and also plants which will then absorb the oil marshes which are along the coastal area along with forests and wetlands are damaged and it will cause a lot of bad effects on the wildlife and the entire environment. When oil is not floating on the water surface and is basically sinking inside the marine environment the delicate ecosystem which is based underground is badly affected. Many fishes and also smaller organisms which are a very important part of the food chain are contaminated and are badly affected (University of Maryland Medical Center, 2012). Oil Spills end up in damaging the marshlands, marine ecosystem along with the entire beach area. There are many efforts and also remedies which end up in taking care of the environment however in spite of that many concerns and cases still exist. Another extremely crucial and negative effect is the one which it has on the birds, which end up in basically becoming a symbol and sign of the environment being crucially damaged and these birds are found dead in an extremely cruel way. Some birds end up in being safe which can swim however they are also found full covered in oil. Nesting ground is also badly affected as a result of oil spill. Migratory patterns of the birds are also affected badly due to the oil spills which are caused as a result of the patterns being affected which are due to the normal pattern being affected. Birds are badly affected even if a small amount of oil is spilled near them and it can have deadly results for the birds, their feather are covered with oil which makes flying extremely difficult for them. The insulation process along with the water proofing is also affected badly and it ends up in giving rise to the hypothermia along with overheating. Oil is basically affected by the birds in the race of protecting their feathers which then badly damage the internal organs of the birds and it is also sometimes fatal for the birds (Effects of Oil Spills, 2012). Oil Spills are not only causing dreadful affects on the fish, forest, marine life and birds but it is also killing marine mammals badly. Whales, seals, sea otters and dolphins are few mammals which are badly affected. Holes of these animals are sometimes blown which ends up in making the breathing process extremely difficult for them along with badly damaging the communication process of these mammals. Hypothermia is caused to these mammals if their feather are fully covered and coated by the oil spill. Food supply of these mammals is badly affected and due to this oil spill the mammals can die and they also face extremely bad affects. The effects are not just for that particular time but they last for a longer time which causes death of many sea mammals later on as well (National Public Radio : News & Analysis, 2011) The growth rate of these mammals is affected badly along with some other smaller species being damaged badly as well. Eggs of the fish and larvae are exposed to the oil which ends up in increasing the death rate of the fishes which are an important part of the marine life. These fishes and the eggs which are covered with the oil die and even if some survive at that time their death is certain and the damaged fishes and the marine animals cannot be recovered soon. The habitat and the grounds which are breeding are damaged by the oil spilling. This damage which is caused to the animals and the fishes is one of the most adverse affect on the environment. Sea turtles and many animals which are living their lives inside the sea and spend all their time there come near the shores in search of protection. The egg development is affected badly. Newly hatched eggs are affected when they go across the beach area which is covered with oil. The amount of the oil which is spilled and also the weight of the spilled oil as well as the type of the oil, also the location where the oil is spilled defines the level of destruction caused. Over all poisoning of the wildlife is another important factor which causes adverse effects. Oil spilling affects the wildlife which moves upwards towards the food chain as they are eaten by other organisms. Breeding is also affected as it becomes difficult for them to breed which is due to the behavior causing the bird sitting along with reduction in the number of eggs which are laid. Lungs and air passages are also affected of the mammals and turtles which cause pneumonia, congestion and also emphysema. Many bacterial infections along with fungal infections are caused. Skin damage, irritation of skin, nasal along with mouth cavities. Red blood cells are damaged and the liver of many birds along with mammals are affected badly. Adrenal tissue of the birds is affected which affect blood pressure and also fluid and the concentration of the fluid being affected. Stress level for the mammals is increased and there is also visible decrease in the egg shells thickness. Various damages are caused which includes the damage which is caused to the mangrove habitats and also the sea grass health (Australian Maritime Safety Authority, 2012). The feeding system is affected as well through the feeding done to the children by their mammal’s mothers. Poisoning is done through mother’s milk. Birds that are left often end up in giving away their lives to other wildly animals as they become easy prey due to their feathers being covered with oil. The weight of the features is affected due to oil making the bird’s feature sink and there is less air trapped in between which is not enough to keep them buoyant. Body weight is lost as feeding decreases. There is a decrease in drinking, driving, swimming along with birds dehydrating and sometimes also starving. Oil gets stuck with the sensory hair which causes problems in eating and there is also infection in dugongs and also there are inflammations. Seal pups are rejected, starved and also abandoned. There is also damage to the animals and the bird’s bodies which include ulcers which is caused along with internal bleeding. Oil spilling just not affect the environment, human lives and also community is hugely affected .There are huge toxic effects on the community and human life, There are effects on the group and individual people. These effects are on single people along with community. There are not only small incidents but also long term incidents causing many diseases which include cancer of various kinds (National Geographic News, 2012). Human life is largely affected when cleaning of the spilled oil is done which include stinging eyes, respiratory symptoms problems like coughs, headaches, dizziness and also rashes which are caused. The effects are not reversible and these problems are huge and long terms which include problems like cancer. There are also huge DNA damages which were observed by checking the DNA of the people who are also not exposed to oil. There are huge chromosomal damages which need to be fixed. There are huge toxic problems which are a result of oil being exposed. The human body of children are affected in a different way and there are chemicals which are badly affected (University of Maryland Medical Center, 2012). There are problems for pregnant women due to oil spills and these women who are living near the coastal areas avoid eating fish. If these contaminated fishes are sold they have huge negative effect on the life of the people eating it. Pregnant women need to avoid eating fish now. Oil spilling does not only affect the physical health of the human beings but also has adverse effects on the mental health. People have a lot of stress problems along with strains on their mental health which are caused by the oil spilling and the effects it have on the livelihood of the people. There is a huge increase in the domestic violence which is caused by the stress increase which causes also an increase in the suspiciousness. There are huge levels of mental problems which are started due to this from increase in anger, anxiety along with increase in drinking and high level of avoidance (Effects of Oil Spills, 2012). There is a huge level of community and cost which is paid due to oil spilling from problems in families which is splits in the families along with marriages failing and there are community problems where the residents and people do not talk to each other for a longer period of time (ehow.com). There are disastrous emotional problems faced by the people who did cleaning of the oil spilling. Courts also do not take much notice of this claiming these to be unquantifiable and rejects them. Physical illness also increase with a huge percentage and amount , there is a huge number of disorders which are caused by the traumatic disorders and there is a high percentage of stress disorders which are due to problems caused later on. There is an increase in the heart attack rate along with major problems like diabetes, respiratory disorders and problems and also diabetes which is extremely bad for human health (Australian Maritime Safety Authority, 2012). The stress level is not high for people who are living in communities only and are directly affected but it is crucially high for people being affected indirectly as well. There is a huge level of stress, depression and anxiety on people being affected directly along with people being affected indirectly as well. Income loss is also critical which causes an increase in the depression level. People become less resilient and they have problems in dealing with such negative affects which occur on the mental and physical lives of the people. There is a high level of perceived risk which is faced by the people along with problems in dealing stress level and depression level. There is s huge impact of this on various aspects of human community which includes the affect which is on the recreation level and also an impact on the tourism. The impact is huge which can not only impact individual income but also economy of the entire country. Fishing industry suffers and there are many problems which are a result of this (University of Maryland Medical Center, 2012). Overall we can safely say that that there are huge problems which are caused direct and also indirectly on the marine life, bird life, human life and also community. There problems caused are not only for a small period of time but it also have a lot of later on effects which are crucial and with a lot of problem for the society and it causes many problems for everyone. Fishes are contaminated, eggs are destroyed, whales, dolphins along with other sea mammals have to face a lot of problem and many also end up in creating problems for the next generation of the animals. Human life is badly affected where they have to go through physical problems which include damaging human parts and organs, heart, liver and many other diseases are caused. Diabetes and many other diseases are caused which are also fatal for human life. Mental stress is another problem which is caused by mental affect and also problems which then are later caused by stress and depression whether it is in the form of domestic violence or even other economical problems which are caused. References and Bibliography Category. (n.d.). Oil Spills and the Environment - How Do Oil Spills Damage the Environment?. Environmental Issues - News and Information about the Environment. Retrieved December 16, 2012, from http://environment.about.com/od/petroleum/a/oil_spills_and_environment.htm Effects of Oil on Wildlife. (n.d.). Australian Maritime Safety Authority. Retrieved December 16, 2012, from http://www.amsa.gov.au/marine_environment_protection/educational_resources_and_information/teachers/the_effects_of_oil_on_wildlife.asp Gulf Oil Spill Pictures: Ten New Studies Show Impact on Animals, Coast Two Years Later. (n.d.). Daily Nature and Science News and Headlines | National Geographic News. Retrieved December 16, 2012, from http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/energy/2012/04/pictures/120420-gulf-oil-spill-impact-studies/ Heron, S. (n.d.). How Does an Oil Spill Affect The Environment? | eHow.com.eHow | How to Videos, Articles & More - Discover the expert in you. | eHow.com. Retrieved December 16, 2012, from http://www.ehow.com/how-does_4616883_oil-spill-affect-environment.html How Will The Gulf Oil Spill Affect Human Health? : NPR. (n.d.). NPR : National Public Radio : News & Analysis, World, US, Music & Arts : NPR. Retrieved December 16, 2012, from http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128008826 ITOPF - About Marine Spills - Effects of Oil Spills. (n.d.). ITOPF - Home. Retrieved December 16, 2012, from http://www.itopf.com/marine-spills/effects/ Psychological Impact of BP Oil Spill . (n.d.). University of Maryland Medical Center | Home. Retrieved December 16, 2012, from http://www.umm.edu/news/releases/bp_oil Read More