The+Oil+Pollution+Act+of+1990

The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 was signed into legislation as a law shortly after the Exxon Valdez oil spill. The bill was drafted in August of 1990 and is an amendment to the Clean Water Act. This is a national bill that covers all fifty staes and alaska,including all the waters around the united states of america. The bill was passed mainly due to the 1989 oild spill of the Exxon Valdez, when the oil tanker spilled over 33 million gallons of crude oil after hitting Bligh Reef off the coast of Alaska. The spill occured very close to the city of Prince William Sound, Alaska. Some 1300 miles of coastline and 11,000 square miles of ocean was impacted. As many as 250,000 seabirds, 2,800 sea otters, 12 rivers, 300 harbor seals, 247 bald eagles and 22 orcas were killed as a result of the oil. Billions of salmon and herring eggs were effected, causing a huge lapse in the food chain. During the clean-up efforts high pressure washers were used to clean up the oil off the shoreline. Even after all the clean-up efforts there is still an estimated 26 thousand gallons of crude oil on the shoreline, degrading at less then 4 % a year according to the NOAA.



The bill created the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund, which can provide up to one billion dollars in relief per oil spill in the United States. The National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP) is a three tier defense system, included in the OPA of 1990. First the federal government directs all public and private response efforts, area committees composed of federal, state and local efforts develop detailed location specific area contingency plans. The owner and operators of the vessels must also prepare a facility response team. By 2015, the OPA expects to have every tanker install a double hull to help prevent and reduce the amount of oil spilled. 18 vessels have been denied into the spill area because of the dangers the reef has and preventing more spills. This law is enforced by the EPA and specifically under the emergency management branch.



Works Cited

Exxon Valdez Oil Spill." // Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia //. Web. 15 Feb. 2011. .

"Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA)." // U. S. Coast Guard Home Page //. 6 May 2010. Web. 15 Feb. 2011. .