Benthic habitats harbour a significant (yet unexplored) diversity of microscopic eukaryote taxa, including metazoan phyla, protists, algae and fungi. These groups are thought to underpin ecosystem functioning across diverse marine environments. Coastal marine habitats in the Gulf of Mexico experienced visible, heavy impacts following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010, yet our scant knowle...

An experimental study was undertaken to assess the efficiency of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus subtilis, and Acinetobacter lwoffi isolated from petroleum contaminated water and soil samples to degrade crude oil, separately and in a mixed bacterial consortium. Capillary gas chromatography was used for testing the effect of those bacterial species on the biodegradation of crude oil. Individual...

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill affected hundreds of kilometers of coastal wetland shorelines, including salt marshes with persistent heavy oiling that required intensive shoreline "cleanup" treatment. Oiled marsh treatment involves a delicate balance among: removing oil, speeding the degradation of remaining oil, protecting wildlife, fostering habitat recovery, and not causing further ecologic...

BACKGROUND Household air pollution exposure is a major health risk, but validated interventions remain elusive. METHODS/DESIGN The Ghana Randomized Air Pollution and Health Study (GRAPHS) is a cluster-randomized trial that evaluates the efficacy of clean fuels (liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG) and efficient biomass cookstoves in the Brong-Ahafo region of central Ghana. We recruit pregnant wom...

The separation of water from oil that is collected in any oil spill recovery operation is a continuing and necessary requirement during every stage of the effort. Its importance is reflected in the cost of transport and storage of large volumes of oily water, the salvage value of separated oil and the added labor costs associated with long-term recovery operations. This paper addresses the effe...

BACKGROUND The 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster led to the largest ever marine oil spill. Individuals who worked on the spill were exposed to toxicants and stressors that could lead to adverse effects. OBJECTIVES The GuLF STUDY was designed to investigate relationships between oil spill exposures and multiple potential physical and mental health effects. METHODS Participants were recruited b...

The primary objective of this research was to determine the relationship between operational variables and oil spill recovery rates, by performing a full-scale oil spill recovery test using an oleophilic drum skimmer. Prototype interchangeable oleophilic skimmer drums with aluminum, polyethylene and Neoprene surfaces were fabricated and tested at the field scale at the Ohmsett-National Oil Spil...

Methylobacterium strains were isolated from mangrove samples collected in Bertioga, SP, Brazil, from locations either contaminated or uncontaminated by oil spills. The tolerances of the strains to different heavy metals were assessed by exposing them to different concentrations of cadmium, lead, and arsenic (0.1 mM, 0.5 mM, 1 mM, 2 mM, 4 mM, and 8 mM). Additionally, the genetic diversity of Met...

During a project examining the use of machine learning techniques for oil spill detection, we have encountered several essential questions that we believe deserve the attention of the research community. We use our particular case study to illustrate such issues as problem formulation, selection of evaluation measures, and data preparation. We relate these issues to properties of the oil spill ...

This report describes the author's experiences in participating in avian research during 3 field seasons in remote areas in Prince William Sound (PWS), located in south-central Alaska. Veterinary support was needed to biopsy the livers of nestling and adult pigeon guillemots (Cepphus columba) and adult black oystercatchers (Haematopus bachmani). These surgeries were part of larger research stud...