Scientists research impact of oil rig spills on fish

February 12, 2019 by Michael Addelman, University of Manchester

University of Manchester scientists are at the forefront of the fight to protect cold water fish from the effects of crude oil spills from offshore oil rigs.

Dr. Holly Shiels and Ph.D. student Martins Ainerua are working off the coast of Norway with Dr. Elin Sørhus of the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research to understand how the oil impacts on hearts of cod and halibut.

As the heart is the first organ to develop in fish larvae its good heath is crucial for survival of the animals into adulthood, say the team.

Two projects – known as 'Eggtox' - and 'PW(produced water)exposed', could provide vital information for oil companies who want to construct rigs in parts of the North Sea which are known to be key spawning grounds for these important fisheries.

The team also hope to understand the mechanisms of crude oil toxicity on the electrical and contractile properties of the fish heart.

They have been working in the electrophysiology lab at Austevoll station on the South West coast of Norway, investigating how various oil components affect the electrical activity of the juvenile cod and halibut hearts.

"We know from disastrous crude oil spills like DeepWater Horizon, that components of oil negatively affects hearts of larval and juvenile fish. But it is possible the Produced Water used in oil drilling – which is released even in the absence of a spill—may impact fish stocks. And this is especially a worry in areas where drilling occurs in spawning grounds as the eggs and tiny larvae are unprotected," says Dr. Holly Shiels.

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Oil rigs may provide bird buffet for sharks (video)

DAUPHIN ISLAND, Alabama -- Heaped on a table at the laboratory, the pile of beaks, feet, eyeballs, feathers and whole bird carcasses testified to what may be the oil industry’s most unexpected environmental impact.

For the second year in a row, researchers at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab have found the remnants of migratory birds in the bellies of tiger sharks caught off Alabama.

The body parts provide compelling evidence of the mortal toll that oil platforms take on birds migrating across the Gulf of Mexico each year. The carcasses also highlight an issue federal officials have essentially ignored since it was revealed seven years ago.

A federal study from 2005 described a phenomenon known as “nocturnal circulation.”Groups of birds migrating across the Gulf on cloudy nights can be disoriented by the brightly lit oil platforms and fly around them in circles for hours, often until they become exhausted and fall into the sea and die.

That study called for further investigation, but federal officials never followed up, according to a statement from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement emailed to the Press-Register.

read more here:  http://blog.al.com/live/2012/01/oil_rigs_may_provide_bird_buff_2.html