Past in situ burning possibilities

This study evaluated the feasibility of conducting in situ burning (ISB) us ing current technology on post-1967 major oil spills over 10 000 barrels in North America and over 50 000 barrels in South America and Europe. A diver se set of 141 spills representing various combinations of parameters affect ing spill responses (e.g., spill size, oil type, weather conditions, sea te mperature, and geographic location) were evaluated using four "Phase I" cri teria: Distance to populated area, oil weathering, logistics, and weather c onditions, In Phase I, a spill that failed to meet one of the four criteria was considered an "unsuccessful" candidate for ISB, In total, 47 of the 14 1 spills passed the Phase I analysis. The potential effect of the plume on populated areas was the most significant of the four Phase I criteria; 59 o f the 141 spills did not pass Phase I because the incident occurred near a sizable city, Spills that met all four criteria were further evaluated usin g a "Phase II" analysis that applied additional criteria and considered ind ividual spill circumstances to determine if the spill should be rated as a "successful", "marginal call", or "unsuccessful" ISB candidate. Fourteen sp ills were ultimately determined successful in the Phase II analysis, and 12 were designated marginal calls. (C) 2000 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd , Ail rights reserved.