Video - The Ongoing Impacts of the BP Oil Spill in the Gulf of Mexico

Years after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster people are still getting sick. Despite a huge effort to cleanup the spill, the aftereffects of the BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico continue to adversely impact human health and natural ecosystems. This sad state of affairs illustrates that once spilled, oil cannot be contained and this has long-term ramifications. Massive cleanup efforts have not been able to protect people and wildlife from the noxious impacts. BP spent billions on the cleanup and billions more will be paid out in lawsuits.  However, this does not factor the real costs to human health and the environment which are far more than just monetary. These impacts beg the question, can we really afford to continue to our reliance on fossil fuels?

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Three of the Most Destructive Tanker Oil Spills in History

While the dangers associated with shipping of oil through rail and pipe has received a lot of press of late, oil tankers are responsible for some of the largest oil spills in history. Here is a review of three of the most destructive tanker spills. Quantities are measured in tonnes of crude oil with one tonne being roughly equal to 308 US gallons, or 7.33 barrels, or 1165 liters.

1. Odyssey, was an oil tanker that spilled its load of crude oil 700 nmi (1,300 km; 810 mi) off Nova Scotia, Canada on November 10th, 1988. In total it spilled an estimated 132,157 tonnes of oil into the ocean. An explosion caused it to sink and the resulting spill remains one of the largest oil spills in world history.