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20 Years After Spill, Valdez Oil 'Harmless'

Few remaining deposits don't threaten life in Alaskan waters: scientists

By Ambreen Ali, Newser User

Posted Dec 16, 2008 4:48 PM CST

(Newser) – Nearly 20 years after the Exxon Valdez spill, what little oil remains in the soiled Prince William Sound is harmless to plant and animal life, scientists agree. The last oil deposits remain deep in the cracks between shoreline rocks, inaccessible to animals and degraded enough to be "biologically insignificant." But what scientists don't agree on is whether the site can be categorized as clean, New Scientist reports.

Greenpeace activists say it's too early to assume the residue won't have an ecological or reproductive impact. The local killer whale population, for example, still hasn't recovered from losses in the 1989 spill. ExxonMobil says its settlement has paid for more than $1 billion to investigate the damage to the Sound, and that it's now "healthy, robust, and thriving."

[Images (2)]

[Quotes (1)]

In this 1989 file photo, crude oil from the tanker Exxon Valdez swirls on the surface of Alaska's Prince William Sound. (AP Photo/John Gaps III, File)

Part of the town of Cordova, Alaska is seen at the base of Mount Eyak. Scientists say any remaining oil is biologically harmless. (AP Photo/Al Grillo)

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I am surprised that they even find any oil at all after 18 years. Biologically it is of practically no significance.
- Olof Linden, former UN scientific adviser

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Jan 1, 2009 1:07 AM CST

Exxon has Authorized and Permitted Human Life as Collateral Damage. Lady Justice: http://www.silenceinthesound. com/valdez-oil-spill-workers-vs-exxon.shtml An investigative study is being conducted into the thousands of Exxon Valdez Oil Spill (EVOS) workers' health issues, and is being proven as Exxon's negligence, and not Exxon's Collateral Damage. It is a major concern that the cleanup workers from the 1989 EVOS are suffering from long-term health problems resulting from exposures to toxic chemicals containing aerosolized crude oil—benzene and other volatile compounds, oil mist, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons that were used to clean the oily beaches in Prince William Sound, Alaska. Some of the illnesses include neurological impairment, chronic respiratory disease, leukemia, lymphoma, brain tumors, liver damage, and blood diseases; many have died. http://www.silenceinthesound. com/stories.shtml and http://www.silenceinthesound. com/gallery.shtml Merle Savage www.silenceinthesound.com

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20 Years After Spill, Valdez Oil 'Harmless'