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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: oil spill

oil spill stories: 28 news summaries

1 - 20 of 28 Stories | 1 2 Next >>

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(Newser) - The Exxon Valdez oil spill is still wreaking havoc on Prince William Sound 20 years later, and an increased push for drilling in Alaska has conservationists and fisherman girding for a repeat, Yale Environment 360 reports. The decimation of the sound’s herring population has affected everything from seabirds to... More »

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environment • Alaska • oil spill • fossil fuel • Exxon Valdez • Prince William Sound • fish population

(Newser) - Two US vessels—the USS Hartford nuclear submarine and the amphibious USS New Orleans—collided in the waters between Iran and the Arabian peninsula today, the AP reports. Fifteen sailors were slightly injured aboard the Hartford, but all were able to return to duty. The New Orleans crew was unscathed,... More »

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oil spill • submarine • US Navy • Strait of Hormuz

Aussie Oil Spill 10 Times Worse Than Thought

Government blamed for slow response to disaster

Mar 14, 09 4:17 PM CDT
(Newser) - The oil spill that’s polluting beaches along the northeast coast of Australia is 10 times worse than originally thought, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. Officials now say that about 253 tons of oil leaked from a Hong Kong ship on Wednesday, damaging dozens of beaches that span 37 miles... More »

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Australia • beach • oil spill • Queensland • marine life

 20 Years After Spill, 
 Valdez Oil 'Harmless' 

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

Dec 16, 08 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.... More »

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environment • Alaska • Exxon • oil spill • ExxonMobil • Exxon Valdez • Exxon oil spill

 Crew Still 'Jailed' Year 
 After SF Bay Spill 

Chinese witnesses fight to return to families

Nov 4, 08 2:44 PM CST
(Newser) - Six crew members from the ship crash that caused San Francisco Bay’s largest oil spill in 20 years remain detained a year later, unable to return to families in China. Though they live rent-free in San Francisco, get $1,200 monthly plus their salaries, and are free to roam,... More »

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China • San Francisco • oil spill • Bay Bridge • Cosco Busan • witness • detainees • John Cota

 Ike Spilled 500K 
 Gallons of Gulf Oil 

Strong winds, waves damaged dozens of oil platforms

Oct 5, 08 7:00 PM CDT
(Newser) - Hurricane Ike knocked at least a half million gallons of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico and nearby waterways, according to an AP analysis of environmental reports. Worst hit were oil platforms near the coast of Louisiana, but about half of the spill occurred at a facility on Goat... More »

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Hurricane Katrina • oil spill • hurricane season • Gulf of Mexico • disaster • Hurricane Ike

 Oil Spill Snarls Mississippi 

Workers racing river to clean up gigantic  slick near New Orleans

Jul 25, 08 7:28 AM CDT
(Newser) - An oil spill stretching nearly 100 miles along the Mississippi is causing river traffic to pile up, AP reports. Dozens of vessels are stuck in New Orleans waiting to head upriver. Others are waiting to carry cargos of grain downriver from the heartland. Officials say it will be days before... More »

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pollution • New Orleans • oil spill • Mississippi River • shipping • cargo ships

Oil-Slurping Nanotechnology Next Front in Fighting Spills

MIT scientists create mesh that keeps water out, can hold 20 times its weight in crude

Jun 4, 08 7:52 PM CDT
(Newser) - Cleaning up oil might soon get faster and cheaper, thanks to nanotechnology. Scientists at MIT have crafted a paper-like substance that can absorb up to 20 times its weight, the Economist reports. The mesh of nanowires, each 1/1,000th the diameter of a human hair, feels and looks like paper—... More »

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environment • MIT • oil spill • nanotechnology • environmental damage

Feds Indict
Pilot in SF
Oil Spill

Attorney vows to battle misdemeanors, calling them premature

Mar 17, 08 6:17 PM CDT
(Newser) - The pilot of a ship that dumped 53,000 gallons of oil in San Francisco Bay last year was indicted today, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. John Cota faces two federal misdemeanor charges, for releasing a pollutant and killing migratory birds; at least 2,000 birds died in the spill.... More »

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environment • oil • oil spill • Bay Bridge • Cosco Busan • San Francisco Bay • San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge • environmental damage

Exxon Asks Court to Toss $2.5B Payout

Supreme's justices appear to be split
in Valdez case

Feb 27, 08 8:52 PM CST
(Newser) - Nearly 20 years after the Exxon Valdez spilled 11 million gallons of crude oil in Prince William Sound, the company asked the Supreme Court to reject a ruling that it pay $2.5 billion in punitive damages. Judges appeared split in today's arguments, USA Today reports, making a tie... More »

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John Roberts • Alaska • Ruth Bader Ginsburg • Anthony Kennedy • oil spill • ExxonMobil • class action • shipping • Exxon Valdez • Samuel A. Alito • US Supreme Court • Joseph Hazelwood

Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Case Bound for Supreme Court

Exxon has paid $3.5 billion over years, but claimants want 'closure'

Feb 24, 08 3:53 PM CST
(Newser) - Almost two decades after the Exxon Valdez spilled 11 million gallons of oil off the Alaskan coast, legal clashes continue—and will reach the Supreme Court this week, the Washington Post reports. At issue is whether Exxon's $3.5 billion payout is enough or should increase to $5 billion, as... More »

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environment • oil • Alaska • oil spill • lawsuit • Exxon Valdez • US Supreme Court • Prince William Sound

SF Ship Pilot May Have
Had Sleep Disorder

Captain reportedly on two prescription meds for drowsiness, anxiety

Jan 20, 08 6:46 PM CST
(Newser) - The ship pilot who hit a San Francisco bridge and unleashed the bay's worst oil spill in nearly 20 years may have been on drugs for a sleep disorder, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Captain John Cota was reportedly taking two kinds of prescription medication to prevent drowsiness and treat... More »

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Congress • oil spill • Coast Guard • San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge • sleep apnea • sleep disorder

Korea Struggles to Clean Spill

Government declares state of disaster

Dec 9, 07 5:00 PM CST
(Newser) - A crew of 7,000 struggled to contain the worst oil spill in South Korean history today, the New York Times reports. The government declared a state of disaster as volunteers hauled buckets of oil from a 12-mile shore, fighting headaches and nausea from the stench. The coast guard... More »

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environment • oil • South Korea • Seoul • oil spill • Exxon Valdez • disaster

Oil Slick Reaches South Korean Shore

Worst spill in country's history threatens scenic coastline, maritime park

Dec 8, 07 5:42 AM CST
(Newser) - Emergency workers in South Korea are struggling to contain a 12-mile-long oil slick that has reached an ecologically sensitive shoreline on the Korean west coast. The oil spilled when a barge broke loose from the tug that was pulling it, and slammed into a Hong Kong-registered supertanker. The spill threatens... More »

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environment • oil • South Korea • Hong Kong • oil spill • disaster

S. Korea Rushes to Contain Spill

Spill occurred near ecologically
sensitive coastline

Dec 7, 07 11:35 AM CST
(Newser) - South Korea has sent out a fleet of ships to try to prevent 2.7 million gallons of oil that leaked from a supertanker from reaching an ecologically sensitive shoreline, the AP reports. A crane-carrying barge collided with the tanker 93 miles southwest of Seoul, causing the spill. Authorities are... More »

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South Korea • oil spill • accident

Spill Hits Diving Duck Hardest

Migratory species accounts for one-quarter of dead birds in SF Bay catastrophe

Nov 24, 07 5:33 AM CST
(Newser) - A migratory duck already under environmental pressure has taken the brunt of the damage from the San Francisco Bay fuel spill, the AP reports. Of at least 1,365 dead birds, more than one-quarter are surf scoters, as are 40% of the birds being cleaned. "The oil spill just... More »

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San Francisco • oil spill • San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge • duck

Shortage of Officers Plagues Shipping

Dearth of experienced mariners may spell future disasters

Nov 16, 07 11:12 PM CST
(Newser) - A blunder that dumped 58,000 gallons of oil into San Francisco Bay last week has drawn attention to a worldwide shortage of experienced mariners—and the resulting potential for future disasters. The number of ships is increasing as global trade booms, reports the Christian Science Monitor, but the current... More »

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oil spill • trade • pilot • officer • shipping • Cosco Busan • San Francisco Bay

SF Oil Spill Probe Finds Irregularities

Crew drug tests delayed; feds dispute pilot's claim about radar malfunction

Nov 14, 07 5:52 PM CST
(Newser) - The crew of the ship that dumped 58,000 gallons of oil into San Francisco Bay last week wasn't tested for drugs until 53 hours after the crash—a delay well beyond the federally mandated 32 hours, the San Jose Mercury News reports. And a technician says the ship's radar... More »

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San Francisco • oil spill • Coast Guard

Troops Join Black Sea Cleanup

Over 20 sailors missing; storm continues

Nov 13, 07 8:52 AM CST
(Newser) - Russian authorities have brought in troops to help with oil cleanup on the Black Sea. At least 20 sailors are listed as missing and 3 bodies washed up since a storm hit dozens of ships Saturday. Efforts to pump oil from a sunken oil tanker that's already leaked 1.3... More »

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Russia • oil spill • Black Sea • Ukraine • disaster

Grand Jury Calls Spill Ship Crew

Coast Guard slammed for focusing on homeland security, not environment

Nov 13, 07 4:38 AM CST
(Newser) - The crew of the container ship that rammed a San Francisco Bay bridge and dumped 58,000 gallons of oil have been served subpoenas to appear before a federal grand jury, reports the San Francisco Chronicle. The US attorney's office is investigating whether crimes were committed in the disaster and... More »

MORE ABOUT:
Nancy Pelosi • oil spill • Coast Guard • Gavin Newsom • Cosco Busan • San Francisco Bay • Adm. Thad Allen

1 - 20 of 28 Stories | 1 2 Next >>


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