ASTM F1008-86(1993)e1
(Guide)Guide for Ecological Considerations for the Use of Chemical Dispersants in Oil Spill Response-Salt Marshes (Withdrawn 2001)
Guide for Ecological Considerations for the Use of Chemical Dispersants in Oil Spill Response-Salt Marshes (Withdrawn 2001)
SCOPE
1.1 This guide covers recommendations for the use of chemical dispersants to assist in the control of oil spills. This guide is written with the goal of minimizing the environmental impacts of oil spills; this goal is the basis upon which recommendations are made. Aesthetic and socioeconomic factors are not considered, although these and other factors are often important in spill response.
1.2 Each on-scene coordinator has available several means of control or cleanup of spilled oil. In this guide, use of chemical dispersants is not considered as a last resort after other methods have failed. Chemical dispersants are to be given equal consideration with other spill countermeasures.
1.3 This is a general guide only assuming the oil to be dispersible and the dispersant to be effective, available, applied correctly and in compliance with relevant government regulations. Oil, as used in this guide, includes crude oils and fuel oils (No. 1 through No. 6). Differences between individual dispersants or between different oils or products are not considered.
1.4 This guide covers one type of habitat, salt marshes. Other guides, similar to this one, cover habitats such as rocky shores. The use of dispersants is considered primarily to protect such habitats from impact (or minimize impacts) and also to clean them after the spill takes place.
1.5 This guide applies to marine and estuarine environments, but not to freshwater environments.
1.6 In making dispersant-use decisions, appropriate government authorities should be consulted as required by law.
1.7 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety problems, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.
General Information
Standards Content (Sample)
NOTICE: This standard has either been superseded and replaced by a new version or discontinued.
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e1
Designation: F 1008 – 86 (Reapproved 1993)
Standard Guide for
Ecological Considerations for the Use of Chemical
Dispersants in Oil Spill Response—Salt Marshes
This standard is issued under the fixed designation F 1008; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A
superscript epsilon (e) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.
e NOTE—Section 7 was added editorially in December 1992.
1. Scope 3. General Considerations for Making Dispersant-Use
Decisions
1.1 This guide covers recommendations for the use of
chemical dispersants to assist in the control of oil spills. This 3.1 The decision of whether or not to use dispersants in a
guide is written with the goal of minimizing the environmental given spill situation is always one involving trade-offs. Dis-
impacts of oil spills; this goal is the basis upon which persing a slick at one site temporarily introduces more oil into
recommendations are made. Aesthetic and socioeconomic the water column at that site than would be there if a surface
factors are not considered, although these and other factors are slick floated over it. Therefore, adverse effects on water
often important in spill response. column organisms may be increased at the site so that adverse
1.2 Each on-scene coordinator has available several means effects can be decreased or eliminated at other sites.
of control or cleanup of spilled oil. In this guide, use of 3.2 Dispersant use is primarily a spill control method, not a
chemical dispersants is not considered as a last resort after cleanup method. Such use can give spill response personnel
other methods have failed. Chemical dispersants are to be some control over where the impacts of a spill will occur and
given equal consideration with other spill countermeasures. what types of impacts they may be. Since some environments
1.3 This is a general guide only assuming the oil to be are known to be more vulnerable to the longer lasting impacts
dispersible and the dispersant to be effective, available, applied of spilled oil, an acceptable trade-off may be to protect those
correctly and in compliance with relevant government regula- environments by dispersing an oil slick in a less sensitive or
tions. Oil, as used in this guide, includes crude oils and fuel oils less productive environment. In general, the trade-off that must
(No. 1 through No. 6). Differences between individual dispers- be evaluated is between the impact of the relatively long
ants or between different oils or products are not considered. residence time of spilled oil that strands on shorelines versus
1.4 This guide covers one type of habitat, salt marshes. the short-term impact of dispersed oil in the water column.
Other guides, similar to this one, cover habitats such as rocky 3.3 In this guide, environments that are most vulnerable to
shores. The use of dispersants is considered primarily to protect the longer-term impacts of oil contamination are identified.
such habitats from impact (or minimize impacts) and also to Protection of these habitats is recommended as a high priority
clean them after the spill takes place. by means of dispersants and other methods.
1.5 This guide applies to marine and estuarine environ-
4. Environments Covered—Coastal Salt Marsh
ments, but not to freshwater environments.
1.6 In making dispersant-use decisions, appropriate govern- 4.1 Coastal salt marshes (distinct from inland salt marshes)
are intertidal wetlands, transitional zones between terrestrial
ment authorities should be consulted as required by law.
1.7 This standard does not purport to address all of the and aquatic ecosystems. Salt marshes form when plants invade
shallow, protected tidal flats on low coasts (for example,
safety problems, if any, associated with its use. It is the
responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro- behind barrier islands or in estuaries where protection from
strong wave action is provided) (1). Their primary formation
priate safety and health practices and determine the applica-
bility of regulatory limitations prior to use. requires soil emersion for approximately half the tidal period,
water calm enough to prevent uprooting of the newly settled
2. Significance and Use
seedlings, and a sufficient amount of sediment to enable the
2.1 This guide is meant to aid local and regional spill upward growth of the marsh (2, 3).
response teams during spill response planning and spill events. 4.2 Coastal salt marshes are usually found in temperate
regions but can and do occur in the tropics, especially in arid
or monsoonal zones. Salt marshes occur where abundant silt is
This guide is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee F-20 on Hazardous
Substances and Oil Spill Responseand is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee
F20.13 on Treatment. The boldface numbers in parentheses refer to the list of references at the end of
Current edition approved June 27, 1986. Published October 1986. this guide.
Copyright © ASTM, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959, United States.
F 1008
deposited by major river systems or where geological nature of supports a complex food web, as well as stabilizing the
the coast results in considerable erosion and significant silt substrate or sediments by a network of rhizomes (submerged
resuspension (4). Major geographic groupings according to roots). Bacterial breakdown of dead plant matter supports
Chapman (5)are as follows: populations of detritus feeders (for example, fiddler crabs,
mussels, and snails), which in turn are eaten by higher
4.2.1 Arctic Group,
organisms (for example, mud crabs, birds, and raccoons). Tidal
4.2.2 Northern European Group (Scandinavian, North Sea,
exchange between the salt marsh proper and adjacent waters
Baltic, English Channel, and Southwest Ireland subgroups),
provides food (detritus) for aquatic animals (for example,
4.2.3 Mediterranean Group (western Mediterranean, eastern
shrimp and commercially important fish).
Mediterranean, and Caspian subgroups),
4.9 Salt marshes function as vital breeding and nursery
4.2.4 Western Atlantic Group (Bay of Fundy, New England,
grounds for many commercially important fish and shellfish,
and Coastal Plain subgroups),
may support overwintering water fowl, provide a temporary or
4.2.5 Pacific American Group,
permanent home to birds, and provide food and shelter for
4.2.6 Sino-Japanese Group,
terrestrial animals.
4.2.7 Australasian Group (Australian and New Zealand
subgroups),
5. Background
4.2.8 South American Group, and
5.1 Oil slicks impact the salt marsh ecosystem directly by
4.2.9 Tropical Group.
coating the leaves, shoots, and aerial roots of the marsh grasses
4.3 The fundamental physiographic units of the marsh are
(12, 13). The degree of coating may be dependent upon
(6) the drainage basin or creek system (7) and the salt pan.
recoating of the grass during subsequent tidal cycles. En-
Creeks form by accretion on the surrounding marsh, supple-
trapped oil also may be toxic to burrowing and surface
mented by lateral and bed erosion. In sandy marshes, where
organisms (14). Toxicity to Spartina spp. (cord grass), the
puccinellia grass is dominant, the creek systems are simple and
predominant perennial in salt marshes (8), is due to absorption
drainage channels are few. In other muddier marshes the creek
of oil through stomata (12) that apparently decreases the
systems branch in long, dendritic patterns, and cord grass
diffusion of oxygen to the root systems (15). Brown (12) found
(Spartina) marshes form intricate winding systems of creeks
that nonbiogenic hydrocarbon in oiled Spartina were concen-
and drainage channels. A salt pan is a bare spot or depression,
trated in the lower shoots and roots, even after one year of
usually circular in shape, that is surrounded by marsh vegeta-
weathering. Concentrated petroleum hydrocarbons can result
tion and has lost an outlet for water. As a result of flooding by
in death of the underground rhizome system of a Spartina
spring tides and evaporation in the summer, this area becomes
marsh and inhibit natural regrowth (16). Annual marsh grasses
hypersaline and adverse to plant growth (6).
may be even more susceptible to damage from oil than
4.4 Along coastlines where marshes are found, there exists
perennials (12, 14).
a gradual progression from submerged sand flats through a
5.2 Although devastation of a marsh from a single oiling
range of different plant communities and brackish water
and subsequent cleanup has been reported (17), observations in
vegetation to fresh water swamps and finally upland vegeta-
later growing seasons of good recoveries of vegetation and
tion.
associated infauna following single and even multiple spill
4.5 Perennial marsh grasses and rushes on the higher
events are common (12, 18, 19, 20, 21). For example, in West
intertidal levels (8, 9) dominate the flora of the marsh. Some
Falmouth, MA, following a spill of about 700 000 L of No. 2
annuals may also be present.
fuel oil, an oil high in toxic aromatic compounds, Blumer,
4.6 In wave protected submerged shallows (or the seaward
Sass, et al (22, 23) reported large scale mortalities of the salt
sand flat), sea grasses and algae take root and trap sediment.
marsh grasses (Spartina and others) that came into contact with
When the bottom has risen to form a tidal flat, it becomes
the oil and heavy mortalities in fiddler crabs and mollusc
suitable for colonization by lateral marsh grass pioneers. These
populations (24). In a limited area, oil penetrating the sedi-
plants maintain the process of sediment gathering, and the high
ments as deep as 70 cm initially prevented resettlement by the
marsh is generally dominated by the short cord grass or by
original fauna. However, after eight months, a reduction of the
species of salt grass, pickleweed, or sea blite. The transition
oil by biochemical and physical processes led to the subsequent
continues from salt marsh to reed swamp or to a cattail swamp
repopulation of that area (24).
dominated by the rushes or sedges.
5.3 In some cases, spilled oil can persist for years within or
4.7 Within the salt marsh proper, there are about ten rather
on the surface of the sediments, where it remains biologically
distinctive subhabitats (10). Each of these subhabitats provides
available to benthic organisms (25, 26, 27), and may cause
distinctive growing conditions for the communities that occupy
re-oiling of the marsh during tidal flushing (14) or if the
them. While these subhabitats can occupy a large area within
sediments are disturbed (27). Vandermeulen and Ross (27)
the marsh, their distinctive community structures and functions found that toxic aromatic hydrocarbons were persistent in
have not been studied in detail.
marsh sediments whereas aliphatic compounds degraded over
4.8 Primary production in coastal marshes is carried out time.
mainly by the grasses and by algae living on the surface of the 5.4 In general, damage to vegetation increases with the
sediments. Total net primary production of a healthy cord grass number of exposures. Brown (12) found that while even a
(Spartina alterniflora) marsh system has been estimated to be single exposure to crude oil “caused some plant mortality as
as high as 200 g/m /year of biomass (11). This biomass well as 40 to 50 % reduction of growth the following year,”
F 1008
multiple exposures caused an even greater degree of reduction using early generation aromatic-solvent dispersants. The ef-
in the following year’s growth (12). Oil spills during the fects of later generation nonaromatic dispersant/oil mixtures on
migratory seasons of shrimps and fish, which depend upon the salt marsh animals and vegetation have also been studied (15,
salt marsh for food and protection, can result in serious impacts 29, 30). Van Gelder-Ottoway (30) showed that oil mixed with
to these species. Likewise, oil spilled during the winter months nonaromatic dispersants was more acutely toxic to the marsh
can significantly impact over-wintering populations, thus po- periwinkle, Littorina spp. than either the undiluted or dispers-
tentially strengthening the consideration for dispersant use ant alone in a 96-h acute toxicity test. Little et al (31) found
during these periods. that nonaromatic dispersant treatment increased the penetration
5.5 In situ studies of the impact of various cleaning and of unweathered oil in sandy sediments, a factor that could
removal actions on oiled marsh systems indicate that cleanup is increase the availability of the oil to infaunal organisms. None
best accomplished by methods that do not disturb the sedi- of these studies is conclusive in predicting the toxicity of oil
ments or increase penetration of oil into them (13, 14). Adverse treated with nonaromatic dispersant to all organisms in the salt
effects of heavy equipment cleanup on salt marsh systems were marsh.
observed at Ile Grande, France, following a tanker spill in 1978
6. Recommendations
(17). Deepening of the channels of the main tidal area to allow
drainage of accumulated oil increased the water flow through 6.1 Salt marshes are high-priority habitats for protection
the marsh and the current velocities. These changes plus the from spilled oil since they are sensitive to oiling and to nearly
loss of vegetative root system that held the fine marsh all spill cleanup methods. Chemical dispersants should be
sediments, also caused by heavy equipment, resulted in ero- considered as an appropriate and effective means to prevent oil
sional damage. from reaching marshes.
5.6 The ability of salt marshes to recover after being oiled 6.2 Chemical dispersion should be carried out as far from
and the insensitivity to manual and mechanical disruption raise the salt marsh ecosystem as is feasible.
the question of whether any cleanup should be attempted in 6.3 If a decision is made to use dispersants to an oil slick
these environments (14, 15, 28). The effect on recovery of approaching a salt marsh, the dispersant should be applied if
marsh vegetation from various manual removal methods (for possible, as the tide starts to rise to maximize dispersion of the
example, low-pressure flushing, sorbing, burning, or cutting) oil.
versus the no treatment option have been studied (13, 27, 28). 6.4 Direct application of dispersants to salt marshes is not
Holt et al (13) reported only slightly better recoveries in recommended. If marsh vegetation has been heavily oiled,
cleaned over uncleaned areas of a Spartina marsh. McCauley dispersants will probably not preven
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