Santa Barbra, oil spill disaster case study. Impacts and facts explored. With Hamza Gillani GEO HL IBDP BCCG 2017

1. Marine Oil Disasters
Hamza Gilani
Wasif Jalal

2. 
 Event:
 Location
 Time
 Companies involved
 Cause of incident
 Responses of:
 Government
 Company and Stake holders
 NGOs. Environmentalists,
Citizens
 The world
 Impact:
 Environment
 life
 People
 Economy
 The world
 map
 Analysis and conclusion
 sources
contents
Country: United States

3.  In 1969, a blow-out occurred
 near the coast of south California.
 An off shore drilling rig
 The oil erupted below the oil rig.
 Reached to the surface in forms of bubbles
 3 million gallons (11356235.35 liters) was lost.
EVENT

4. 

5. 
 Santa Barbara Cannel
 Near the city of Santa Barbara
 Southern California
 5 miles from US coast
 Pacific Ocean
location
http://sloblogs.thetribunenew
s.com/slovault/files/2009/01/
2-3-1969-oil-disaster.jpg

6. 
28th of January, 1969
Tuesday
10:45am
Continued for eleven days
time

7.  Union Oil
 Oil Company Of California. Petroleum Explorer And Marketer.
 Richfield Oil Company
 Ventura Oil Fields
 Also Philips, continental and Cities Service Oil Company
 Owned By Greek Energy
Companies and Stakeholders

8. 
 The spill was the major headline in many morning newspapers
 The earth day, to address people about environmental issues.
 Environmentalist found change in balance in ecosystem of the area.
NGOs, citizens and
environmentalists response

9.  Platform Alpha
 There was a pressure difference between extraction of the
pipe and pumping of drilling mud.
 Pressure significantly increased.
 Thus the casing of the upper part of well was damaged.
Cause of Incident

10. 
Natural gas burst
Blowing out all of the drilling mud
 split the casing
 caused cracks to form in the seafloor surrounding
the well.
“3 million gallons of crude oil spewed from drilling-
induced cracks in the channel floor.”
continued

11.  Attempted to screw a blowout preventer, failed due to very high
pressure.
 evacuated
 Last resort,
 Dropping the drill pipe into the hole and then crushing the top of
the well pipe from the sides with “blind rams”, colliding together
with large force.
 Method failed.
Immediate response

12. 
 After day five workers killed well A-21
 more leaks were discovered
 Union oil tried to cap the leaks
 Still there were leaks
Further attempts to control

13. 
 Then they decided to speed up the rate of extraction of oil in their five
wells to lower the pressure.
 It failed.
 Union oil tried to cement the cracks but failed again.
 Leak was diminished but it never stopped (6 months)
continued

14. 

15. 

16. 
 Marine mammals and fish were poisoned and killed
 Seabirds died
 Seals and dolphins were poisoned
 Kelp forests were devastated
 Oil muted the sound of waves on the beach
 Smell of petroleum
Environmental Impact

17. 
 Federal government began leasing oil drilling rights beyond the state controlled
boundary.
 Government cased the oil companies
 Government helped to control the problem
 Aided in clearing of oil
 President Nixon came to see the spill

Governments reaction

18. 
 All commercial fishing suspended
 Subsistence fishers could not fish
 Government and Private individuals filed class-action lawsuits against the Union Oil.
 tourism and local business revenues decline.
 Santa Barbara received 4 million USD in 1974
 Owners of properties that were effect got funds to cover up damages.
Economical Impact

19. 
 It was the Spark, “The blowout was the spark that brought the
environmental issue to the nation’s attention,” said Arent Schuyler
 Other countries also became precautious.
Global Impact
 http://www2.bren.u
csb.edu/~dhardy/19
69_Santa_Barbara_Oi
l_Spill/Home.html

20. 

21. 
http://www.citylab.com/wo
rk/2014/01/1969-oil-spill-
launched-modern-
environmental-
movement/8233/

23. 
 http://www2.bren.ucsb.edu/~dhardy/1969_Santa_Barbara_Oil_Spill/Home.
html
 http://www.geog.ucsb.edu/~kclarke/Papers/SBOilSpill1969.pdf
 http://greencriminology.org/glossary/the-santa-barbara-oil-spill-1969/
 http://www.marketplace.org/sites/default/files/WWW/data/images/repos
itory_orig/2010/06/25/20100625_santa-barbara-oil-spill-oil-on-rocks.jpg
 http://images.huffingtonpost.com/gen/30079/original.jpg
http://www.rense.com/general90/original.jpg
 http://www.gogreennation.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/pelican.jpg
sources