Oil Spill Planning and Response

Salt Ecology has 20+ years experience in oil related issues including contingency planning, assessment of oil fate and effects, dispersant effectiveness, eco-toxicity, and spill response.

Salt Ecology is part of an international network of world-class experts providing broad reaching, multi-disciplinary support. 

Key achievements include:

Appointment as a Chief Scientist for BP’s offshore dispersant monitoring during the Gulf of Mexico oil spill in 2010.

Environmental Team Leader and dispersant advisor, MSC Rena oil spill response, Tauranga, New Zealand, 2011/12.

Environmental and dispersant advisor on the Maritime New Zealand (MNZ) National Oil Spill Response Team including national spill responses (Rotoma - 1999, Seafresh - 2000, Jody F Millennium - 2002, Tai Ping - 2002, and MSC Rena - 2011).

Authored national guidelines for oil dispersant use in New Zealand (subsequently adopted for the offshore oil industry by the UK Institute of Petroleum, and government agencies in the USA and Australia). 

Co-authored oil spill monitoring guidelines for New Zealand and Australia. 

Co-authored the initial environmental consequence framework used for national oil spill risk assessment in New Zealand, and provided high level technical peer review of subsequent versions. 

Facilitated ecological risk assessments (ERAs) for oil spill response in New Zealand (including Fiordland, Wellington, and adjacent to New Zealand’s only oil refinery at Marsden Point). Supporting ERA facilitator in the USA (Chesapeake Bay). 

Co-authored oil spill planning and response evaluation criteria (for the IUCN, Switzerland).

Reviewed offshore production facility contingency plans (for ESSO Australia)

Toxicity and oil dispersibility assessments (STOS New Zealand).

Emergency spill response advice (OMV New Zealand)

Coastal sensitivity assessments (MNZ). 

If you are interested in viewing a selection of Salt Ecology’s numerous outputs, click here.