Aerial shot of a maxi-barge with water tanks and shoreline workers hot-water washing a beach in Prince William Sound. Photo. 1989, Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council.
|
The Exxon Valdez oil spill happened on March 24, 1989, when an oil tanker struck a reef in Prince William Sound, Alaska, spilling about 11 million gallons of oil into the ocean. The spill contaminated over 1,300 miles of coastline and killed hundreds of thousands of seabirds, fish, sea otters, and whales, making it one of the worst environmental disasters in U.S. history. The cleanup was vast but incomplete, with oil detectable decades later. The spill led to legal battles and fines, including a $507 million settlement years later. In response, the U.S. passed the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, improving oil spill response and prevention, resulting in a large reduction of major oil spills since then.
|
|