SEMINAR: Jan 18th, 11am - Oil Spill seminar by Jacqueline Michel, President of Research Planning, Inc

[Laura Bracken <lbracken@rsmas.miami.edu>]

Responding the the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: Day 648 and Still Counting

Jacqueline Michel, PhD

Research Planning, Inc.

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill released an estimated 4.9 million barrels (206 million gallons) in the the northern Gulf of Mexico from April to July 2010.  NOAA launched a team of response scientists to provide scientific support and coordination to the U.S. Coast Guard, the Federal OnScene Coordinator.  Dr. Michel has been part of this specialized team of oil spill scientists since 1978, providing support for over 50 spills per year.  She has been working on the  Deepwater Horizon spill since April 2010, and she returns on January 23, 2012 for her 26th rotation in support of the response.  

In her talk, she will summarize the oil's behavior and fate in the water column and on the shoreline, based on data collected during the response phase of the spill.  In addition, she will summarize the various response actions on water (dispersants, burning, skimming) and on the shoreline.  Data will be presented on efforts to identify submerged oil in the nearshore water column and on the seafloor.  However, most of her talk will focus on shoreline treatment methods, tradeoffs, and challenges for the 1.089 miles of shoreline were oiled to various degrees from Florida to Louisiana.  Time-series maps will be used to track the extent and degree of shoreline oiling over time.  This talk will provide an insider scientist's perspective on the response to the largest oil spill in the world.

Wednesday, Jan 18

11:00am 

RSMAS Auditorium