Learned? What has the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill cleanup Experiment Taught us?

Learned...?

"The Exxon Valdez oil spill is an important symbol of the potentially disastrous impacts of our actions, but it is also symbolic of the limitations of both knowledge and our attempts at redemption. Scientists are now realizing that ecosystems do not necessarily "recover" from certain types of degradation."

by THOMAS OKEY is a marine ecologist from California who is constructing a food web model of the Prince William Sound ecosystem. He is the founder of Conservation Science Institute, a non-profit organization dedicated to the integration of science with education and conservation advocacy.

"Cleanup crews tried to read beaches of oil by deluging sand with cold water to force the gooey film out to sea, and blasting rocks with hot steam--which ended up cooking thousands of tiny organisms. Since oils seeps deep into gravel and rock, workers brought in bull-dozers to churn up hidden oil globs, then applied chemicals to break apart oil molecules. But ultimately the natural flushing action of waves--in which sunlight and oxygen naturally decomposes oil particles--proved more efficient than all the mops, sponges, power hoses, and well-meaning human effort."

Can Alaska Heal? (aftermath of Exxon Valdez accident)

From Science World, April 10 2000 by Mark Bregman

Per one report, the beaches untouched during the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill cleanup recovered in 18 months whereas those 'cleaned' by the help of humans took three to four years to recover.