Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
out ahead of emerging threats before they become major prob-
lems would be a refreshing new approach to pollution.
Oil spills have been decreasing over the past two decades,
and tankers built in the United States will have double hulls.
In response to the Deepwater Horizon the government set up
panels to provide expert advice to prevent future blowouts.
A presidential commission recommended many measures to
improve drilling safety. However, the government has not fol-
lowed important recommendations for increasing safety, such
as the design of the blowout preventer which could not stop
blowouts in deep water. There are plans to expand offshore
drilling into deeper waters, making a future disaster more
likely.
Other types of pollution have been increasing, includ-
ing nutrients that cause eutrophication, as indicated by the
increasing number of hypoxic zones and harmful algal
blooms around the world. In the future, there may be greater
controls on point sources that will result in further decreases
of persistent organic pollutants and sewage wastes. Whether
regulations will be developed to reduce nonpoint sources of
pollution is an open question. More recently recognized pol-
lutants, including flame retardants, pharmaceuticals, and
nanoparticles, will become increasingly important sources
of toxicity until they are eventually—hopefully sooner rather
than later—controlled by regulations. Marine debris is an
increasing problem that has not yet been controlled. Invasive
species will probably continue to arrive in new locations,
although ballast water regulations will reduce the importance
of this vector. Climate change will exacerbate effects of toxic
contaminants; warmer water will increase metabolic rates of
marine organisms, which will generally increase toxic effects.
Increased temperature will cause huge changes in the ocean
ecosystems, and the lowered pH from ocean acidification will
cause its own harmful effects, especially on shell-forming
species. Climate change will likely also exacerbate the effects
of eutrophication, as warmer water will hold less oxygen
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