Griffin Johnston, 4th period, The lasting effects of a massive oil spill in Alaska, 25 years later

            In an article on NPR Marisa Peñaloza and Debbie Elliott report on the devastating impact that the Exxon Valdez oil spill had on a small town and ecosystem in Alaska on the eastern shore of Prince William Sound. The oil spill, occurring as a result of a oil tanker named the Exxon Valdez collided with a reef and subsequently spilled 11 million gallons of crude oil into the water. The oil spread for 11,000 square miles not only causing ruinous harm to the ecosystem, both terrestrial and aquatic, but also to the lifestyles of the people living in this small town. The businesses in the nearby coastal town of Cordova went broke, drug, alcohol consumption, domestic violence, and depression increased, and the mayor took his own life. Exxon Mobile has spent $4.3 billion in cleanup endeavors, legal damages, settlements and fines.

            The article states multiple times how lack of preparation and an emergency procedure for a oil spill was a primary reason why the spill in 1989 was so damaging to the area. A spokesperson for Exxon Mobil stated that, “Without doubt, it was a tragic even. But it’s something we have learned from and we live those lessons each and every day.” The port now has an emergency response fleet that is prepared to act immediately in the instance of an oil spill. It is easy to focus on the negative aspects of events such as these because, in the case of an oil spill, all of the aspects are negative. However, though some of the consequences of the damage are still being felt today, the magnitude of the damage was big enough for the people to realize that they needed to take preventative action for possible future accidents. This is an unexpected positive outcome, coming from an accident that seemed to be replete with catastrophe. If humankind is able to look at events that are devastating and take preventative measures so that the devastation does not occur again, they will make a negative, a positive.

http://www.npr.org/2014/03/24/292411071/25-years-after-spill-alaska-town-struggles-back-from-dead-zone