Category: Geography Notes PPT

In geography, different characteristics and properties of water, soil, air, weather are discussed. Illuviation is one of the most important properties of soil. Soil has different layers depending on the materials and density. Illuviation is a kind of soil mixture, which is made by the accumulation of suspended or dissolved soil materials. The materials are accumulated in a particular area. The accumulation is the result of leaching from another area. The soil mixture contains iron, clay, humus, and other soil materials. In this article, we are going to define illuviation and the soil illuviation process in detail. Illuviation is an essential topic of geography as well as geology.

Illuviation Definition

The Illuviation of soil is a vital part of garbage management. To reduce the harm of garbage produced from soil, illuviation is a modern process. The accumulation of dissolved soil materials is called soil illuviation. The soil materials contain clay, humus, some metals such as iron, copper, zinc, etc, and some salts. The soil mixture has a new colour, density, and consistency for the different materials.

Illuviation Process

As a part of garbage management, soil illuviation is the next process of leaching. After leaching, the materials such as metals, salts, clay, humus are washed out and accumulated in a particular area. All the materials are mixed in that area in a layer and form a mixture, which contains a new colour and consistency. The mixture is formed by small particles of the materials and the particles are in the colloidal size. The area of illuviation is called the illuvial zone, which is usually a low area. In illuviation, the materials are displaced from one layer to another layer of soil. The materials are accumulated in the area for a long time. Thus, the mixture is produced and the entire process is complete by the displacement of materials by rainwater.

Contains of Illuviation

Illuviation of soil is a displacement process of soil materials across a soil profile. The materials, which are displaced from one layer to another are called illuvium in the illuviation process. Illuvium includes clay, humus, salts (NaCl, CaCl₂), metals (iron, zinc, copper), oxides, etc. The displacement of illuvium is of two types- chemical and mechanical. In the mechanical process, the materials are accumulated in an area and the mixture is done. In the chemical process, the materials are transported with rainwater and the mixture is produced by the action of rainwater and the illuvium. These are the main soil materials in the process of soil illuviation.

Soil Horizon For Illuviation

The illuviation process can be completed by chemical or mechanical causes. If the displacement is by rainwater and the mixture is produced by the action of water, that is the chemical cause, if the displacement is the next step of leaching and the mixture is produced by the accumulation of dissolved soil materials, that is mechanical causes. Both the processes take place in a particular soil horizon. The horizon is known as the A horizon of soil, which is also the zone of illuviation. This horizon has formed below an A, E, or O horizon. B horizon is the evidence of carbonate removal.

Solved Examples

1. Give the Illuviation Soil Definition.

Solution: The accumulation of dissolved soil materials in a particular area or the displacement of the soil materials in a layer from another is called illuviation.

2. What are the Processes of Soil Illuviation?

Solution: The main two processes of illuviation are chemical and mechanical. If the process is completed by the action of rainwater, it is chemical. On the other hand, the mechanical process is done by the accumulation of dissolved soil materials after leaching.

3. What are the Soil Materials For Illuviation?

Solution: The soil materials for illuviation are called illuvium. Illuvium includes clay, humus, metals (iron, aluminum, copper, zinc, etc), salt (NaCl, CaCl₂), oxides (silicon dioxide, iron oxide, aluminum oxide), carbonates, etc.

4. What is the Soil Horizon in Illuviation?

Solution: The illuviation process takes place in a particular area or layer of soil. The soil horizon for illuviation is called the B horizon and the area is called the zone of illuviation.

5. What is the Importance of Illuviation?

Solution: Illuviation is an essential process of garbage management. By this process, a new soil mixture is produced with new colour and consistency.

The terrain is usually characterized by barren grounds, caves, sinkholes, underground rivers, and the absence of river lakes, ponds, and streams in karst geology. In karst geology, the excavating effects of underground water or massive soluble limestone surround the terrain. The northeast area of the Gulf of Trieste in Slovenia is covered with limestones. If the cave becomes large enough on the surface, the top portion collapses. This is called a sinkhole. The water flowing through the cakes widen it and it forms caves. In north China, the pipes are 2m in diameters and run roughly parallel to the ground level. In China “loess karst” is characterized by young loess, though not entirely under it.

Doline Geology

A surface that is closed and forms a depression in the form of solution doline and sediment covered with carbonate rock is a subsidence doline geology. After evacuating the sediment-covered karst into an underneath doline an evacuation was developed. The result of the surface is either rapid or slow. The subsidence doline according to the type of subsidence is of two types. They are dropout doline and suffosin doline. The result of cohesive sediments is catastrophic due to sudden subsidence. This is known as dropout subsidence. In the case of soil, the clayey portion moves slowly into the cavity section and the thick fragments remain on the surface. These are known as suffosin doline geology. 

Condition for Karst Geology

1. The rocks are relatively thick and massive in size. Eg: limestone, dolomite, and chalk.

2. Very close to the ground surface carbonate rocks are found.

3. Limestone rocks should not be porous.

4. The structure of limestone should be folded, fractured, and highly cracked.

5. To form a clay solution moderate to heavy rainfall should happen.

6. Water must circulate in the soil to form karst geology that is a considerable relief.

Many rare animals like bats, cave living invertebrates, plant species grow on the surface during spring and seeps. Fish, snails, and mussels depend on the Karst spring lakes, rivers, and ponds.

Topology

A set that is covered with a structure is called a topology which allows continuous deformation in the subspaces and all continuity. Some examples of topology space are Euclidean spaces and metric spaces. Any kind of distance or metric defines topology deformations, breaking, twisting, and stretching of objects are included in the study of doline geology. Tearing is not followed in topology. Topology is the study of curves, surfaces, and other objects in the plane and three-dimensional space. Someone who cannot distinguish between a coffee cup and a doughnut is called a topologist. 

Geology

Geologists study some of the most important problems that our society is facing. Some problems that occur in energy generation, water supply, mineral resources, and natural hazards like earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, and floods. We must take care of our geology and stop pollution as much as possible. 

Questions and Answers

1. In Which Chemical Limestone can be Dissolved?

Ans: Carbonic acid is a chemical that can dissolve limestone. By mixing CO₂ and water(H₂O) we form aqueous CO₂ which in turn mixes with water to make carbonic acid. The carbonic acid then dissolves to form calcite, limestone, and CaCO₃. 

2. In Non-Karst Areas Drainage Basins are found on Land?

Ans: Water from precipitation becomes first-order tributaries, second-order streams, lakes, and flows into the mainstream. Due to dynamic evolution and subterranean nature, the karst drainage is characterized. At surface drainage, the underground karst is developed. Until surface rock is exposed rivers must be cut down. At that point, the solution must dissolve by the limestone and tributary water may vanish into the ground like a sinking stream or shallow hole.

3. What is Karst Hydrology?

Ans: All rocks are porous and can retain water through their pores and transmit water through their spaces. When a rock can store large quantities of water, it is called aquifers. The water percolates on the surface until it reaches the phreatic zone in the aquifers. Below the vadose zone, the phreatic zone is present and they are separated by a layer of the water table. 

There is a distinction between groundwater and surface water in non-karst areas. According to topography surface water is loosely drained into the lakes and ponds.  Aquifers are independent of surface drainage boundaries.

4. Impacts of Karst due to Humans?

Ans: With rapid surface water entry and all connectivity and mixing it is easy to find the reason for groundwater contamination. But the degradation of the Karst system is not only due to the groundwater, there are many more reasons:

1. Occupation of cave areas.

2. Cutting down plants.

3. agriculture.

4. Exploitation of water and its wastage.

5. Exploitation of minerals.

6. Tourism planning and reconstruction of concrete.

7. Explosive activities and fights in the borders.

Our earth has different layers below the topsoil. All these layers are concentric in nature. The two layers that constitute the upper mantle region and the crust above it are the asthenosphere and lithosphere. In this section, we will study the lithosphere and asthenosphere in detail and learn their characteristics. The properties of these layers should be learned properly to answer specific questions asked in the exams. Learn what is the asthenosphere and lithosphere here.

Our Earth: A Brief Description of the Layers

Our earth has four major layers that constitute the entire planet. We are just living on the crust. It goes way down and covers a radius of 6357 km. The core, as we all know, comprises the liquefied lava. The temperature of the core is 6000°C. The temperature decreases as we move to the top. The core is subdivided into the inner core and the outer core. The temperature of the outer core ranges from 4500 to 5500°C.

Above these concentric cores, we find the mantle. The mantle is 2890 km in thickness. It is also called the transition between the core and the crust. It is also the thickest part of the earth’s entire radius. It rests on the core region and has the crust above it. The crust part of the earth has a thickness ranging from 5 to 70 km. It is the thinnest part of the earth’s foundation and constitutes the outer surface of the planet. This is where our ocean floors, tectonic plates, and the entire ecosystem of the planet reside.

About Lithosphere

The planet’s inner part is also subdivided into two different parts. One such part is the lithosphere. As per the lithosphere definition, it is the outer layer that resides on the top of the mantle and underneath the crust. It is the rigid and rocky part of the earth’s inner sections that goes up to 100 km beneath the earth’s crust.

This layer of earth lies on the asthenosphere. It is also responsible to support the tectonic plates and the entire earth crust lying above the fluidic asthenosphere underneath. It is cooler and more solid than the layers below. It is not entirely solid but broken in different regions or blocks. These rigid blocks support the tectonic plates and are found in dozens. If we look a little deeper into what is meant by lithosphere, we will discover that these tectonic plates are further divided into oceanic plates and continental plates. These plates are rather the topmost part of the earth’s crust where life has originated. The oceanic crust is denser but thinner than the continental crust. The continental crust is thicker but lighter in nature. It is dominated by aluminium and silica whereas the oceanic crust is made of magnesium and silica.

As per the lithosphere definition geography, we find the tectonic plates residing on it. It means that the plate tectonic movement is also responsible for the movements underneath. The physical property of the lithosphere residing on the fluidic asthenosphere causes the movement of these plates resulting in the formation of oceans, seas, and continents.

The floating rigid plates and the gravitational force play a major role in causing the movement and collision of these tectonic plates. In fact, these plates are diverging from each other creating different landmasses. The fresh crust comes up and cools down to turn into a new land mass forming ridges in the middle of an ocean. By studying this part, you must have understood what do you mean by lithosphere.

About Asthenosphere

Now that we have understood what lithosphere means, let us define asthenosphere. It is the upper part of the mantle lying beneath the lithosphere. The depth of this layer ranges from 100 to 700 km. It tolerates huge pressure from above and underneath which keeps in the form of tar. It is denser than the lithosphere but constantly moving underneath due to the rotational motion and gravitational force of the planet.

Scientists have learned that this layer witnesses the generation of convectional currents causing the movement of the rigid lithosphere above. As per the asthenosphere meaning, it is denoted as a weak layer that constantly feels the stress of the layers above and below. The upper movement of magma from this layer causes volcanic eruption from the weak fissures of the lithosphere. In fact, the movement also causes tsunamis and earthquakes in the earth’s crust.

If we consider what is the asthenosphere, we will find out that this layer is denser but fluidic in nature. The movement of the continental and oceanic crust happens because of the disturbance in this layer. In fact, the convection current in this layer also causes the formation of new land crust emerging from the oceanic crust.

Upon studying the asthenosphere definition, we will find out that all the landmasses formed for millions of years are because of the magma movements here. The formation of Pangea and then progressing to Angara land and Gondwanaland took millions of years. Further, these landmasses produced the continents supporting the diverse ecosystem.

Oceans are considered as the single largest ecosystem which covers most of the area of the Earth and ocean sediments cover more than 70% of the surface of the Earth. These sediments cover most of the areas of the oceans and create a great impact on marine life, for example, you will find minimum biodiversity at the continental slope, but on the other hand, you will find a lot of minerals at the bottom. In this article, we will be talking about marine sediment and all its related concepts which will help you to understand this important topic of Oceanography. 

Sediments are something that is collected at the bottom of a liquid by some sources. According to Collins dictionary, ” Sediment is a solid material that settles at the bottom of a liquid, especially earth and pieces of rock that have been carried along and then left somewhere by water, ice, or wind.” Usually, these are pieces of rocks, or sand, dust, ashes, etc. that are deposited by some agents in one place.

If we talk about marine sediment, the sediments which are associated with marine life and can be found at the seafloor or in the oceans can be termed as marine sediments. Systematic study of marine deposits actually began from 1872 to 1876 with HMS Challenger expeditions. After that, no research has been done. In 1968, the collaboration of various scientists from America, the United Kingdom,  the Soviet Union and various other countries recovered various sedimentary deposits samples with the use of drilling vessels i.e Glomar Challenger from the Atlantic and the Pacific Ocean. These sediments that are collected near the continents cover around 25% of the seafloor but as per the volume they cover around 90% of marine deposits.

Marine Sediments/Deposits

Any kind of insoluble material which is being transferred or transported by various sources from land into the water are called marine sediments. Mostly these sediments are in the form of rocks or soil particles that reach the ocean bodies from the continents. Usually, because of the erosion of the continents these sediments occur and get deposited at the surface of the ocean floor. Besides erosional activities, debris from volcanic eruptions or biological productivity and cosmic debris also got collected at the seafloor. The contributions of wind, depth of the ocean as well as ocean circulation play a great role in carrying these sediments or in their transportation, deposition as well as preservation. Alterations also affect the final ocean deposits found on the floor.

The ocean deposits found on the continental shelves as well as continental rises are known as hemipelagic sediments which usually get collected and accumulated here too rapidly in order to chemically react with the seawater. These sediments also get collected near the coral reefs in the tropical regions containing carbonate materials whereas near volcanoes it consists of ashes. The deposits which get collected and accumulated slowly are around 75% and are known as pelagic sediments. Abyssal plains are away from the continental shelf and there are no turbidity currents, thus coarse-grained deposits are found here. At the bottom of the ocean, because of seafloor spreading the bottom is continually renewed. It can be said that the bottom is younger and no sediments older than 150,000,000 years can be found here, but on the other hand, the sediments get thicker and older with time as well.

Types of Marine Deposits

There are various types of ocean deposits that can be found in the oceans and these types are mentioned below:

Lithogenous Deposits 

Lithogenous composed of small fragments. It is also known as terrigenous sediments. The small fragments are the part of preexisting sediments that have made their way into the ocean. These sediments can contain an entire range of particle sizes, from microscopic to clay to large boulders. They are found normally everywhere on the ocean floor. These sediments are created on land by the process of weather. Here rocks and minerals are broken down into tiny particles through the action of wind, rain, water flow, temperature or ice-induced cracking, and other erosive processes. Then these particles are transferred into the oceans.

Lithogenous sediments usually reflect the composition of whatever materials they were derived from. They are dominated by the main material that makes up most terrestrial rocks. Quartz, feldspar, clay minerals, iron oxides, and terrestrial organic matter. Quartz which is also known as silicon dioxide is one of the most common minerals found in all rocks. That’s why it is the dominant component of the lithogenous sediments including sand.

• Various forms of deposits are found in oceans. About 90% of the lithogenous sediment in the oceans have come from rivers, particularly from Asia.

• Most of the sediments, mainly the larger particles, will be deposited and remain closer to the coastline.

• On the other side, small particles may be suspended in the water column for longer periods and may be transported a big distance from the source.

• The wind is such a fact which can transport small particles like dust and sand to the ocean and move to thousands of kilometres from the source.

• These small particles can fall into the ocean when the wind dies down or serve as the nuclei around which raindrops or snowflakes.

• Glaciers also have lots of soil and rock particles and large boulders which they get carried by the ice.

• When the glacier breaks out and melts and it meets with the ocean then these particles get deposited in the ocean.

• Landslides, mudslides, avalanches and other gravity-driven events can deposit large amounts of materials into the ocean.

• Wave action along a coastline will erode rocks and will push loose particles into the ocean and seashore.

• Volcanic eruptions emit large amounts of ash and other particles into the surroundings and are then transported to the oceans through the wind.

Biogenous Deposits

Biogenous sediments are sediments that are made from the skeletal remains of living organisms. These sediments include a wide variety of microscopic organisms, coral fragments, sea urchins and pieces of mollusc shells. Algae and protozoans are the sources of biogenous sediments. The biogenous sediments come from the tests of these one-celled organisms. They are living in the surface waters of the oceans. When these tests comprise greater than 30% of the particles then these particles are known as ooze. There are two types of oozes on the ocean floor are calcareous sediment and siliceous sediment. Oozes that are dominated by diatom or radiolarian tests are called siliceous oozes and calcareous sediment are produced from the tests of microscopic algae and protozoans.

Hydrogenous Deposits

Seawater contains many different types of dissolved substances. Sometimes, chemical reactions occur that cause these types of substances to precipitate out as solid particles, which accumulate as hydrogenous sediment. All these occur by the change in conditions such as a change in temperature, pressure or pH which reduces the amount of substance that can remain in a dissolved state. These kinds of sediment are normally found near hydrogenous vents. In these systems, seawater percolates into the seafloor where it becomes superheated by magma before being expelled by the vent. This water contains many dissolved substances and when it mixes with cold seawater after leaving the vent then these particles precipitate out mostly as metal sulfides. These particles make smoke that flows from the vent and eventually settle on the bottom as hydrogenous sediments.

Cosmogenous Sediments

Cosmogenous sediments are derived from extraterrestrial sources. These have mainly come in two primary forms – microscopic spherules and larger meteor debris. Spherules mostly consist of silica or iron and nickel and are thought to be ejected as meteors burn up after entering the atmosphere. Meteors come from the collision of meteorites with the earth. These types of collisions have a great impact on the earth’s atmosphere that eventually settle back down to earth and contribute to the sediments. Meteor debris consists of mainly silica and nickel. One of the main forms of this debris from collisions are tektites which are small droplets of glass. They are composed of terrestrial silica that was ejected and melted during a meteorite impact. It forms solid after it becomes cool upon returning to the surface. Cosmogenous sediments are fairly rare in the ocean and it does not usually accumulate in large deposits. It comes from space dust which is present in the atmosphere which is continuously raining down on the earth.

Marine Soil

Soil deposits on ocean beds are known as marine soils. Though oceans are very violent the seabeds are very calm for the most part. A very small particle would deposit on the seabeds. The texture and composition depend on the proximity to the land and biological matter. The ocean floor is composed of three different types of soil also known as pelagic sediments or marine sediments. The names of the soils are calcareous ooze, red clay, and siliceous ooze.

Calcareous Ooze

It is the most common soil of the three soils. It covers approximately 48% of the whole ocean floor. It consists of the shells of foraminifera, coccolithophores, and pteropods. They are the tiny organisms that are living in the ocean.

Red Clay

It is the second soil that is found in the ocean. It covers approximately 38% of the ocean floor. It is brown in color. It is made up of quartz, clay minerals, and micrometeorites which are rocks that weigh less than a gram and have fallen to earth from the outer surface.

Siliceous Ooze

Siliceous Ooze is the least common of the three soils. It covers 15% of the ocean floor and is composed of plankton debris and silica shells.

Ocean Minerals

Oceans are a great source of minerals and also considered as the future of the Earth which has tons of possibilities. The resources which have been extracted from it for many years are sand, gravel, oil, gas and salt. Various other resources are also found here such as Magnesium,  Sulphur, Potassium, Calcium, Bromine, Silicon, Boron, lithium, zinc, iodine, Aluminium, Fluorine, Copper, Barium, Lead, Carbon, etc. This list is endless as we know that the ocean and its minerals are the greatest gift of nature and contain endless opportunities for development as well.

Conclusion

Thus, we can conclude that sediments are the debris that gets collected at the bottom of any liquid, especially in terms of Earth, these are the debris that gets collected at the bottom of the sea or ocean by some agents from their origin point. These sediments create a difference as well as leave a great impact on marine life. On the other hand, it leads to the formation of various kinds of landforms on the ocean floor such as abyssal plains, submarine canyons, etc. Various resources or minerals are also found at the seafloor which is the future of the Earth and the human world for development. 

Mount Monadnock, also known as Grand Monadnock, is a 3,165-foot (965-meter) peak in the New Hampshire towns of Jaffrey and Dublin. It is the highest point in Cheshire County and the most prominent mountain range in southern New Hampshire. It’s 61 kilometres south of Concord and 100 kilometres north of Boston. Because of their more resistant rock composition, monadnocks are left as erosional remnants; they usually consist of quartzite or less jointed massive volcanic rocks. Monadnocks are formed in warm, temperate regions, as compared to inselbergs (island mountains), a related tropical landform.

Floral species decrease as soil depths get shallower from the base to the summit. Various sub-alpine plants that can maintain moisture for long periods of time can be found on the summit. Mountain ash, cotton grass, sheep laurel, mountain sandwort, and mountain cranberry are examples of alpine and sub-alpine plants. Northern hardwood tree populations cover the lower elevations of Mount Monadnock, while red spruce stands to dominate the middle elevations. Mount Monadnock was completely engulfed by a red spruce forest prior to the fires. Since the summit has been deprived of soil cover, red spruce have been gradually ascending back to the top in an ecological succession phase. 

Mt. Monadnock has long been recognized as one of the world’s most popular climbing attractions. The bare, lonely, and rugged summit of Monadnock offers vast views. There are many hiking trails on the site, including the 180-kilometre Metacomet-Monadnock Trail and the 80-kilometre Monadnock-Sunapee Greenway. The Connecticut River watershed is to the west, and the Merrimack River watershed is to the east. Mount Monadnock is situated on the boundary of two major watersheds. The top of the mountain is bare due to 19th-century fires, but lower down the slopes, one can find a variety of native plant species in a variety of unique habitats, including alpine bogs.

How Mount Monadnock Got its Name?

“Monadnock” refers to a “mountain that stands alone.” Early settlers in southern New Hampshire invented the term, which was later adopted by American geologists as a synonym for an inselberg or isolated peak. To separate it from other Vermont and New Hampshire peaks with the word “Monadnock,” Mount Monadnock is sometimes referred to as Grand Monadnock. American geologists coined the word “monadnock” to describe any isolated mountain created by the exposure of a harder rock as a result of erosion of a softer one that once surrounded it.

History

The Transcendentalists

American geologists coined the word “monadnock” to describe any isolated mountain created by the exposure of a harder rock as a result of erosion of a softer one that once surrounded it.  Around 1844 and 1860, Thoreau visited the mountain four times and spent a lot of time studying and documenting natural phenomena. One of the first serious naturalist inventories of the mountain is credited to him. A bog near Mount Monadnock’s summit and a rocky lookout off the Cliff Walk path is also named after him, as is another lookout.

The Halfway House and Other Structures

On the south side of the range, about halfway between the base and the top, Moses Cudworth of Rindge opened the “Halfway House” hotel in 1858. To serve it, the “Toll Road” was constructed. By the time, the mountain’s reputation had skyrocketed, and Cudworth had expanded the hotel to host 100 guests. The Halfway House stables could hold up to 75 horses on busy summer days. When hundreds of locals from local towns banded together to purchase the Toll Road and motel, and to block a radio station from being built on the summit, the Halfway House became public property. Since the hotel burnt down in 1954, the site was used as a concession stand until 1969. 

A small fire warden’s hut on Mount Monadnock’s summit existed from 1911 to 1948, when it was decommissioned due to the introduction of modern forest fire detection methods. Until 1969, the hut served as a snack bar concession and hikers’ shelter until being decommissioned in 1972. The fire lookout lived in a small cabin that was situated farther down the mountain. It has also been deleted.

How Mount Monadnock is Used for Recreational Purposes?

Mt. Monadnock has long been regarded as one of the world’s most popular climbing destinations. Hiking, backpacking, picnicking, and snowshoeing are all allowed on Mount Monadnock. On some of the lower trails, backcountry skiing is possible. The state of New Hampshire operates a seasonal campground east of the mountain, but camping is banned anywhere else on the mountain. 

Conservation of Mt. Monadnock

The majority of the mountain has been designated as forest and is not subject to any construction. The Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests, which owns over 4,000 acres in the Monadnock Reservation, is the largest landowner. The state leases land on Monadnock for management purposes. The state of New Hampshire owns an extra 1,000 acres on the mountain as Monadnock State Park. The town of Jaffrey also owns portions of the mountain.

The National Park Service studied the Metacomet-Monadnock Trail in 2000 for potential inclusion in a proposed National Scenic Trail, now tentatively named the New England National Scenic Trail, which will also include the Mattabesett and Metacomet trails in Connecticut, granting it some of the statuses according to the Appalachian Trail. However, whether the New Hampshire portion of the Metacomet-Monadnock Trail will be included in the final NST designation seems to be uncertainty.

According to the data of Marine Insights, the production has been increased from petroleum products from 500 mn tons to 2500 mn tons from 1950 to mid-1990s which leads to huge transportation as well as oil spills. This also led to an increase in the size of oil tankers and the ageing of these tankers with time as well. Though the number of oil spills per decade has decreased, it has been estimated that around 706 mn gallons of oil leaked into the oceans. In this article, we will be discussing these oil leaks only. We will learn what is oil spill, oil water pollution, causes, effects, and all the related aspects.

Introduction

Oil is an important source of energy in the world. It is transferred from one place to another by the ships in the sea and through the pipes. Due to some kinds of problems, the pipes leaked and the oil spread in the oceans. This is called an oil spill. The release of petroleum in the marine ecosystem is pollution. It occurs in the oceans but also spreads to nearby lands. This happens because of several reasons like transferring oil to other containers, breaking pipelines through which oil is transported from one place to another and at the time of drilling in the earth’s crust. Oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons and it causes harm to the surrounding environment. It can destroy animals and plants. 

The catastrophic and massive spills are highly considered as their damage to the environment is high in quantity. But the smaller and chronic oil spills occur on a normal basis. For millions of years, under high pressure and temperature, the remains of fossils changed into hydrocarbons which are called petroleum. It is also known as crude oil. It is composed of gas, kerosene and light gas which can cause hazardous effects on ecosystems. If it is consumed by any other species of the ocean then it will cause high damage to them. The production of oil rose in the millions. Due to massive transportation, it results in oil spills. A large number of waste oils are entered into the ocean which comes from the land and the other waste disposal. It can cause a great impact on the health of the people who consume seafood. Strict measurements will be taken in this regard. So that it can’t cause an impact on the environment. 

Oil Leak

If we talk about spill meaning, according to the Oxford Learner Dictionary, “It is an act of letting a liquid come or fall out of a container.” An oil spill occurs because of leakage of oil especially in the ocean waters and this leakage creates oil spill pollution which is a kind of ocean pollution because it leaves greater impacts on the oceans and when this oil spill occurs at a larger level which leads to leaving impacts on the water body, environment, marine life as well as the economy of the nation for many years, then this is termed as oil spill disaster. The following graph shows the average number of oil spills in the ocean per year by decade which clearly shows that it has been decreased with time.

Oil Spill Definition

Some of the definitions of the oil spill are mentioned below:

• “Oil spill is a release of oil into the environment, either leaked or discharged from a ship, lorry, truck etc.” or ” an accidental release of oil into a body of water, as from a tanker, offshore drilling rig, or underwater pipeline, often presenting a hazard to marine life and the environment. ” – Collins dictionary.

• “Oil spill is an accident in which oil has come out of a ship and caused pollution.” – Cambridge dictionary.

Causes of Oil Spills

There are some causes from which oil spills occurred, a few of which are:

• It happens on the land or sea because of the leaks from ships, wells, pipelines and other carriers of the oil.

• It can be caused by some accidents which include tankers, refineries and drilling rigs.

• It can be caused by the storage facilities.

• Due to the production in millions, it will result in massive transportation and oil spills.

• Spills can be caused by the people who make mistakes and sometimes they become careless.

• It happens because of the breaking of equipment.

• It can also happen because of disasters.

• It can also occur because of the people who do illegal work.

Effects of Oil Spills

Oil spills are damaging in a variety of ways. There are some effects of oil spills which are:

• When oil spills occur in the ocean, the oil does not mix with the water and it spreads on the surface. Because of the thick layer present in the ocean which is also known as slick expands because of which the sunlight does not reach the ocean animals and plants.

•  It affects the food chain of the whole ecosystem.

• When oil spills occur, it will break down a moderate amount of oil and deposit on the bottom. 

• When oil spreads in the ocean, it breaks and sinks into the ocean which deteriorates the health of the ocean life.

• It contaminates the natural habitat of the ocean.

• Oil spills have harsh effects on the coastlines. The birds and the sea mammals are covered by the oil.

• Oil is so damaging to the whole ecosystem as it covers everything which is nearby the coastlines like sand, animals, grass and soil etc

• It destroys everything near the coastline.

• The oil that spills into the ocean can have a great impact on people’s health who consume seafood.

• It can be damaging for those marine animals who swim in the ocean and if they ingest oil then it will be destroying them.

How is it Controlled?

Firstly, it should be taken care that no such oil leakage happens for which proper training should be given to the team as well as proper guidelines should be followed related to carrying such ships as well as carrying these ships to the ports and passing through various narrow channels and during staying in the journey at somewhere, etc. The various methods of controlling the oil leak, if it occurs are mentioned below:

• Oil blooms which are also known as containment bloom are the most common method in case oil spills occur and used to clean up. This equipment helps in further spreading the oil. It will be useful if this equipment is present locally otherwise oil will spread. It works where wave velocity is found constant otherwise it becomes difficult for it to clean up.

• When the oil is cleaned up and bounded by the oil blooms then the oil can be skimmed off with the help of skimmers which are also known as oil scoops. It is the cheapest method to clean up.

• Sorbents are another method that helps in removing the oil. These are liquid absorbers and for oil leakage, natural sorbents are used such as peat moss, straw & hay. They help in less wastage as well as less pollution. They are generally most useful for small spills with high efficiency. 

• The next most common and most useful method of removing oil spill is burning. The oil is ignited similar to the rice husk which helps in removing 98% of the oil.

• The other method is the usage of dispersants which is considered as the last option i.e. oil disintegration for which dispersal chemicals are used. This leads to bonded molecules go deeper into the water where it becomes available for the microbes which later degrades them.

Measures

There are various methods that can be adopted if oil spills occur but the best solution is to prevent the occurrence of such oil spills because they cause a lot of problems for marine life and others. Thus, the following measures can be taken to prevent oil leak:

• Oil tankers should not be filled fully but only around 90% of the total capacity should be filled so that chances of leakages can be reduced.

• In boats with inboard engines, the usage of oil absorbent pads on the bilges should be done so that any kind of leakage can be controlled by absorption.

• Necessary checks should be done before filling the oil and recycling as well as repair should be done of old oil pieces of equipment and filters.

• Usage of automatic nozzles should be done in order to reduce the potential of the overfilling tanks.

• Proper guidelines set by the National authorities should be taken care of while filling and shipping such assignments and necessary check-up of storage sites should be done on a regular basis.

• After using the oil or any old oil equipment as well as oil absorbent should be recycled properly.

Fun Fact

Every country follows some standard guidelines to prevent any kind of oil leak but in any case if it occurs every country has their own agencies which take care of the oil leak. At the international level, the bodies which take care of this matter are International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund ( IOPC ), World Bank Oil, Gas, Mining and Chemicals as well as the United Nations Environment Program – World Conservation Monitoring Center. ( UNEP – WCMC ). Besides these, there are many associations of oil industries as well.

Conclusion

Thus, we can conclude that oil spills are the leakages of oil or other petroleum products that happen on the land or water through ships or wells or oil containers. This spill leads to another form of pollution i.e. oil spill pollution which can become an oil disaster as well. It causes a lot of problems not only for the marine species but for the birds or mammals and coastlines as well. If it occurs, a lot of methods can be adapted to control the spill whereas the foremost thing is to prevent the occurrence of oil spills so that no such disaster occurs and response teams should be there to control and act on these disasters. This article will be helpful for you whenever you study ocean pollution or water pollution or oil spills in the oceans in Environment studies, Geography or Disaster Management.