Written by: Suhaib Shams
A recent study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States showed that the environmental impacts resulting from the explosion of the "Deepwater Horizon" oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 are still ongoing, as they have caused tangible repercussions on the depths of the ocean.
The study, which examined thousands of marine organisms, concluded that there was a 60% decrease in the populations of deep-sea organisms, including octopus, squid, shrimp, krill, and anglerfish, in the area ranging from 180 meters to more than 3 kilometers in depth.
The researchers indicated that the oil spill is considered the most likely cause for this sharp decline in organism numbers, especially after detecting chemicals associated with oil in the tissues of squid and octopus, and in fish eggs. The study explained that these pollutants could impede reproductive and growth processes, or cause early death for marine organisms. The study also noted that continued pollution could negatively affect the ability of fish that rely on their sense of smell to determine their paths, which hinders the process of finding mating partners.
It is noteworthy that the "Deepwater Horizon" incident, which occurred in April 2010, led to the death of 11 workers and caused about 5 million barrels of crude oil to flow into the ocean waters before the well was completely sealed after 87 days. The financial losses that affected wildlife, fishing areas, tourism, and beaches were estimated at about 17.2 billion dollars.
