James Doogue

Millions of gallons of oil seeps naturally into the oceans continuously and is broken down naturally.

Some estimates are that some 20,000 - 39,000 warships and merchant vessels were sunk due to hostilities during World War Two. Many have never been found but more than 15,000 are mapped and treated as official war cemeteries. The numbers are listed below by country ship was registered to.

USA
11 Aircraft Carriers
2 Battleships
10 Cruisers
71 Destroyers
10 Escorts
53 Submarines
UK
8 Aircraft Carriers
5 Battleships
30 Cruisers
110 Destroyers
58 Escorts
77 Submarines
Japan
19 Aircraft Carriers
8 Battleships
37 Cruisers
134 Destroyers
130 Submarines
Germany
9 Battleships
7 Cruisers
44 Destroyers
785 Submarines
Italy
1 Battleship
11 Cruisers
84 Destroyers
84 Submarines
Merchant Ship Losses
5093 Allied
2943 Axis
Source, John Ellis WWII Databook

Mostly these ships sunk because they were hit below the water line by torpedoes, or they we bombed and set on fire often igniting ammunition which then broke open the ships hull which spilled their fuel tanks are they sank igniting the surrounding oceans and often burning for days.

In other cases some fuel storage stayed in tact and only seeped out slowly while others are only now losing their fuel due to the rusted ships and turbulence caused by storms, cyclones, tsunamis and earth quakes.

Nature has taken care of all of this oil leaked which were well beyond the abilities of humans to control now or then.

One of the world's most favourite dive sites is around the Solomon Islands which I visited many years ago.

Despite the trash and sewerage which gets flushed straight out to sea, the waters around the dive sites are described as pristine despite measurable ongoing diesel oil leakage.

The offshore area north of Guadalcanal is called Iron Bottom Sound, named after the 1,450 airplanes and 111 shipwrecks on its floor, more than half a mile down.

The reason areas hit hard with oil spills can now be considered pristine Is thanks to a naturally existing enzyme which appears in waters all around the world. This natural enzyme probably evolved because there are thousands of fissures in the ocean bed which leaked megalitres of oil into the ocean everyday.

For example in the Gulf of Mexico, there are more than 600 natural oil seeps that leak between one and five million barrels of oil per year, equivalent to roughly 80,000 to 200,000 tonnes. http://books.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=10388&page=70

There is a biological enzyme which converts oil seeps or human spill waste into a natural food source for bacteria found naturally in aquatic environments.

Gavin Ford, national marketing manager for LE South Africa explains that OSE II uses a biological enzyme to convert spill waste into a natural food source for bacteria found in aquatic environments. The product has nutrients in it that appeal to indigenous bacteria, which then rapidly multiply and break down the oil. It is an excellent solution for managing oil spills because it doesn’t introduce any alien bacteria and the final byproducts from the process are just carbon dioxide and water.

OSE II is also a very helpful solution for cleaning off oiled wildlife and marine life because it works so quickly and is non-toxic, which means the oil can easily slough off once it’s been sprayed on. This is less traumatic for animals being cleaned and is much faster and easier than alternative options.

"It essentially accelerates the natural spill remediation process because, in nature, bacteria release enzymes and biosurfactants that attack the spill. The biosurfactants emulsify the spill, breaking it down to be used as a food source for the bacteria. OSE II allows this natural effect to still happen, but at a much faster rate,” says Ford. The process cleaning time duration varies from a few hours to several weeks, depending on the kind of hydrocarbon and type of spill.

The point is there are thousands of natural and significant oil seeps happening all the time which takes care of oil spills. Humans can manufacture the enzyme to apply quickly to spill area. That and physical intervention can save wild life and the environment. No such natural protection Is provided against wind turbines.

Tim adds:

OIl is a reactive substance;the reason we seek it out for power is precisely because it breaks down, reacts with oxygen to produce energy. In the oceans it's still reacting with other things there.

Posted by: Timothy Birdnow at 08:34 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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