Oil Spills in Coral Reefs: Planning and Response Considerations

This 2001 report summarizes relevant research on coral reefs. It was written for spill response decisionmakers and anyone working in or planning for spill response in coral reef regions.

Document Sections

Oil Spills in Coral Reefs: Planning and Response Considerations If you have a fast Internet connection, you may want to download the entire report. (Document format: PDF, size: 10.4 M)

Title Page, Table of Contents, Introduction (Document format: PDF, size: 938.2 K)

Chapter 1, Coral Reef Ecology Introduces pertinent aspects of  the coral ecosystem. (Document format: PDF, size: 3.5 M)

Chapter 2, Global and Local Impacts Summarizes the environmental impacts on coral from human and natural causes. (Document format: PDF, size: 896.2 K)

Chapter 3, Oil Toxicity to Corals A current review of the research available on oil toxicity to coral. (Document format: PDF, size: 1.9 M)

Chapter 4, Response Methods for Coral Reef Areas General guidance for responding to spills in coral reefs and specific considerations for open-water cleanup measures. (Document format: PDF, size: 1.0 M)

Chapter 5, Coral Reef Restoration Discusses the emerging science of restoration of damaged reefs, and presents data on recovery patterns and rates from a variety of impacts in coral habitats. (Document format: PDF, size: 1.5 M)

Chapter 6, Coral Case Studies Several case studies that illustrate a range of issues, including the new technologies being used to restore coral reefs. (Document format: PDF, size: 389.5 K)

Glossary (Document format: PDF, size: 86.9 K)

Coral Websites A list of websites that provide useful data on reefs. (Document format: PDF, size: 112.5 K)

Pages on our site that complete this series

Oil Spills in Mangroves: Planning and Response Considerations A 2002 report summarizing current research on mangrove ecosystems, written to help minimize environmental impacts in mangroves when oil spills threaten them.

Oil and Sea Turtles: Biology, Planning, and Response A 2003 report that presents a basic overview of sea turtle biology, summarizes what is known about the effects of oil on sea turtles, and reviews potential response actions in the event of a release.