ABSTRACT. This study presents a comparative analysis of several theoretical oil spill scenarios occurring in the vicinity of the Abrolhos Reefs, a preservation area located off the Brazilian east coast. The following petroleum blocks were considered in the study: BM-CUM-1, BM-CUM-2, J-M-259 and ES-M-418, to verify the effect of the tide on the oil spreading on the continental shelf in the eastern Brazilian. The probabilistic oil spill simulations were carried out for 30 days and considered an oil of intermediate API (American Petroleum Institute) type. The simulations were performed by the OSCAR (Oil Spill Contingency and Response) model which was fed by synoptic wind data and hydrodynamic data simulated by the POM (Princeton Ocean Model) model. Two distinct seasonal scenarios were studied: the austral winter and the austral summer of 1989 and the results were discussed in terms of seasonal variability caused by the winter/summer winds and differences in mesoscale instabilities.The effect caused by tidal currents was analyzed through the comparison between simulations with and without the tides. It was concluded that the tide strongly influenced foram discutidos em termos das variações de intensidade e direção do espalhamento causado pelo vento sinótico de cada estação, assim como pelos processos de mesoescala e pela maré. O efeito causado pela maré foi analisado através da comparação de simulações com e sem maré. Concluiu-se que a maré influenciou fortemente nos resultados probabilísticos de destino doóleo nos cenários de derramamento. Muitos fatores mostraram influenciar nesse destino do espalhamento doóleo com a ausência dos processos supra-inerciais, como a localização geográfica do derramamento, os ventos predominantes e o comportamento da maré na região. A ausência da maré nos dados hidrodinâmicos não permitiu encontrar os cenários de pior caso de derramamento em simulações nos blocos BM-CUM-1, BM-CUM-2 e J-M-259, principalmente no verão com a utilização deóleo intermediário, subestimando os cenários reais de derramamento.Palavras-chave: marés, modelagem,óleo, POM, OSCAR.
This study is focused on the fate of a large volume of mine slurry discharged from the Doce River (DR) to the coastal ocean after the worst environmental disaster in Brazilian which occurred in November 2015. We used Eulerian (ROMS) and Lagrangian (STRiPE) numerical models, as well as satellite remote sensing data, to study the spreading and seafloor accumulation of fine river-borne sediments during the initial six months following the disaster. We show that the regions of intense sediment accumulation were determined by spreading patterns of the surface-advected DR plume. The river discharge rate governed the plume surface area, while its position depended on local wind forcing conditions. The spreading of sediments carried by the DR plume was dominated by southward transport caused by prevailing upwelling-favorable northeasterly winds during the study period. Under high discharge conditions, river-borne sediments were transported over 100 km southward from the DR mouth and reached the outer shelf. In contrast, sediments were arrested near the mouth during drought periods and remained on the inner shelf. As a result, fine river-borne sediments accumulated on the seafloor, mainly in the large shallow shelf area southward from the DR mouth. Conversely, only a small fraction of residue was deposited northward. Thus, the Environmental Protection Area (EPA) of Costa das Algas, located 40 km southward from the DR, potentially exhibited more susceptibility to sediment arrival. On the other hand, their influence on Abrolhos Marine National Park, located 200 km northeastward from the DR mouth, was presumably minimal.
During the last quarter of 2019, the beaches, mangroves, and estuaries of Northeast Brazil received an unprecedented volume of crude oil from the sea, which became the worst environmental disaster ever to reach the Brazilian coast. The oil, having reached the shores completely unnoticed, left both society and government agents completely clueless on (i) where the oil was coming from; (ii) how much oil was still in the ocean to reach the shorelines; and (iii) which beaches were going to be affected next! By exploring remote sensing data and ocean numerical modeling, along with oil dispersion chemistry on sea water, this study investigates the possible origin and path of the spill and whether it could have been detected from space. The oil dispersion modeling simulations performed for this investigation revealed a possible region and timing of the oil spill, also indicating the likelihood of it being advected toward the shoreline under the ocean surface.
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