No description available.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Victoria University (Melbourne, Vic.), 2007. / Includes bibliographical references.

Report (M.S.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, 1994. / Abstract. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 52-53). Also available via the Internet.

Thesis (M.A.) University of Missouri-Columbia, 2006. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file viewed on (June 26, 2007) Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2000. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 328-349).

This work investigated the consequences of vegetable oils spills in salt marsh sediments. The role of autochthonous bacteria in the oils degradation and degradative pathways were also studied 'in situ' and 'in vitro'. Simulated spills of sunflower and linseed oils revealed that both oils penetrated the sediments at a rate of 10-7 CM2 s-1. However, whereas 60% of the linseed oil had disappeared from the sediments after 2 months most of the sunflower oil remained after 6 months. Differences were noted in the adsorption of the oils to sediment particles and the depth at which they accumulate and these factors most likely influenced the route of the oil degradation and the sediments properties such as permeability. The contamination of the sediments with vegetable oils lead to a noticeable reduction in the abundance of plant roots and infauna. The abundance of aerobic, anaerobic and sulphate reducing bacteria in the sediments was increased by the addition of both oils, with linseed oil supporting greater bacterial density than sunflower oil. During the course of the experiment the relative abundance of oil degrading bacteria also increased. As a consequence of the increased bacterial activity, the sediments pH and Eh decreased and anoxic conditions were established, earlier in the case of linseed than that of sunflower oils. The degradation of the oils appeared to be a sequential process, initiated by the aerobic and/or anaerobic bacteria and continued by the sulphate reducing bacteria which themselves where unable to utilise the raw oils. The original composition of both oils underwent alterations mostly associated with their main fatty acid: the concentration of 18: 3(o3 and 18: 2o)6 in linseed and sunflower oil, respectively, decreased whereas that of the remaining fatty acids increased. As a result of the bacterial degradation of the vegetable oils 'new' fatty acids were detected and their identification was attempted using GC-MS analysis of their picolinyl and methyl esters. Various degradative pathways of linseed and sunflower oils involving the formation of the 'new' fatty acids are suggested with isomerisation, hydrogenation and P-oxidation as the primary routes for the degradation.

No description available.

No description available.

This study was a replication of Fitzpatrick and Rubin's study of response strategies used in crisis communication. It differed though, in the type of crisis analyzed. While Fitzpatrick and Rubin studied cases of sexual harassment, this study examined oil spills of two supertanker groundings. Both the Exxon Valdez and the Sea Empress groundings, and especially Acomarit and Exxon, the companies responsible were examined by using content analysis. Units of analysis were statements by each company's spokesperson covered in either four American or four Norwegian newspapers. These statements were then categorized as one of four response strategies defined by Fitzpatrick and Rubin which were as follows: (1) The traditional public relations strategy, (2) The traditional legal strategy, (3) Mixed strategy, and, (4) Diversionary strategy.On behalf of these response strategies the study stated two hypotheses:H1: The spokespersons of Acomarit used the traditional public relations strategy significantly more than the traditional legal strategy, as defined by Fitzpatrick and Rubin, in Norwegian newspapers.The hypothesis was accepted.H2: The spokespersons of Exxon used the traditional legal strategy significantly more than the traditional public relations strategy, as defined by Fitzpatrick and Rubin, in American newspapers.The hypothesis was partially accepted.The study used an American and a Norwegian coder to secure reliability. Holsti's coder reliability test yielded eighty percent for the American statements, and seventy percent for the Norwegian statements.The study also indicated that the traditional public relations strategy was the most used response strategy. This was different to what Fitzpatrick and Rubin found in their study. They found the traditional legal strategy was used the most in cases of sexual harassment.However, both Exxon and Acomarit used the traditional public relations strategy more than the traditional legal strategy, but differed significantly in their use of mixed strategy and diversionary strategy. Exxon was found to have used the diversionary strategy significantly more than Acomarit. The researcher indicated that this may have been one of the contributing factors which lead to Exxon's public relations nightmare. In addition, Exxon was found to have used more spokespeople than Acomarit, which in turn may have made it difficult to centralize the information flow. / Department of Journalism

Marine pollution resulting from oil spillage has received much attention mostly due to the damaging effects it has on fisheries and aquacultures. One component of oil that is widely studied due to its toxic and carcinogenic properties is the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The physical and chemical properties of these compounds control their distribution into the various phases of the environment. The rates of elimination of these compounds from impacted organisms were investigated in laboratory and field experiments using selected marine organisms (Mytilus edulis and Salmo salar). The elimination of individual PAH compounds followed first order kinetics. Elimination rate varied among compounds and generally decreased with increase in molecular weight and degree of alkylation. Elimination rate constants (k2) and biological half-lives (t1/2) evaluated from chronically exposed mussels (collected from Aberdeen harbour) in separate laboratory and field studies were comparable but differed from those evaluated from acutely exposed mussels. Shorter t1/2 were obtained from acutely exposed mussels. The t1/2 ranged between 0.5- 22 d (acute exposure) and 3.8- 31.5 d (chronic exposure).The longer apparent t1/2 calculated for the chronically impacted mussels was attributed to the retention of the compounds in a stable compartment due to long period of exposure that limited exchange with the surrounding water. Contrary to expectation, t1/2 for similar compounds was higher in salmon than in mussels. The reason for this was unknown but attributed to the route of elimination. A good correlation (r2 > 0.72) was found between PAHs tissue concentration and taint intensity in salmon. Comparison of the results from this study with literature data showed that tank water replacement time and exposure duration affects rate of PAHs elimination. The data generated in this study and some of the reviewed studies will find application in different oil spill scenarios. The usefulness and limitations of the n-alkanes profile, PAH distribution and concentration ratios, and specific biomarker ratios from organisms in oil spill source identification was also demonstrated.