Answer to Question #105379 in General Chemistry for Elizabeth

Question

Who should be responsible for cleaning up water pollution (such as oil spills)? And why?
*include at least 3 supporting statements

Answer 1

In the United States, depending on where the oil spill occurs, either the U.S. Coast Guard or the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency takes charge of the spill response.

They, in turn, often call on other agencies (NOAA and the Fish and Wildlife Service are often called) for help and information. NOAA’s Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R) offers scientific support during both oil spill response and environmental restoration efforts.

The goal of federal regulations is to prevent oil spills from happening. People who cause oil spills now must pay severe penalties, and the regulations also call for safer vessel design in the hopes of avoiding future spills. In the U.S., people who respond to oil spills must practice by conducting training drills, and people who manage vessels and facilities that store or transport oil must develop plans explaining how they would respond to a spill, so that they can respond effectively to a spill if they need to.