Petroleum pollution and penguins: Marine conservation tools to solve the problem

GARCÍA BORBOROGLU, PABLO; BOERSMA, P. DEE; REYES, LAURA; SKEWGAR, ELIZABETH

Washington DC, Estados Unidos

Congreso; International Marine Conservation Congress; 2008

George Mason University

3. Petroleum is one of the most common toxic substances released into the marine environment. Accidental pollution is spectacular and receives a lot of attention when the negative effect to the environment is dramatic. The impact of chronic petroleum pollution or small oil spills is often not sensational and hence receives less attention than it deserves. Mortality of penguins from petroleum is a long term and large scale problem. Petroleum pollution has killed thousands of penguins in Africa, Australia and New Zealand, South America, and even Antarctica. The Southwest Atlantic, although not well known for petroleum pollution problems, is a chronic source of petroleum discharge. Magellanic penguins (Spheniscus magellanicus) are killed during their winter migration between Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil, when they encounter petroleum. To avoid severe negative impacts of petroleum on penguins and other marine species, planning and implementation strategies should concentrate on minimizing risk associated with petroleum discharge and development. New legislation combined with effective enforcement could reduce petroleum spills, minimize operational discharges from ships and from land-based sources and thereby, decrease the release of petroleum into the ocean. Reduced exposure and vulnerability to petroleum can be achieved through marine conservation tools, such as Marine Protected Areas or Marine Spatial Planning to minimize risk to wildlife. Conservation of marine biodiversity is an important value, but can protection be achieved with minimal impact on economic activity? We review how petroleum pollution has impacted populations of penguins. In addition, we suggest how marine management strategies could mitigate petroleum pollution harm to penguins.