Another TIP, i.e. technical information paper released by the ITOPF. This one is devoted to the use of the dispersants for the treatment of the oil spills at sea. The dispersants are applied in order to break up the oil slick into droplets rapidly diluted into water column. Then, they get degraded by micro-organisms.

When used properly, the dispersants will be a very effective response to the oil spills and can prevent or at least minimize damage to sensitive natural resources. It shall be noted that one shall use the dispersants carefully taking into consideration oil characteristics as well as weather and sea conditions, existing natural sensitivities and also national regulations governing the use of dispersants.

Sometimes the use of dispersants will allow to achieve significant economic and environmental benefits - this is particularly the case when the use of the other response techniques is limited by the availability of the resources or harsh weather conditions. The present publication will provide a good yet concise overview of the use of dispersants together with the limitations to be taken into account, considering the dispersants one of the effective options for response to marine oil spills from vessels.

This is the official handbook published by the ITOPF organization. The volume starts with the general information about ITOPF where the goals and services of this organization are explained, this part is recommended to the readers willing to get more detailed information on one of the most authoritative and environmentally concerned entities in the maritime industry.

The main aim of the organization is to provide timely and effective response in the cases of spills of chemicals and oil occurring from vessels. the oil spill statistics is provided in a separate chapter of the book together with the oil classification table. The next several chapters are devoted to the established and effective clean-up techniques used by the specialists of the organization and fate and effects of the marine spills as well as to the proper arrangement and planning of the spill response.

The spill compensation is addressed in another separate chapter covering the liability matters and associated regulatory documents such as HNS Convention, National Laws and many others. have a look and you will know more about proper response to the spills and attention paid to the protection of the marine environment.

There are numerous options available today to provide due response to any marine oil spill. The primary technique which have already proven effective and accepted worldwide by the authorities is the recovery of the oil from the sea water surface by mechanical means. This is commonly achieved through use of the booms that help to concentrate the oil spilt and allow a skimmer to recover the oil selectively and subsequently pump it to the storage facility.

There are several types of skimmer with their design optimized to deal with various operation scales, types of oils and different environmental conditions. The present fifth issue of ITOPF technical information paper will describe the basic requirements for their use in cases of the marine oil spills. The ultimate goal of the recovery operations is collecting as much spilt oil as it is reasonable and economically possible.

The effective recovery system shall overcome the problems of encountering oil and its containment and concentration as well as its pumping and storage, as described above. The skimmers used for these purposes include some support and floatation arrangements; more complicated skimmer designs may feature self-propulsion and have some recovery elements, storage tanks and separation facilities making them even more effective...

The sixth technical information paper issued by ITOPF organization, this one is devoted to the oil recognition on shorelines. When the oil spilt from the ship eventually arrives on the shore, it is the first indication of the pollution incident. Then, depending on how much oil is there and what type of oil it is, appropriate response measures shall be organized in order to remove it and prevent remobilizing of oil and affecting any of sensitive areas around.

It is critically important to report on this as soon as possible and estimate the pollution extent to properly determine the scale of the clean up operations and arrange enough manpower and equipment to perform the task. Note that it is difficult to estimate the amount of oil with due accuracy and even to identify its type can be a complex task, especially in cases where the oil has weathered in the extensive manner.

Of course, if the sill is large, the source of oil can be easier to determine; however, the identification is also required when small amounts of oil are involved and when compensation for the damage or clean up costs incurred is sought. The purpose of the present TIP is to provide assistance to the readers in recognizing both quantity and type of oil on shorelines...

The official statistics collected and maintained by the ITOPF organization which periodically releases these technical information papers, demonstrate that the vast majority of the oil spills from vessels occur not too far from the shore. Taking into account that the measures normally taken to combat the oil floating on the water surface is limited by numerous constraints such as time and weather, it is difficult o prevent oil from reaching shorelines.

Once the oil has reached the shoreline, there will be significant effort required to get all affected areas cleaned. That is why it is very important that well rehearsed and comprehensive arrangements covering the shoreline clean-up are reflected in contingency plans. The techniques used for the clean-up of shorelines would not usually required any specialized and technically complex equipment since they are quite straightforward.

However, it should be clearly understood that improper techniques and arrangement can seriously aggravate the damage that has been caused by the spill itself. The intention of the present technical information paper is to give description of the clean-up techniques and advise which of them would best suit each of the stages of the cleaning operations, covering different types of shorelines.

This technical information paper is devoted to the application of sorbent when responding to the oil spills from ships. Sorbents are capable of providing a very useful resource allowing spilt oil to be recovered and this is practical in cases where other techniques are unsuitable or unavailable.

However, sorbent materials should be used moderately in order to minimize possible secondary problems, especially when excessive amounts of waste is created - this can significantly add to the overall costs of spill response. In the pages of the present document the types of available sorbent materials are considered together with the ways of their application during the response.

The content of the booklet should better be read with the other releases in this series especially those dealing with the use of skimmers, booms, and shoreline clean-up techniques plus the technical paper addressing the oil and debris disposal.

Oil sorbent materials include a very broad range of products that are normally designed to be used for the oil recovery. The configuration and composition of sorbents depends upon the materials in use and proposed application. They shall be used with care to minimize their excessive and/or inappropriate use that would present various logistical difficulties.

The technical information paper no. 9 issued by the ITOPF to cover the disposal of oil and debris during the oil spill clean-up operations. Most of such activities, and particularly the operations on shore, eventually result in collection of significant amounts of oil and oily wastes.

The storage of wastes and their disposal is one of the critically important aspects of the oil spill response operations and that is the reason why proper waste management provisions shall be highlighted in the oil spill contingency plans developed for the operation. It is also important to make all necessary arrangements at the very beginning of any spill incident in order to prevent any waste issues resulting from compromising the efforts and actually becoming a serious problem continuing long after the completion of the clean-up operation.

The present document is exploring the different options that are available today for the management of wastes normally generated in the course of the ship oil spills at sea. In fact, as the experience shows, the disposal and treatment of collected wastes is one of the most costly and time consuming components of any oil spill response activity. Its amount depends on type of the oil spilt and its quantity, and many other factors, including the extent to which the spilt oil spreads consequently affecting the shoreline...

The technical information paper number ten released by ITOPF to address the leadership command and management of the operations during the marine oil spill response. The effectiveness and overall success of the response to the oil spill seriously depends on the quality of leadership demonstrated by the people in command of the operations.

An organizational structure provides it through many decisions and compromises that shall be made at all stages. The present document considers the situations commonly encountered during the response to the marine pollution, explaining how the effective command, leadership and management could maximize the eventual success of the operations.

Unfortunately, most of the oil spills are unforeseen and once occurred, they may significantly change the way of life for all who are affected. The immediate effects of the oil spills may be the localized damage to the environment and economic resources while the long term consequences are not as serious as they are usually feared. It is very important to avoid losing confidence at the initial stages of the spill incident developing rapidly. When responding to a spill, all effort shall be made to establish effective organizational structure clearly identifying persons in charge...