Dredge M/V Stuyvesant Oil Spill

Location: California

Summary: In 1999, a dredge working at the mouth of Humboldt Bay in California released 2000 gallons of diesel fuel oil into the Pacific Ocean. During the emergency spill response over 1,200 oiled seabirds were collected including two federally listed endangered species. Using widely accepted modeling techniques; seabird mortality estimates exceeded 6,500 birds. Cardno ENTRIX created and employed a new modeling approach resulting in a total mortality estimate of less than 2,200. Additional resources including shorelines, aquatic organisms, and recreational sites were assessed using Habitat Equivalency Analysis (HEA), transport fate and effects modeling, and econometrics respectively.