Natural Oil Seeps in the Alaskan Marine Environment

摘要

The report is a synthesis of information on the marine and coastal oil seeps in Alaska, and on the effects of chronic oil pollution on Arctic marine biotic communities and ecological processes. Of 29 oil seepage areas reported along the Alaskan coast, 14 have been confirmed as containing actual oil seeps. Large areas of coastal seepage have been identified in the central Gulf of Alaska and Arctic regions. When compared to known seepage rates on the California coast, the amount of oil entering the Alaska marine environment from known coastal seeps is probably rather small. Also, the organic enrichment of the benthic communities demonstrated at California seeps might not be as evident at Arctic seeps because of slower rate of oil degradation in the latter. Additional hypotheses on the effects of natural seeps on biological communities and ecosystems are discussed.