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Oil Spill Info

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Oil is a resource that we use every day, as it provides us with energy.  We heat our homes with it, use it to fuel our cars to get to school, and the food that you eat cannot arrive at the grocery store without the use of oil.

Because it takes millions of years to form, oil is considered to be a nonrenewable resource.  It is a fossil fuel that, through application of heat and pressure, is formed from the remains of organisms that lived 50 to 350 million years ago.

In order to access fossil fuels like oil for our everyday use, engineers must drill underground and then transport the material to processing facilities.  The fuel is then transported to more locations that require its use as energy. 

All this transportation can then pose a bigger problem....

What if an accident occurs?? 

Accidents do happen - they occur for a variety of reasons and happen all over the world.  There have also been many incidences of spilled oil throughout the United States. 

Use the map to view some of the major oil spills that have occurred in the United States over the past 3 decades, and complete your data table to record the important information.  When you have found all of the United States oil spills, complete the analysis questions that follow.