Measuring oil pollution

Summary

A century of oil leaks constitutes one of the most widespread forms of contamination in the Australian environment. We have searched the world scientific literature for the best ways to understand what happens in petroleum-contaminated soils and groundwater as the basis for a uniform national approach to estimating the risks they pose and for cleaning them up.

Project description

This preliminary phase of a larger project aims to produce a review of current practices and protocols in relation to characterisation of petroleum releases into soil and groundwater environments and to identify research opportunities for further investigation. The overall project aim is to develop a unified national approach to characterising petroleum-impacted sites.

Outcomes

Technical report:
Protocols and techniques for characterising sites with subsurface petroleum hydrocarbons - a review