Weathering Characteristics of Petroleum Hydrocarbons Deposited in Fine Clay Marine Sediments, Searsport, Maine

Further examination of the 1971 spill site in Long Cove, Searsport, Maine, has been carried out during 1976, and has led to the following observations: 1. Petroleum residues isolated from this spill give the appearance of weathering particularly slowly in the cold anoxic sediments of Long Cove. 2. Leaching from contaminated terrestial sediments onto portions of the intertidal zone on the west shore of the Cove while continuing in trace concentrations does not appear to be making a major contribution to the maintenance of a nearly steady state pollution problem found in several areas of the Cove. 3. On the average, the spill area currently appears to contain roughly 20% less material than in 1971. At a number of sites, however, there appears to have been either little or no decline in gross hydrocarbon concentrations, and essentially no weathering of the aliphatic portions of the petroleum residues. 4. One of the principal factors to influence the character of petroleum residues isolated 5 yr postspill app...