ABSTRACT
This paper outlines the requirements for dealing with accidental inland oil spills. It emphasizes the importance of using the optimum method of cleanup for each spill and the desirable features for cleanup equipment of efficiency, portability, low cost, ease of use and versatility.
Several gaps in oil pollution technology have been bridged by the development of equipment specially designed to meet the needs of inland spills.
These new devices are described and have been incorporated into a low-cost package of cleanup equipment which can be used in a variety of ways to meet the containment, removal and storage needs of each unique spill situation.
The necessity of a flexible approach to inland oil spills is shown by examples of how a variety of spills have been successfully cleaned up. Examples include oil on a fast flowing stream, removal of accumulated oil in a port, oil on a covered drinking water reservoir and oil on rivers. Examples are also given of the method of handling underground pollution by hydraulic drive systems and by recovery from the groundwater for both shallow groundwaters up to 8 m below the surface and deep drinking water bore holes.