Around 5 million barrels of oil and 500,000 tons of methane were ejected into the Gulf of Mexico system during the BP Macondo oil well blowout. This input of oil and gas altered patterns of carbon flow in the water column and sediments. We evaluated the impact of oil on microbial distributions and activities along the seafloor during cruises in early May 2010, August-September 2010, November-December 2010, July 2011, April 2012, and May/June 2012. In 2010, the water column around the Macondo wellhead was characterized by multiple subsurface features with low beam transmittance and increased particle abundance. The carbon isotopic signature of these layers suggested incorporation of oil-derived carbon into the zooplankton. Benthic communities were also strongly altered, with reductions in microbial abundance, microbial activity and macro- and meio- fauna being noted at sites near and far field from the wellhead. The full impacts of oil and gas inputs on the sensitive biogeochemical balance found naturally in the pelagic and benthic components of the Gulf of Mexico system are significant and far-reaching. The recovery time of the ecosystem to return to background conditions is unknown at this time.

Altered pelagic and benthic biological dynamics following the BP Macondo oil well blowout

245th National Meeting (2013)

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