Oil Spill Response Planning Support for PETROBRAS

EM&A assisted PETROBRAS (the state oil company of Brazil) with the development of a dispersant and dispersed oil toxicity testing program. The objective was to fashion the program after the recommendations from the Chemical Response to Oil Spills: Ecological Effects Research Forum (CROSERF) Program that was established in the United States, and later also adopted by New Zealand. EM&A provided the necessary background information and rationale for the scientific methods that have been developed in the United States, and provided on-site technical expertise to teach PETROBRAS staff the toxicity testing methods. The project culminated with a one-day training course on "Understanding Dispersants as a Tool for Oil Spill Response Planning".