Environmental sensitivity analysis of environments affected by the oil spill on the Brazilian coast

Abstract

The crude oil spill that occurred in 2019 at the Northeast Brazilian Coast is considered one of the most severe disasters recorded in tropical coastal regions. In order to contribute to the understanding of the impact generated by the disaster, this work linked oil sightings by the Brazilian Institute of the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA) with the Coastal Sensitivity Index (CSI) of the Environmental Sensitivity to Oil Spills Maps (Carta SAO), generating an overview of the types of coastal environments affected by the oil. This crossing was carried out through the public vector bases in the Geographic Information System. The results show that intermediate beaches, mangroves and Salt Marshes, reefs and tidal flats recorded more than 50% of sightings with oil residues. At the end of this analysis, the environments that still had oil records were mangroves and Salt Marshes, and intermediate, dissipative and gravel beaches. The analysis allowed us to understand the main environments affected by the spill along the coast, also indicating the need to adopt mechanisms that integrate public data to assist in the structuring of oil combat mechanisms, with actions to combat oil arising from any spills on the Brazilian coast becoming more effective.