<P> A VLCC tanker can carry 2 million barrels (320,000 m) of crude oil . This is about eight times the amount spilled in the widely known Exxon Valdez oil spill . In this spill, the ship ran aground and dumped 260,000 barrels (41,000 m) of oil into the ocean in March 1989 . Despite efforts of scientists, managers, and volunteers over 400,000 seabirds, about 1,000 sea otters, and immense numbers of fish were killed . Considering the volume of oil carried by sea, however, tanker owners' organisations often argue that the industry's safety record is excellent, with only a tiny fraction of a percentage of oil cargoes carried ever being spilled . The International Association of Independent Tanker Owners has observed that "accidental oil spills this decade have been at record low levels--one third of the previous decade and one tenth of the 1970s--at a time when oil transported has more than doubled since the mid 1980s ." </P> <P> Oil tankers are just one of the many sources of oil spills . According to the United States Coast Guard, 35.7% of the volume of oil spilled in the United States from 1991 to 2004 came from tank vessels (ships / barges), 27.6% from facilities and other non-vessels, 19.9% from non-tank vessels, and 9.3% from pipelines; 7.4% from mystery spills . On the other hand, only 5% of the actual spills came from oil tankers, while 51.8% came from other kinds of vessels . </P> <P> The International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation has tracked 9,351 accidental spills that have occurred since 1974 . According to this study, most spills result from routine operations such as loading cargo, discharging cargo, and taking on fuel oil . 91% of the operational oil spills are small, resulting in less than 7 metric tons per spill . On the other hand, spills resulting from accidents like collisions, groundings, hull failures, and explosions are much larger, with 84% of these involving losses of over 700 metric tons . </P> <P> Cleanup and recovery from an oil spill is difficult and depends upon many factors, including the type of oil spilled, the temperature of the water (affecting evaporation and biodegradation), and the types of shorelines and beaches involved . Physical cleanups of oil spills are also very expensive . However, microorganisms such as Fusobacteria species demonstrate an innovative potential for future oil spill cleanup because of their ability to colonize and degrade oil slicks on the sea surface . </P>

The exxon valdez oil spill was equal in volume to the persian gulf spill