Remember high school chemistry? In chem class, the one major admonishment your teacher probably made was to be careful. Even though you weren’t doing hazmat experiments, cleaning up a chemical spill would not be fun, and would waste class time.
Just imagine, then, how much more severe a chemical spill is when it takes place not inside a school lab, but in our precious oceans. Every year, NOAA (the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) responds to over 150 oil and chemical spills in U.S. waters. These spills can threaten life, property, and public natural resources, as well as substantially disrupt marine transportation with potential widespread economic impacts. The Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R) is charged with responding to oil spills, chemical accidents, and other emergencies in coastal areas.
There’s a lot you can do locally as well to protect harbors and marinas. For instance, when you experience the toxic boom of a chemical spill, reach for Impact Absorbents’ Boom — our FiberDuck Oil Absorbent Boom. It floats on water, and is designed to absorb crude oil, diesel and gasoline from the ocean, rivers, streams, and ponds. Constructed of a special patented highly absorbent hydrophobic fiber, these booms will float indefinitely, even when fully saturated.
You can also sock it to oil spills with XSORB Oil Absorbent Socks, which will safely remove all petroleum-based products from the marine environment, leaving only clean water behind. They’re ideal for holding ponds, boating areas, sumps and contaminated barrels.
You can even go double eco, with our recycled Coldform Oil-Only Heavyweight Pads, which are made from renewable cotton fibers that are 40 percent more absorbent than polypropylene — and they take just one-third the amount of energy to produce compared with Poly products.
Whatever took place in chem class stays in chem class. But out here in the larger community, we each have a responsibility to safeguard the planet. Spill containment and spill clean up solutions that work for our waterways earn an A+ every time. It feels good to keep our water clean and safe. And that’s just good chemistry.
