Simulation Of the Spread of Spilled Crude Oil Pollutants Along a Creek

This study was carried out to have an insight into the spread of crude oil pollutants along a creek from the point of spill. A computer simulation was developed for 10 barrels of crude spilled into a 1,000 m² of water area in a creek to spread a 1-kilometer distance of it. First, a mathematical model describing the spread of the crude oil pollutants along the creek was developed. Secondly, the resulting model equation was then written in a BASIC programming language. Finally, the program was run to determine the spread of crude oil pollutants along the creek in kg/m³ of pollutants concentration at varying distances along the creek and the time interval of spread. It conclusively recommended that oil companies operating in Nigeria should learn to respond quickly to spill reports as they are known for always delaying in response to spill reports, thereby leading to improper clean-up.