Section I Overview
1 Introduction to the volume
2 Deep-water oil and gas production in the Gulf of Mexico, and related global trends
3 Spilled oil composition and the natural carbon cycle: The true drivers of environmental fate and effects of oil spills
Section II Geological, Chemical, Ecological and Physical Oceanographic Settings and Baselines for Deep Oil Spills in the Gulf of Mexico
4 An overview of the geologic origins of hydrocarbons and production trends in the Gulf of Mexico
5 Gulf of Mexico (GoM) bottom sediments and depositional processes: A baseline for future oil spills
6 Benthic faunal baselines in the Gulf of Mexico: A precursor to evaluate future impacts
7 Linking abiotic variables with macrofaunal and meiofaunal abundance and community
8 The asphalt ecosystem of the southern Gulf of Mexico: abyssal habitats across space and time
9 Geochemical and faunal characterization in the sediments off the Cuban north and northwest coast
10 Mapping isotopic and dissolved organic matter baselines in waters and sediments of Gulf of Mexico
11 Toward a predictive understanding of the benthic microbial community response to oiling on the northern Gulf of Mexico coast
12 Combining isoscapes with tissue-specific isotope records to re-create the geographic histories of fish
13 The utility of stable and radio isotopes in fish tissues as biogeochemical tracers of marine oil spill food web effects
14 Modernizing protocols for aquatic toxicity testing of oil and dispersant
15 Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon baselines in Gulf of Mexico fishes
16 Case Study: Using a combined laboratory, field, and modeling approach to assess oil spill impacts
Section III Simulations of Future Deep Spills
17 Testing the effect of MOSSFA (Marine Oil Snow Sedimentation and Flocculent Accumulation) events in benthic microcosms
18 Physical processes influencing the sedimentation and lateral transport of MOSSFA in the NE Gulf of Mexico
19 Simulating deep oil spills beyond the Gulf of Mexico
Section IV Comparisons of likely impacts from simulated spills
20 Comparison of the spatial extent, impacts to shorelines, and ecosystem and 4-dimensional characteristics of simulated oil spills
21 A predictive strategy for mapping locations where future MOSSFA events are expected
22 Connectivity of Gulf of Mexico continental shelf fish populations and implications of simulated oil spills
23 Evaluating the effectiveness of fishery closures for deep oil spills using a 4-dimensional model
24 As Gulf oil extraction goes deeper, who is at risk? Community structure, distribution, and connectivity of the deep-pelagic fauna
25 Evaluating impacts of deep oil spills on oceanic marine mammals
26 Comparative environmental sensitivity of offshore Gulf of Mexico waters potentially impacted by ultra-deep oil well blowouts
Section V Preparing for and Responding to the Next Deepwater Spill
27 Preparing for the inevitable: ecological and indigenous community impacts of oil spill-related mortality in the United States Arctic marine ecosystem
28 Summary of contemporary research on use of chemical dispersants for deep sea oil spills
29 Perspectives on research, technology, policy and human resources for improved management of ultra-deep oil and gas resources and responses to oil spills
Index.