• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 2011

The underlying principle of environmental conservation and restoration is to receive continuous services from nature. In this context, the basic objective of oil spill response and recovery activities is to allow affected residents to retain sustainability of their daily livelihood and productive environment. Hence, monitoring the status of socio-economic impact and the extent of restoration is an important parameter in the restoration effort to repair the damaged functions of environmental services with oil spill accident. However, assessment of socio-economic impact poses investigators with much difficulties in selecting the most appropriate approaches because the process often involves various stakeholders, directly and indirectly. Moreover, the analyses and interpretation of the results also pose a great challenge. The present study monitored fisheries and tourism numbers which were considered as major local socio-economic indicators of living and production environment affected by M/T Hebei Spirit oil-spill accident. This monitoring was conducted by examining the published papers and statistical reports. This was supplemented by surveying how the local residents actually felt about the damage and recovery for the first time in Korea. The results showed that the rate of the recovery was about 40~50 %, and the rate of the recovery seemed to be slowed or decreased. However, what the local residents actually felt was 2~10 points less than the literature surveys and statistical reports. These results suggested limits to using only the literature and statistical surveys for the traditional socio-economic impact assessment. The study also showed the need to include in the impact assessment process what and how the local residents actual feel about the oil spill damage and recovery process.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.177-181
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• 2008

In this study, the authors analyzed the limit of IOPC Fund system, such as limit of compensation, amount of FC, long period of assessment by IOPC Fund, issue of non verification by poor claimant or small business, issue of poor claimant subsistence in early stage of accidents, and comparatively analyzed how the three countries resolved these limits by enacting special laws and government policy. Until recently most governments have carried out prevention policy for maritime safety, oil spill response, investigation of maritime accidents, and restoration of marine environment when oil spill accidents happened. However, governments have not actively participated in the oil spill compensation process because it is a matter of private sectors between the polluter and claimant. The governments have only limited their role in ratifying Civil Liability Convention and Fund Convention and enacted relevant domestic laws. However, the governments of France, Spain, and Korea have actively participated in the compensation process of oil pollution incidents of M/T Erika, M/T Prestige, and M/T Hebei Spirit. This is because they had experiences of unsuccessful compensation in M/T Amoco Cadiz, M/T Agean Sea, and M/T Sea Prince.

• Proceedings of KOSOMES biannual meeting
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• 2009.06a
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• pp.25-25
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• 2009

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.96-103
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• 2009

Objectives : We evaluated the health effects of exposure to BTEX(Benzene, Toluene, Ethylbenzene, m,p-Xylene, o-Xylene) in the Taean area after the Hebei Spirit oil spill. Methods : We used a questionnaire survey to look for health effects among 80 pregnant women 2 to 3 months following the Hebei Spirit oil spill. Their BTEX exposures were estimated using the CALPUFF method. We then used a multiple logistic regression analysis to evaluate the effects of BTEX exposure on the women s health effets. Results : Pregnant women who lived near the accident site reported more symptoms of eye irritation and headache than those who lived farther from the site. There was a trend of decreasing symptoms with an increase in distance from the spill site. Pregnant women exposed to higher ambient cumulative levels of Xylene were significantly more likely to report symptoms of the skin(OR 8.01 95% CI=1.74-36.76) in the first day after the accident and significantly more likely to report abdominal pain(OR 3.86 95% CI=1.02-14.59 for Ethylbenzene, OR 6.70 95% CI=1.82-24.62 for Xylene) during the 1st through 4th days following the accident. Conclusions : This study suggests that exposure to BTEX from an oil spill is correlated with an increased risk of health effects among pregnant women. This implies the need to take proper measures, including the development of a national policy for environmental health emergencies and a plan for studying the short- and long-term chronic health effects associated with such spills.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.310-321
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• 2014

Change in fish species composition after the Hebei Spirit oil spill in December 2007 off Taean were determined by analysis of samples collected in Mailpo beach, 10 km south from the oil spill site and polluted by the crude oil. Fish samples were collected by a beach seine in the shallow water at Malipo beach during the low tide of the new moon from February 2008 to December 2009. Five seine hauls were made during the day and the night in each sampling time. Monthly day and night samples did not show the significant differences in species composition. A total of 21 species, 1,032 individuals and 6,544 g of fish were collected in 2008, and 31 species, 4,206 individuals and 35,659 g of fish in 2009. The species collected were composed of the small-sized fish or juveniles. Abundant fishes were the resident species in coastal water, and the migrants were low in abundance. Among the fish occurred, Chelon haematochelius, Sebastes schlegelii, Takifugu niphobles and Pleuronectes yokohamae were predominated in abundance of both years. Monthly fish abundance and species diversity in 2008 were significantly lower than those in 2009. A few number of resident fish were collected from February to June 2008 showing the lowest in May 2008, and fish abundance increased from July 2008. The number of species and abundance of fish in 2009 were increased in spring as the temperature raised, showed a peak in summer and decreased in autumn. This monthly variation in fish species composition and abundance was similar to those in the non-polluted water in other temperate waters. Low fish abundance during several months after oil spill was considered to be related to the residual oil in the water and habitat disturbance due to oil cleaning activity in the beach. Monthly fish species compositions after September 2008 were similar to those of 2009 suggested that the impact on the shallow water fish by the oil residuals was not too significant at least to the fish species composition after September 2008.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.279-283
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• 2009

Approximately 12,547 kL of oil from the tanker 'Hebei Spirit' released into the western sea of Korea, which subsequently reached and covered extensive areas of the western coastlines of Korea. In the following days great numbers of tar balls hit the southwestern coast. Three different cleanup methods were used to mediate the southwestern coastline tar ball pollution by Korea Coast Guard (KCG) net setting, manual pick up, and sweeping them up. Net setting was useful in protecting coastlines from being hit by tar balls. The cold weather in winter conditions helped the tar ball response efforts because it caused them to harden, allowing them to be swept up from beaches and to be gathered up by hand.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.354-361
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• 2016

While the amounts of oil spill caused by the VLCC Hebei Spirit indicated 2.5 times more than that of the VLCC Sea Prince, the economic, environmental, and social damages derived from the Hebei Spirit spill were estimated to be about 30 times greater than those from the Sea Prince incident. This study consolidates the appropriate justification for building a multi-purpose large oil spill response vessel to allow swift and efficient handling of catastrophic marine pollution events through an analysis of technical and economic feasibility of such a project. The result of the technical feasibility analysis illustrates that a hopper dredge and oil spill response vessel with a capacity of 4,000 tons should be more appropriate. The result of the economic feasibility analysis indicates that under the most conservative estimates the project appears to be slightly impractical, with a benefit/cost ratio of 0.82, in which self-help efforts, however, can facilitate the project. And medium to optimistic estimates present benefit/cost ratios are estimated to be 2.72 and 5.82 respectively, representing apparent economic feasibility.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.82-88
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• 2009

Objectives : Our objective was to examine and evaluate the psychological health of the residents of Taean during the cleanup of the Hebei Spirit(HS) oil spill and to review some factors associated with the results. Methods : A community survey of 71 men and women was conducted 8 weeks after the HS oil spill. Questionnaires used were the PWI(Psychological Well-being Index) scale for psychosocial distress, the CES-D(Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression) scale for depressive symptoms, and a questionnaire created to assess suicidal impulses. Results : The overall prevalence of high-risk psychosocial distress among the study group was 64.2%. The percentages of respondents with scores on the CES-D Scale above 16 and above 21 were 77.6% and 62.7%, respectively. The percentage of respondents categorized as having suicidal impulses was 18.3%. When compared with unexposed groups in the general population taken from various sources, the residents of Taean were 6.5 times as likely to have high stress and 9.4-9.7 times as likely to be depressed. No significant difference in the rate of suicidal impulse was found between the residents of Taean and the general population. Factors associated with high stress, depression, and suicidal impulses were age, a change in income, educational level, number of days working on the cleanup, and positive responses to questions about "affected daily activity" and "hospital visit due to work on cleanup". Conclusions : The results suggest that the HS oil spill had a significant impact on the psychological health of residents of Taean, but the comparability of the unexposed groups is a limitation of the study.

• Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.166-173
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• 2010

Objectives: On December 7, 2007, the Hebei Spirit oil tanker spilled out 12,547 kl of crude oil on the Yellow Sea 10 km away from the cost of Taean Province, Korea. As the coastline has been contaminated, local residents have been exposed to crude oil. Because the residents were showing many symptoms, we investigated the acute health effects of this oil spill on them. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study consisting of the heavy and moderately oil soaked area in Taean and the lightly oil soaked area in Seocheon. Ten seashore villages were selected from each area, and 10 male and female adults were selected from each village. We interviewed the subjects using a structured questionnaire on the characteristics of residents, the cleanup activities, the perception of oil hazard, depression and anxiety, and the physical symptoms. The odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were analyzed using logistic regression analysis. The logistic regression model was adjusted for age, gender, education, smoking, the perception of oil hazard and anxiousness. Results: The more highly contaminated the area, the more likely it was for residents to be engaged in cleanup activities and have a greater chance of exposure to oil. The indexes of anxiety and depression were higher in the heavy and moderately oil soaked areas. The increased risks of headache, nausea, dizziness, fatigue, tingling of limb, hot flushing, sore throat, cough, runny nose, shortness of breath, itchy skin, rash, and sore eyes were significant. Conclusions: The results suggest that exposure to crude oil is associated with various acute physical symptoms. Long-term investigation is required to monitor the residents' health.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.48 no.6
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• pp.969-976
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• 2015

Macroalgal community structure was seasonally examined at Hakampo (Taean) in western coast of Korea from February 2007 to October 2010. Also, the effects of "Hebei Spirit" oil spill on the seaweed community structure were evaluated. A total of 101 macroalgal species were identified, comprising 12 green, 18 brown and 71 red algae. Species richness ranged 58-65 species with maximal in 2008 and minimal in 2009. Seaweed biomass ranged $75.81-102.06g\;dry\;wt./m^2$ (mean, $88.78g/m^2$) with maximal in 2008 and minimal in 2010. Vertical distribution from the high to low intertidal zone was Neorhodomela aculeata and Polyopes affinis; Corallina pilulifera and Chondrus ocellatus; Sargassum thunbergii and Ulva australis. Coarsely-branched seaweeds comprised the highest proportion of biomass ($37.17g/m^2$, or 41.86% of the total biomass) and ecological state group I (ESG I) seaweed biomass was between 81.67-85.44%. Also, ephemeral macroalgae including Ulva species sharply increased in species number and biomass within 1-2 year from the "Hebei Sprit" oil spill in the mid and low intertidal zone. Hakampo rocky shore is still good condition as evaluated based on macroalgal species number, biomass, and composition in functional form and ESG I seaweeds.