See the oil spill model to learn more about how a tanker spill will affect our coast.
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Salmon are the foundation of life on the coast, supporting life in the ocean as well as in coastal forests. North Coast waters are migration corridors for millions of wild salmon migrating to and from rivers in B.C., Washington and Oregon. Approximately 650 major wild salmon spawning streams are found along the Central and North Coast.
Salmon runs could be decimated by a major oil spill and damaged by “minor” spills. The 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill caused the collapse of local pink salmon runs in 1992 and 1993. The oil spread along hundreds of kilometres of shoreline that were home to juvenile salmon. Millions ofout migrating juveniles were exposed to oil, as were eggs laid instreams in 1990. 
Report by Dr. Tom Reimchen on salmon as a keystone species.
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In spring and fall, over 23,000 grey whales migrate along thecoast between Mexico and their summer feeding grounds in the Bering Sea. Gray whales are one of the main attractions in B.C.’s thriving whale watching industry. |
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A dime-sized drop of oil in a bird’s feathers can cause it to die fromhypothermia. Loons, grebes, and sea ducks are especially vulnerable to oil because they spend much of their time floating on the oceansurface. They live in the intertidal and shallow subtidal zones where spilled oil is likely to concentrate.
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The
Exxon Valdez
spilled 11 million gallons of crude oil into Prince William Sound, Alaska. Part of the toll paid by wildlife:
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