migratory fish may be in the area), and the chemical make-up of the crude oil. 

 Though fish can, and may, avoid contaminated areas, many will likely not be 

 able to do so. Also, low dilutions of petroleum hydrocarbons can have behav- 

 ioral and physiological effects and can cause tainting of the fish flesh. 

 This last effect could render certain portions of a catch inedible for a cer- 

 tain period of time. 



Nearshore area fish populations can similarly be affected by oil spills 

 and leaks. Since a great amount of spawning activity occurs in these shallow 

 waters, the likelihood of increased damage to egg and larval stages of fish 

 populations does exist. Though unlikely, a massive coastal spill could thus 

 drastically reduce a regional fish population if such a spill occurred during 

 the height of the spawning season. Anadromous species such as striped bass, 

 shad, and herring would be especially vulnerable during their movements into 

 and out of estuaries if a spill occurred in the nearshore zone. Spills during 

 the spawning season could prevent eggs from hatching or fry from developing. 



Discharge of formation waters is generally a by-product of oil produc- 

 tion. In those instances where such waters are not discharged, they are re- 

 injected to the substrate. Formation waters are generally brines with sal- 

 inities many times greater than that of sea waters, containing high concentra- 

 tions of mineral salts, petroleum hydrocarbons (up to 30ppm), and some traces 

 of heavy metals. Due to lack of actual drilling experience in the Mid- and 

 South Atlantic lease area, the precise component concentrations of formation 

 waters cannot be known at this time. Based on USGS estimates of 90,000 to 

 320,000 barrels of oil per day at peak production, we can expect a maximum of 

 about 300,000 barrels per day of formation waters. These waters are treated 

 to reduce their oil content to 30 ppm before discharge. 



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