Possible adverse effects of OCS oil development on coastal ecosystems 

 fall under the following categories: 



a. Oil spills from platforms and transport systems; 



b. Discharge of drilling mud and formation waters; 



c. Operation of the production platforms; 



d. Pipeline burials; 



e. Industrial discharges; 



f. Ship traffic and ocean disposal. 



The living resources of the offshore OCS region which might be affected 

 include: 



a. Fisheries (commercial and sport fish) — 



-pelagic and bottom fish, 

 -larval and egg stages; 



b. Benthic communities; 



c. Zooplankton populations; 



d. Phytoplankton population; 



e. Marine mammals; 



f. Water quality. 



As indicated in the introduction to this section, the regional varia- 

 bility of impacts will be minor, that is, an oil spill offshore of New Jersey 

 will adversely affect the benthic community as readily as an oil spill off 

 North Carolina. The difference lies in the organisms affected; in the former 

 it would be primarily the surf clam, and in the latter, the calico scallop. 



Impact of offshore activities on entire coastal fisheries will likely 

 not be dramatic during development and production of the offshore fields. How- 

 ever, significant localized effects may occur. The impact on fish will vary 

 according to the size of the spill, time of the year (large numbers of 



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