What did the Oil Spill of 1900 mandate, and how might it have prevented the Exxon Valdez spill?
The Oil Spill of 1900 led to the passing of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, which mandated that all oil tankers in U.S. waters must have a double hull by 2015. This double hull requirement was meant to prevent oil spills by providing an extra layer of protection in case of a collision or grounding.
If the Exxon Valdez had been required to have a double hull, it is possible that the spill could have been prevented or at least minimized. The single-hulled tanker ran aground on Bligh Reef in Prince William Sound, Alaska in 1989, spilling over 11 million gallons of crude oil into the pristine waters. A double hull may have prevented the hull from being breached and the oil spill from occurring.