An oil spill happens when oil leaks into water. This often comes from ships, rigs, or pipes. The oil spreads fast and is hard to clean up.
Right after an oil spill, many fish and birds die. The oil poisons the water. This makes it hard for animals to live or find food.
Oil has toxic chemicals. These chemicals are bad for plants and animals in the ocean. They can make them sick or kill them.
Birds get oil on their feathers. This makes it hard for them to fly or swim. They can also eat poisoned food and get very sick.
Oil spills hurt coral reefs. These are home to many ocean animals. When the coral dies, the animals lose their home and food.
Oil spills make beaches dirty. This is bad for people and animals. The oil can also hurt plants that grow near the ocean.
Oil spills have effects that last a long time. Animals like dolphins can get sick for many years. It takes a long time to fix the damage.
People who fish lose money because of oil spills. Also, the price of seafood can go up. It affects everyone, not just other species.
Cleaning an oil spill is very hard. Sometimes it takes years. Even then, it's hard to make everything go back to how it was.
People can help by cleaning up beaches or saving marine animals. Laws can also change to make oil spills less likely to happen.
Oil spills affect the whole environment, not just the ocean. They can damage air and soil, and can even hurt people's health. By hurting plants and animals, they mess up the balance of nature.