Moviegoers and film enthusiasts may know popcorn as a tasty snack, but did you know it has a surprising connection to shipping? While it may sound unusual, popcorn plays a crucial role in oil spill prevention exercises, offering an innovative way to protect the marine environment.
According to the latest ITOPF statistics, ten oil spills exceeding seven tonnes were recorded from tanker incidents in 2024, the same number as in 2023. This brings the decade’s average to 7.4 spills per year—a significant improvement compared to earlier decades, though slightly above the 2010s average.
Despite these advances, Oli Beavon, Managing Director at ITOPF, emphasized in a previous SAFETY4SEA interview that vigilance is crucial. Preventative actions remain the most effective strategy for minimizing accidental marine spills.
The maritime industry has made substantial progress in oil spill preparedness and response over the years. Ensuring crews are properly trained and equipped to handle potential emergencies is critical to effectively managing the risk of oil spills and protecting marine ecosystems.
Popcorn mimics oil in spill drills
Simulants like popcorn, which can mimic oil, play a key role in providing a realistic target for training exercises and drills. They help responders increase proficiency with their response gear and tactics, making exercises more effective and realistic.
In particular, operational exercises usually involve the release of simulated oil (often popcorn), the deployment of pollution response vessels from the participants, and the establishment of a unified command structure and lines of communication.
A wide variety of simulants have been used ranging from foams and dyes to popcorn, oranges and perlite. The choice of a simulant will be determined by availability, cost, local regulations and practical considerations.
That’s where popcorn comes in handy. When popcorn absorbs water, it forms an emulsion that is very similar to spilled oil and mimics the effect of ocean currents on oil. Popcorn can simulate the properties of oil on the surface of the water, can be collected in the same way and are biodegradable.
Properties of popcorn
The puffed-up corn kernels have a natural tendency to spread, though this is counteracted by their low initial bulk density. As the popcorn absorbs water, it will float lower in the water but will still remain afloat. Popcorn is also susceptible to wind, and rather than emulsifying, it will turn into a lumpy paste when it takes on water.
In an oil spill exercise, popcorn can be blown or released manually, thrown overboard, or deployed from shore or a dock. While plain popcorn is non-toxic to the environment, its use as a simulant may be controversial. Popcorn, being a food product, can be seen as waste, which raises concerns about its appropriateness for this purpose.
The example of a Norway popcorn exercise
In 2004, a major oil spill response exercise took place near the western city of Molde in Norway, where five cubic meters of popcorn were dumped into the ocean to simulate a large oil spill. The aim was to create a slick about 100 meters by 200 meters off Norway’s west coast.
Around 300 people in over 30 boats, along with observation aircraft, responded to the scene as they would have in a real spill scenario. Oil-spill booms were used to contain and clean up the popcorn at sea, while shore teams practiced cleanup techniques on land.
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