ABSTRACT
Given our meager understanding of how marine ecosystems function and the causes of their variability, the question of whether chronic low-level petroleum contamination poses a serious threat to life in the sea is a particularly difficult one to answer completely (Walton, 1981). To the extent which we do not understand why things change in ecosystems, our answer will be incomplete-a situation which engenders various degrees of concern and motivates further research (Hardy et al., 1977; Hedgpeth, 1978; Sanders et al., 1980). Realizing our
limitations and the variable circumstances of petroleum contamination, the aim of this review is to evaluate the results of field and microcosm studies and the extent these results allow us to predict the outcome of continued and expanded offshore petroleum extraction, transportation and related sources of contamination. Emphasis will be placed on sublittoral studies for which 1) there are extensive biological and chemical analyses, 2) effects have been suggested at very low concentrations, 3) no effects have been claimed in areas of extensive contamination, or 4) insights into critical processes or effects are evident.
