During an oil spill in coastal waters, OR&R's role is to provide scientific support to the U.S. Coast Guard officers in charge of response operations. In addition to spill response software and mapping tools, OR&R provides standard techniques and publishes guidelines for observing oil, assessing shoreline impact, and evaluating accepted cleanup technologies.

Students and teachers can find a variety of oil spill-related educational resources in our Education section.

For stories, news, and updates about current, notable, and historical oil spills, please refer to our Media page.