Dispersant applications are monitored for both effectiveness and environmental impacts. The SMART program (Special Monitoring of Applied Response Technologies, a joint project of several Federal agencies, including NOAA, that respond to oil spills) includes components for monitoring dispersants as well as in situ burning.

At right, U.S. Coast Guard officers and a NOAA researcher prepare to deploy a fluorometer, an instrument used to detect dispersed oil below a slick.

To learn more about how dispersant applications are monitored, check our Dispersant Application Observer Job Aid.