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'''Oil dispersants''' are chemicals designed to break up oil. They have been released into the ocean in large quantities following major oil spills, including the 1989 [[Exxon-Valdez]] spill in Alaska, the 1978 [[Amoco-Cadiz]] spill off the coast of Normandy, and the 2010 [[Deepwater Horizon]] spill in the Gulf of Mexico. However, dispersants are ineffective in cleaning up the spilled oil, only serving to effectively hide it from public view and TV cameras by dispersing it throughout the water column. Chemicals used as oil dispersants are frequently toxic and releasing them into the ocean adds to the toxic effect of the oil on the ocean ecosystem and makes the oil harder to clean up. According to Terry Hazen, a microbial ecologist in Berkeley Lab's Earth Sciences Division, "the concentration of detergents and other chemicals used to clean up sites contaminated by oil spills can cause environmental nightmares of their own."<ref>http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100504142110.htm "Caution Required for Gulf Oil Spill Clean-Up, Bioremediation Expert Says"], ''Science Daily'', May 4, 2010.</ref>