The scope of management procedures in the event of accidental pollution in continental waters remains limited.

Occasional discharges, accidental or otherwise, are a major source of pollution in continental waters. Although in almost half of all instances of contamination, the exact cause is never determined, oil spills can be due to human error, accidental or voluntary discharge of cargo residues, domestic or industrial tank overflow, leakage from fuel stations, traffic incidents, fire and such like.

When faced with hydrocarbon contamination of inland waterways, authorities and other organizations can seldom call on dedicated decision-making tools to intervene in an effective way.

Whereas considerable management and monitoring resources are rapidly deployed for off or inshore incidents, the more frequent occurrence of continental water pollution is dealt with using relatively modest means. A limited grasp of the nature and magnitude of such events often renders both industry and government powerless in controlling their impact.