During the Gulf War in 1991, Iraqi forces opened valves and destroyed oil facilities in Kuwait, releasing about 1.9 billion liters of oil, creating a slick that covered some 10,360 square km in the biggest spill in history. In 1989, the Exxon Valdez ran aground on a reef in Alaska's Prince William Sound, spilling 40.8 million liters of oil. It polluted more than 1,609 km of coastline and devastated wildlife in the largest spill in US history.
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