Oil per unit area - BAOAC

The Bonn Agreement Oil Appearance Code (BAOAC) is a set of categories used to estimate the mass of oil on the sea surface based on a systematic description of the appearance of oil on the sea surface. The

 

 Code

Description
Appearance 

Layer thickness
interval (micrometers) 

 Mass (m3 per km2)
1 Sheen (silvery/grey)  0.04 to 0.3  0.04 to 0.3
2  Rainbow  0.3 to 5.0  0.3 to 5 
3  Metallic  5.0 to 50  5 to 50 
4  Discontinuous true oil colour  50 to 200  50 to 200 
5  Continuous true oil colour  >= 200  >= 200 

 

Further information on the status of BAOAC