The horrific oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico may yet prove to be the worst in US waters, but it is not the worst the world has ever seen. That dubious record is held by the spill nearly two decades ago in another Gulf, half a world away. The spill was no accident. As much as 11 million barrels of crude were deliberately released into waters offshore Kuwait in a blatant act of ecoterrorism by Iraqi forces invading the emirate . At the time, many eminent environmental prognosticators predicted the Gulf would become another Dead Sea, or at least would never be the same again. But what did actually happen? On a recent morning in Abu Dhabi, looking out on the Gulf from a corporate office on the 14th floor of a high-rise building, a petrochemicals company executive pointed to the azure lagoon where he often spots dolphins playing. That is a sure sign there are still plenty of fish and other marine life in this particular sea. Dolphins are at the top of the food chain. This does not mean all is well in the Gulf. Certain , as well as and , are being threatened by over-fishing and rising water temperatures and salinity levels. Silting and the uprooting of mangroves due to coastal development, along with "red tides" caused by alarming, unexplained algal blooms, are also taking their toll. But these undoubtedly serious problems have little to do with oil contamination. Inevitably, there were studies of the after-effects of the 1991 Gulf War oil spill. The conclusions drawn have been mostly reassuring. For instance, a 1993 study sponsored by UNESCO found to habitats beyond the intertidal zone. Oil residues have along contaminated shorelines of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, even if new sand has covered them to reduce the visual impact. One of the consequences has been the growth of dense algal mats in oiled areas, clogging crab burrows and inhibiting the rehabilitation of salt flats. In general, however, most studies showed that the aftermath of the world's biggest oil spill was as expected. The Gulf of Mexico oil spill differs in some important respects from the Gulf War catastrophe. For one thing, although the amount of oil spilled may be smaller, local geography dictates that it will affect a . Local fisheries and conservationists, however, may draw comfort from the Arabian experience, which shows that nature is resilient and can be largely self-healing with just a little help from her friends.