http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/b-c-oil-spill-response-gaps-exposed-in-government-email-1.2814468
[While the Canadian federal government says we already have "world
class" oil spill prevention and response organizations and capacity in
place, this article indicates that on the Canadian west coast, the
responsible government agency does not require monitoring equipment to
be in place at major oil handling facilities, and does not have enough
staff to even record all the spill response gaps, let alone actually
respond to them.]
B.C. oil spill response 'gaps' exposed in government email
Gaps found or improvements needed for 'hundreds of spills on an annual
basis'
CBC News Posted: Oct 27, 2014 12:04 PM PT Last Updated: Oct 27, 2014
7:43 PM PT
[video, images and links in on-line article]
British Columbia's oil spill response has come under scrutiny after the
emergence of an email between high-ranking staff at the Ministry of
Environment referring to "hundreds of spills on an annual basis where
gaps occurred or improvements are needed."
The heavily redacted email, which was discovered by the NDP as part of a
Freedom of Information (FOI) request, was sent on March 31 by Graham
Knox, head of B.C.'s Environmental Emergency Program, to Jim Hofweber,
executive director of the province's Environmental Emergencies and Land
Remediation Branch.
Several incidents are mentioned where an effective response was
considered lacking, including one from a Kinder Morgan pipeline spill at
their Sumas tank farm where, "no air monitoring or sampling was done to
determine what the concentrations of chemicals in the air."
According to the email, Kinder Morgan assured the public there were no
health impacts from the spill despite having no scientific evidence to
back up those claims, and in the face of community complaints of
"nausea, headaches, strong odours, etc."
'Rolling the dice'
NDP MLA Spencer Chandra Herbert said of all the incidents discussed in
the email, the Sumas incident, which took place near an elementary
school, was of particular concern to public health.
"The Ministry of Environment had to admit they had actually done no data
collection to know if the spill was going to be toxic, if it could harm
children. They just had to say, 'Oh yeah, don't worry about it,' even
though they had no knowledge at all," he said.
Chandra Herbert also said he thought it telling that the email states
that there aren't enough people on staff to address the gaps and
deficiencies in B.C.'s ability to respond to spills.
"That statement in itself is pretty damning — that they know there are
huge problems, but they don't even have the staff available to write up
what those problems are to even begin to solve them," he said.
"They like to claim we have world-class spill response standards.
Clearly we don't, and this email proves it," he said. "We're just
rolling the dice and hoping that none of these freighters spring leaks
and that nobody has a crash."
Other areas of concern raised included the effectiveness of spill
reporting, the training and certification of responders, data collection
and monitors, environmental restoration and compensation of loss of
public use.
Under the compensation category, reference was made to the Burnaby
Kinder Morgan pipeline spill and the closure of numerous parks and
beaches for a "significant" time period.
The email notes that no monetary compensation was provided to the
community for this loss of access, and that should a future spill
encroach on U.S. land as well as B.C., the public on the American side
of the border would be entitled to compensation.
A section headed "capability and capacity" was entirely redacted.
Minister acknowledges gaps
Environment Minister Mary Polak said the man who wrote the email is a
key member of the land-based spill response team, which is in the
process of integrating public feedback and developing a comprehensive
strategy.
Many of the gaps that are discussed in the email, including human
resources, will be addressed in the final plan, she said.
"It's very clear that if we are going to fill the gaps that are present,
and that we acknowledge are present, it is going to take the role of
industry in contributing to our capacity to prevent and to respond to
spills. That has got to be the case. It can't just be falling on the
hands of government and therefore the taxpayer," she said.
Polak also said the department has heard from many stakeholders,
including First Nations and environmental groups, that the current
polluter-pays system needs to be revised.
"We recognize that our current system of 'polluter pay' isn't strong
enough," she said. "We'd like to see it strengthened... and its a key
component of what we're working for in that spills intentions paper."
======================================================================
http://news.nationalpost.com/2014/10/19/u-s-tug-boat-rescues-drifting-russian-cargo-ship-ending-fears-of-an-oil-spill-off-the-b-c-coast/
[It seems to me something is a bit off if a U.S.-based tugboat and U.S.
Coast Guard helicopter figure prominently in avoiding the grounding of
this cargo ship on the Canadian west coast, more than 600 km from U.S.
land. It is reported that a Canadian Coast Guard vessel could not
maintain a tow on the drifting vessel in moderate seas. Despite the
threat of a spill on Haida Gwai islands, it appears no WCMRC spill
response equipment was dispatched from any point in B.C. At least one
commentator indicates none of the WCMRC vessels are ocean-capable.]
U.S. tug boat rescues drifting Russian cargo ship, ending fears of an
oil spill off the B.C. coast
[images in on-line article]
Rudy Kelly, Associated Press | October 19, 2014 9:36 AM ET
More from Associated Press
PRINCE RUPERT, B.C. – A large tug boat was pulling a disabled Russian
cargo ship along British Columbia’s coast, ending fears that the vessel
carrying hundreds of tons of fuel would drift ashore, hit rocks and spill.
Lt. Paul Pendergast of the Canadian Forces’ Joint Rescue Co-ordination
Centre said the Barbara Foss arrived Saturday evening and the tow of the
Simushir was going well.
On Sunday, the rescue centre reported that the owners of Russian vessel
plan to have it taken 93 nautical miles to Prince Rupert, which is the
nearest container ship port.
The Simushir lost power late Thursday off Haida Gwaii, also known as the
Queen Charlotte Islands, as it made its way from Everett in Washington
state to Russia.
The Coast Guard ship Gordon Reid earlier towed the disabled ship away
from shore, but a towline got detached and the ship was adrift again for
six hours Saturday.
The 10 crew members were trying to repair the broken oil heater that has
left the vessel disabled, Royal Canadian Navy Lt. Greg Menzies said.
The fear of oil spills is especially acute in British Columbia, where
residents remember the Exxon Valdez disaster of 1989. Such worries have
fed fierce opposition — particularly from environmentalists and Canada’s
native tribes — to a proposal to build a pipeline that would carry oil
from Canada’s Alberta oil sands to a terminal in Kitimat, British
Columbia, for shipment to Asia. Opponents say the proposed pipeline
would bring about 220 large oil tankers a year to the province’s coast.
The president of the Council of the Haida Nation warned Friday that a
storm coming into the area was expected to push the ship onto the rocky
shore, but President Pete Lantin later said their worst fears had subsided.
“If the weather picks up it could compromise that, but as of right now
there is a little sense of relief that we might have averted catastrophe
here,” Lantin said.
About 5,000 people live on the islands and fish for food nearby, Lantin
said.
The Simushir, which is about 135 metres long, was carrying a range of
hydrocarbons, mining materials and other related chemicals. That
included 400 tons of bunker oil and 50 tons of diesel.
The vessel is not a tanker but rather a container ship. In comparison,
the tanker Exxon Valdez, spilled 35,000 metric tons of oil.
A spokesman for Russian shipping firm SASCO, the owners of the vessel,
said it is carrying 298 containers of mining equipment in addition to
heavy bunker fuel as well as diesel oil for the voyage.
The U.S. Coast Guard had a helicopter on standby in the event that the
crew members need to be pulled off the ship. Officials said the injured
captain was evacuated by helicopter, but they were given no further
medical details.
The Simushir is registered in Kholmsk, Russia, and owned by SASCO, also
known as Sakhalin Shipping Company, according to the company’s website.
The SASCO website says the ship was built in the Netherlands in 1998.
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