Board of Directors News

Former board member Marilynn Heddell passes

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Marilynn Heddell

Marilynn Heddell, former council board member, passed away on November 18, 2016.

Heddell represented Whittier on the board from 1996 until 2013. She held several positions during her 17 years on the council. She was first elected as member-at-large in 1996. She served as secretary from 1997 to 2001, as vice-president from 2002 to 2004, again as secretary from 2004 to 2008, and was elected to the position of treasurer in 2012.

Heddell was an active member of the council’s finance committee. This committee helps the board to oversee the council’s financial affairs and ensure a balanced budget each year.

Heddell and her husband, Pete, operated a marine charter service, Honey Charters, and a gift shop in Whittier for 22 years. Pete continues to serve as a member of the Port Operations and Vessel Traffic System Committee.

Heddell was very involved in the community of Whittier. She helped start the Greater Whittier Chamber of Commerce and Whittier’s Prince William Sound Museum with exhibits on the history of Whittier and World War II in Alaska. She also represented Whittier on the Prince William Sound Economic Development Council. In 2013, she and Pete were presented with a “Spirit of Alaska” award from the Alaska Travel Industry Association for demonstrating exceptional efforts to support a local community, charity, or other organization outside the travel industry.

Marilynn and Pete Heddell in front of their Whittier shop, the Captain Cook Books and Gifts. Photo by Linda Robinson.

“Marilynn always entered the room with a smile and a hug,” remembered council volunteer and former outreach coordinator Linda Robinson. “When working the booth at Pacific Marine Expo, you could always count on Marilynn and Pete coming by, dropping their coats, and visiting with guests. I never saw her without a warm greeting for everyone,” added Robinson.

Council board meeting held in Anchorage

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The council’s board of directors met on January 19 and 20, 2017.

Topics included on the agenda included:

  • Presentations by Alyeska Pipeline Service Company, the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, and PWSRCAC regarding the change in Alyeska’s marine services contract provider from Crowley Maritime to Edison Chouest Offshore set to take place July 1, 2018. These services include key oil spill prevention and response assets such as escort tugs, oil recovery barges and associated personnel for service in Prince William Sound.
  • A presentation by council contractor Robert Allan LTD outlining some concerns and recommendations on the new escort and support tugs being built by Edison Chouest Offshore for the marine services transition. Robert Allan LTD is a firm of internationally-recognized naval architects and marine engineers known for their innovative designs for vessels of almost all types, from high-performance tugs to ferries to sophisticated research vessels.
  • A presentation by the co-chair of the Alaska Regional Response Team on their recent activities. The Alaska Regional Response Team is in charge of planning responses to oil spills in Alaska waters.
  • A presentation by council staff on the Alaska Regional Response Team’s public outreach efforts to identify dispersant use avoidance areas. This process is part of the January 2016 update to Alaska’s Dispersant Use Plan for Alaska, and is designed to help identify areas 24 to 200 miles from Alaska’s coastline where the use of dispersants should require additional consideration prior to being used.
  • A presentation from council staff regarding cracking that was found and repaired in the lining of one of the secondary containment systems at the Valdez Marine Terminal. In the event of a spill from a crude oil storage tank, secondary containment systems are designed to prevent oil from polluting surface or groundwater resources.

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Council’s executive committee re-elected to another term in office

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Left to right: Treasurer Wayne Donaldson, who represents the City of Kodiak; Vice President Thane Miller, represents Prince William Sound Aquaculture Corporation; President Amanda Bauer, represents the City of Valdez; Member-at-Large Robert Archibald, representing the City of Homer; Member-at-Large Patience Andersen Faulkner, representing the Cordova District Fishermen United; and Member-at-Large Melissa Berns, who represents the Kodiak Village Mayors Association. Not pictured is Secretary Bob Shavelson, who represents the Oil Spill Region Environmental Coalition.

The council board held annual elections to choose its seven-member executive committee at its May meeting in Valdez.

Amanda Bauer of Valdez was elected to her fourth consecutive term as president. Thane Miller, who represents Prince William Sound Aquaculture Corporation on the board, was elected to his fourth consecutive term as vice-president. Bob Shavelson, who represents the Oil Spill Region Environmental Coalition, was re-elected as secretary. Wayne Donaldson, who represents the City of Kodiak, was elected as treasurer.

Long-time board member Patience Andersen Faulkner, who represents the Cordova District Fishermen United, Robert Archibald, who represents the City of Homer, and Melissa Berns, who represents the Kodiak Village Mayors Association were all re-elected to serve as at-large members of the executive committee.

These officers will serve until the next elections in May 2016.

Duffy resigns from board

Pat Duffy, who served on the council’s board of directors since September of 2007, resigned in May. Duffy represented the Alaska State Chamber of Commerce. He served several terms as vice president and as member-at-large. He also served on the council’s finance committee, helping to oversee development of the council’s annual budget and other financial matters.

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Board of directors meeting in Cordova

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The council’s board of directors met in Cordova on September 15 and 16.

Topics on the agenda included:

  • An update on Alyeska’s plan for the transition from Crowley to Edison Chouest
  • The council’s plan to monitor the transition from Crowley to Edison Chouest
  • An update on the renewal of the Prince William Sound oil spill contingency plan for tankers
  • An update on the status of Prince William Sound herring
  • A presentation on requirements for marine vessel pilots in Prince William Sound
  • An update on BP’s use of foreign-flagged vessels in Prince William Sound

 

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