The Council held several events in Valdez, April 30 – May 2, 2025, including the Council’s annual Board meeting and a public reception.
Public reception: Wednesday, April 30
In conjunction with the meeting, the board of directors for Alaska Tanker Company, Hilcorp and the Council co-sponsored a public reception on Wednesday, April 30.
The Council conducted regular business during the meeting, including seating of established directors and committee members, election of new Board officers and updates from Council ex officio members, staff and committees. Other topics included on the agenda were:
An activity report by Alyeska Pipeline Service Company on the Valdez Marine Terminal and Ship Escort Response Vessel System operations.
A review of a pilot study of methods to evaluate the integrity of the secondary containment liners in the East Tank Farm at the Valdez Marine Terminal.
A presentation on marine bird surveys conducted in September and November 2024, in and around the Prince William Sound tanker escort zone and Valdez Marine Terminal.
An update on non-indigenous species biofouling risks from vessels arriving in Prince William Sound.
An analysis of the preliminary conservative emission estimates from crude oil storage tanks at the terminal during the tank vent damage incident in 2022.
An update on recommendations from the Council’s report “Assessment of Risks and Safety Culture at Alyeska’s Valdez Marine Terminal.”
A summary of the Council’s monitoring of drills and exercises in 2024.
An update on community outreach activities done by the Council over the past year.
An overview of plans to further distribute the Council’s “Peer Listener Manual.”
A report from the Council’s legislative monitors and staff on political developments and prospects coming out of Washington, D.C. and Juneau.
Council board meetings are routinely recorded and may be disseminated to the public by the Council or by the news media.
The Council works to educate Exxon Valdez region youth about the environmentally safe operation of the Alyeska terminal and associated tankers. Working with area youth is vital to fight complacency that can arise if new generations of citizens are not continually reminded of the need for ongoing oil spill prevention.
To support this effort, the Council invites proposals for facilitating learning experiences with Exxon Valdez oil spill region youth. Youth in this case can include students from K-12 formal education, homeschool students, informal education programs, and either formal or informal college-level education. In the past, the PWSRCAC has also sponsored projects for teachers that benefit area youth.
Now accepting proposals
We are currently accepting proposals for projects taking place during the 2025-2026 school year.
Submittal Deadline: 11:59 p.m. on May 9, 2025 Award Announcement on or before July 31, 2025
Projects should result in better understanding of such topics as: citizens’ oversight, environmental impacts of the operation of the Alyeska Pipeline Service Company oil terminal in Valdez and the oil tankers that call there, oil spill prevention and response planning and operation, and/or other topics related to the Council’s mission.
Past and ongoing projects have included:
youth stewardship expeditions into the marine environment via sea kayak and other vessels
youth monitoring for aquatic invasive species
public oil spill science discovery labs
oil spill science and technology outreach
oil spill education website development
K-12 oil spill curriculum writing and testing
travel funding for youth presenting oil spill projects at conferences
oral history projects related to the Exxon Valdez oil spill
other marine stewardship programs for students with an oil spill connection
There are two deadlines each year to submit proposals for educational project funding. You may subscribe to our email list for new Requests for Proposals to receive notifications when these are issued by the Council.
This past November, the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, or ADEC, approved the renewal of the oil spill contingency plan for the Valdez Marine Terminal. The approval came with conditions.
The plan, created and managed by Alyeska Pipeline Service Company, describes how the company plans to prevent spills from the terminal in Valdez, and how they would contain and clean up oil in case prevention measures fail. The approval followed several rounds of public comment, which began in 2023, and is subject to several conditions. This means the plan is tentatively approved, but there are required steps that must be taken for the approval to be valid.
As one of the conditions, ADEC is requiring that Alyeska conduct further analysis of the secondary containment liners underneath the crude oil storage tanks at the terminal’s East Tank Farm. These liners, made up of catalytically-blown asphalt, are part of a system that is intended to contain oil in the event of a spill, preventing contamination of surface and groundwater.
The liners are hard to inspect because they are covered with five feet of ground material.
Credit for a solid liner
Alyeska receives a 60% “prevention credit” from ADEC based on the integrity of these liners. This credit allows Alyeska to plan for a smaller spill, thus reducing the amount of equipment and responders that are listed in the plan to begin a quick response.
The credit is contingent upon the asphalt liner meeting ADEC’s “sufficiently impermeable” standard. This standard is based on a formula that determines whether the liner is solid enough that it can contain spilled oil until it is detected and cleaned up. Cracks and damage have previously been discovered in some areas when the liner has been exposed.
Request for public review of test results
In a November letter to the department, the Council requested that ADEC allow a public review of any changes that result from Alyeska’s analysis of the liner. The Council also requested the addition of a deadline for the analysis and corrective actions if the analysis finds that the liner is not sufficiently impermeable to meet ADEC’s standard. ADEC issued a decision that imposed deadlines for completion of the liner evaluation by 2028. The department did not include a public review or corrective actions.
Future updates
These plans are required to be updated every five years by industry and submitted for public review. This update to the terminal plan expires in 2029.
How and why do contingency plans change over time? Read a 2021 Council-sponsored report on how the plan for a spill from tankers developed over the years:
Every five years, this oil spill contingency plan is renewed. The process starts with Alyeska, who updates the plan to include new technology or lessons learned during drills. A renewed plan is effective for five years, when the cycle will be repeated. This process ensures that the preparations for preventing and responding to oil spills will continue to improve.
The Council is excited to announce that our Anchorage office has moved to the RAM Building at 2525 Gambell Street, Suite 305.
The Council held several events in Valdez, April 30 – May 2, 2025, including the Council’s annual Board meeting and a public reception.
