Oil Spill Response

Workshop helps citizens understand incident command system

by
Tim Robertson, council contractor, leads a discussion during the Seward workshop on how contingency plans relate to the Incident Command System. Photo by Amanda Johnson.
Tim Robertson, council contractor, leads a discussion during the Seward workshop on how contingency plans relate to the Incident Command System.

This fall, the council sponsored a series of community workshops to teach citizens how an oil spill response is organized and managed.

The workshops in Homer, Whittier and Seward examined the power and decision making structure used during an emergency, and the role of federal, state, and local responders, and the role of the communities in the system. The goal was to help communities understand how to be more effective in representing themselves during an incident and understand more about how a spill would be handled.

Read more

Oil spill response in Sound depends on trained fishing vessel crews

by

In Prince William Sound, fishing vessel crews are trained to help clean up oil spills. These trained responders are familiar with local waters, and can respond quickly to a spill.

Alyeska’s Ship Escort Response Vessel System, or SERVS, oversees the program. SERVS contracts vessels throughout Prince William Sound and downstream areas such as Kodiak, Seward, Homer, Kenai and other smaller communities as part of the program. There are over 400 vessels and their associated crews on contract.

The vessels’ crews attend three days of training each year, including classroom lectures, hands-on experience with equipment, and on-water exercises.

 

Fishing vessel crews learn to set up and run a small brush skimmer during this year's Spring training in Cordova. Photo by Serena Lopez.
Fishing vessel crews learn to set up and run a small brush skimmer during this year’s Spring training in Cordova. Photo by Serena Lopez.

 

Participants help recover boom during this year's training in Seward. Photo by Jeremy Robida.
Participants help recover boom during this year’s training in Seward. Photo by Jeremy Robida.

 

An instructor teaches vessel crews about the tanker oil spill contingency plan during the Cordova training last Spring. Photo by Serena Lopez.
An instructor teaches vessel crews about the tanker oil spill contingency plan during the Cordova training last Spring. Photo by Serena Lopez.

 

Crews spend one day on the water practicing response techniques. Here, two fishing vessels practice pulling a "buster" oil spill boom system during the Valdez training. SERVS' spill response toolbox contains different boom systems for different conditions. The buster is the newest generation of boom systems, While it has its own limitations, the buster can be towed faster, better handle rougher water, and collect and hold recovered oil better compared to more traditional booms. Photo by Jeremy Robida.
Crews spend one day on the water practicing response techniques. Here, two fishing vessels practice pulling a “buster” oil spill boom system during the Valdez training. SERVS’ spill response toolbox contains different boom systems for different conditions. The buster is the newest generation of boom systems, While it has its own limitations, the buster can be towed faster, better handle rougher water, and collect and hold recovered oil better compared to more traditional booms. Photo by Jeremy Robida.

 

The buster, shown here during the Valdez training, has a collection area at the rear and a skimmer can be set inside to recover oil and oily water. Photo by Jeremy Robida.
The buster, shown here during the Valdez training, has a collection area at the rear and a skimmer can be set inside to recover oil and oily water. Photo by Jeremy Robida.

 

Close-up of a weir skimmer in the collection area of the buster system. Photo by Jeremy Robida.
Close-up of a weir skimmer in the collection area of the buster system. Photo by Jeremy Robida.

 

Small temporary storage barges, known as mini-barges, are used to hold the oil and oily water mix that would be offloaded to larger tank barges. The main support barge for nearshore recovery operation, known as the "500-2," has 12 such mini barges on board. The 500-2 is shown here setting one into the water during the Valdez training. Photo by Jeremy Robida.
Small temporary storage barges, known as mini-barges, are used to hold the oil and oily water mix that would be offloaded to larger tank barges. The main support barge for nearshore recovery operation, known as the “500-2,” has 12 such mini barges on board. The 500-2 is shown here setting one into the water during the Valdez training. Photo by Jeremy Robida.

 

Three boats are shown here in a typical oil recovery formation during the Valdez training. The farthest pictured vessels are pulling the buster system forward. The outstretched legs of the buster collect the oil and direct it into the collection area. The closest vessel manages the skimmer and the transfer of product into the mini barge, tied alongside. Photo by Jeremy Robida.
Three boats are shown here in a typical oil recovery formation during the Valdez training. The farthest pictured vessels are pulling the buster system forward. The outstretched legs of the buster collect the oil and direct it into the collection area. The closest vessel manages the skimmer and the transfer of product into the mini barge, tied alongside. Photo by Jeremy Robida.

Council and partners work to permit oil spill simulant for response training

by

By JEREMY ROBIDA
Council project manager

Because evaluating the effectiveness of oil recovery efforts during trainings and drills can be difficult, the council has been working to find an appropriate oil simulant. A simulant would mimic oil on water and provide responders with a practice target and help to increase proficiency with response gear and tactics.

In March, the council partnered with Cordova’s Oil Spill Recovery Institute and the Spill Control Association of America to host a workshop to address this topic. The workshop was held at the Seattle campus of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, or NOAA.

Although the council is interested in improving training locally, the broader goal of the partnership and workshop was to address simulant use on a national level.

Twenty-seven people participated, and the workshop featured two panels that addressed the need for simulants, permitting and other regulatory requirements, and concerns related to their use. The panels were composed of representatives from spill response organizations, NOAA, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, representatives from the U.S. Coast Guard’s National Response Team, and the council, among others.

The workshop concluded with a final group discussion on the next steps for this effort and consensus was reached on a number of items including:

  1. There is a need for simulants. Some of the possible uses are: a training aid for practice with boom deployment, skimmer testing, recovery of spilled oil in arctic conditions, and tracking spilled oil.
  2. Different materials have unique characteristics useful for varying goals and conditions. For example, floating wood chips could work for boom practice, but might not be practical for certain skimmers.
  3. There is a difference between particle based simulants such as wood chips, pine needles or oranges, and liquid based simulants such as fish oil, or vegetable oil. This distinction could complicate the permitting process.
  4. Raising public awareness of simulants and their benefits to spill response preparedness would be positive. 

At the end of the workshop, the group had unanswered questions, such as:

  • Can an ongoing blanket permit for certain particle based simulants be achieved?
  • Do simulants need to be used in every exercise and deployment?
  • Would responders be liable if only a portion of the simulant were recovered?

While the idea seems simple, the issue is complex. Federal and state laws regarding permitting are unclear and full of potential obstacles.

The next stage of the project will be a white paper which will describe the topics and consensus items discussed at the workshop, and next steps. The council hopes that the paper can be presented at an upcoming oil spill response conference. Work continues with the goal of enhancing oil spill recovery efforts in Prince William Sound.

REPORT:  The full report is now available on our Oil Simulants project page.

Skip to content