WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), chair of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries and the Coast Guard, today held a hearing on oil spill prevention and response for non-tanker vessels. Cantwell called for the hearing after she met with key Coast Guard District 13 personnel and other key stakeholders in November following the San Francisco oil spill. At the hearing, Cantwell heard testimony from Admiral Thad W. Allen, Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard; Mary Glackin, deputy undersecretary of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Susan Fleming, Director Physical Infrastructure Team, GAO; and Mike Cooper, Chairman, Washington State Oil Spill Advisory Council, among others.

 

“Recent events in California require that we once again reexamine America’s oil pollution prevention and response,” said Cantwell during today’s hearing. “The incident brought to light how vulnerable our oceans are to oil spills from non-tank vessels that carry massive amounts of oil not as cargo, but as fuel. We must determine whether the current regulation of such non-tank vessels is sufficient in light of the risks they pose.”

On November 7, a reported 58,000 gallons of fuel oil spilled into the San Francisco Bay when a cargo ship collided with the Bay Bridge. The 926-foot container ship Cosco Busan collided with the Bay Bridge causing a 100-foot gash on the side of the vessel. The amount of oil spill was vastly underestimated and 12 hours later, data revealed the true scope of the heavy-duty bunker fuel oil spill.  Non-tank vessel owners are subject to significantly lower liability levels for oil spill cleanups compared to tank vessels and tank barges.

 

Puget Sound, home to the third busiest port complex in the nation, is one of the world’s most complex and congested waterways. Oil tankers and oil barges travel through Puget Sound’s fragile ecosystem carrying about 15 billion gallons of oil annually to Washington state’s five refineries. In Washington state, more than 6,000 large non-tank vessels such as cargo ships and freighters transit through Washington waters each year.  Current law heavily regulates oil tankers that carry oil as cargo, but is much more lenient toward large ships that carry massive quantities of oil as fuel. 

 

In June, Cantwell introduced the Oil Pollution Prevention and Response Act, which would update the landmark Oil Pollution Act of 1990 – which was enacted following the tragic Exxon Valdez oil spill.  The bill would also improve oil spill prevention and response, and implement long sought-after environmental safeguards to protect America’s waterways from contamination.  Key provisions from this bill have also been included in the Senate’s Coast Guard Authorization Act.

 

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