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Department of Ecology News Release - September 14, 2006
06-187
OLYMPIA - If an oil spill occurs in state marine waters or Columbia River and the responsible party is unknown, unwilling or incapable of mounting an effective response, the Department of Ecology (Ecology) now can turn to the Marine Spill Response Corp. (MSRC) to marshal a fleet of specialized response vessels to help minimize environmental impacts.
This week, Ecology reached a landmark agreement with MSRC, the nation's largest private, non-profit oil spill response company headquartered in Virginia. For the first time, the state will have direct access to large, specialized vessels that can help clean up spilled oil on the water.
Orphan oil spills cost Washington taxpayers thousands of dollars a year in response costs and environmental damage. Petroleum products are environmental toxins and state lawmakers have adopted a "zero spills" policy to keep oil out of state waters.
MSRC has more than 30 years of response experience in the Pacific Northwest, its Pacific-Northwest Region has more than 60 oil skimming vessels and work boats as well as an array of cleanup equipment stationed in Washington or on the Columbia River.
Under the contract, Ecology now will have the ability to mobilize MSRC's equipment, vessels and responders. Washington is only the second state to reach such an agreement with the response organization.
"MSRC is pleased to be able to provide our response resources to protect the environment of the state of Washington in the event the state directly needs to respond to an oil spill," said MSRC President and Chief Executive Officer Steve Benz.
Dale Jensen, who oversees statewide spill prevention and response activities for Ecology, said the MSRC contract complements existing agreements the state has with other cleanup contractors such as NRC Environmental Services and Global Diving and Salvage.
"Preventing spills is our No. 1 priority," Jensen said. "However, we also need to be prepared to quickly and effectively respond to spills. Past incidents have shown that it is important for the state to have direct access to all the response resources in Washington. This agreement helps us achieve that goal."
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Contact: Curt Hart, Public Information Manager, 360-407-6990, or cell, 360-480-7908
For more information: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/spills/spills.html
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
