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Department of Ecology News Release - September 24, 2007
07-275
OLYMPIA - The Department of Ecology (Ecology) is investigating the actions taken at the Shell Puget Sound Refinery near Anacortes that allowed oil to spray from a loose flange on the company's dock when a Shell Co. dock operator was trying to drain oil in a marine loading arm to the crude oil line.
Approximately three gallons of crude oil mixed with other petroleum products spilled off the dock and entered Fildalgo Bay at about 8:45 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 22.
Instead of spreading out into the bay, the spill got trapped in the water under the refinery dock and up against the side of an oil tanker anchored at the refinery. Ecology responders and private cleanup contractors determined that the spill was too thin to be recovered from the water.
Shell has been under an Ecology administrative order since Feb. 28 to inspect all marine oil transfer pipelines that run from the dock to the refinery. Each transfer pipeline is approximately three miles long.
The department issued the order after three small spills occurred between July 2006 and January 2007 due to external and internal corrosion in the refinery's lines.
The spill occurred at a flange connecting the launch pipe to the crude oil line at the dock in preparation to send an internal inline inspection device down the line to verify its integrity. Using the "smart pig" device helps refinery engineers understand the condition of the piping and where to make any needed repairs.
The spill occurred at the flange connecting the launch pipe to the crude oil line. The bolts on the flange were not tightened securely enough and the oil sprayed out.
The details surrounding why the spill occurred are under investigation. "Shell Puget Sound Refinery is committed to safety and environmental compliance and policies that help us operate as a good neighbor in Skagit County," said Sue Krienen, general manager of Shell Puget Sound Refinery. "Our community is extremely important to us and we operate our business in a manner that reflects those values."
"Oil is poisonous to the environment and all spills - small and large - degrade the water quality of an already-threatened Puget Sound," said Dale Jensen, who oversees statewide spill prevention, preparedness and response activities for Ecology. "This spill should have been easily prevented. We are strongly concerned that Shell is having so much difficulty preventing spills."
Tribal response contains marina spill
Responders from the Tulalip Tribe contained a 70-gallon diesel fuel spill after the 65-foot fishing vessel Saint Nicholas sank at the Tulalip Marina near Marysville Sunday morning.
Using oil containment boom and other spill response equipment provided by Ecology earlier this year, tribal responders were able to place the boom around the ship and used absorbent materials to collect nearly all the fuel on the water.
Ecology regional spill responder Dick Walker praised the Tulalip responders for preventing the fuel from spreading into the marina.
"They acted quickly and effectively. Their actions really saved the day," Walker said.
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Media Contact: Curt Hart, 360-407-6990; cell, 360-480-7908
Department of Ecology Web site: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/spills/prevention/preventiontable.htm
Copyright © Washington State Department of Ecology. See http://www.ecy.wa.gov/copyright.html.
