Study Calls for Improvements to Marine Oil Spill Response Plan
Prince George, B.C. – The Federal Government will need to do more to protect the west coast from a marine oil spill.
That is one of the findings of a three volume study on current marine-spill preparedness and ability to respond to such an incident.
The Province says the study, by Nuka Research, lays the foundation for building a world-class marine spill response and preparedness system, which is one of the Province’s five conditions for considering heavy oil pipelines in B.C.
The study looked at the one, industry funded response organization based in B.C. that would be called into action should there be an oil spill along the coast.
The report says the organization, Western Canada Marine Spill Corporation (WCMRC), has equipment based along the BC coast and is certified by Transport Canada as being able to respond to a 10,000t spill to marine waters. With that in mind, Nuka Research ran a series of oil spill simulations to see how much spilled oil could be collected by WCMRC and resources along nearby U.S. states.
The report says based on the results of those simulations, there are a number of enhancements that need to be made in several areas including:
· response planning standard,
· general oversight,
· inter-agency coordination,
· the location of resources along BC’s coastline, and
· planning assumptions and operational procedures such as a significant reliance on contractors and an assumed 24-hour operational period.
The Province says it will continue to work with the Federal Government, and will “push for changes necessary to ensure world-class requirements and regulations are in place.”
Comments
Improvements like making those responsible for the spills, 100% financially responsible when they occur? Including financial compensation for all financial losses incurred by those whose ability to earn a living due to these spills is extinguished?
So let me get this straight, one of the five (5) conditions to BC approving the Northern Gateway Pipeline is;
“The project must have world-leading marine and land oil spill response, prevention and recovery systems to protect BC’s environment, including our coastline and ocean.”
I thought it was up to Enbridge and the Federal Government, who are pushing for this pipeline, to identify, and make arrangements for having, a “world class” oil spill response plan in place!!!
So why is our BC government paying Alaska based Nuka Research to define that “world class” oil spill response plan???
It’s all here in their news release titled; “BC continuing work on world-class spill plans”.
http://www2.news.gov.bc.ca/news_releases_2009-2013/2013ENV0052-000852.htm
So our BC government stated publicly that this world-class oil spill response plan must be in place in order for it to approve Enbridge NGP and then takes on the responsibility and costs to make sure that happens??? WTH???
You’d figure a double haul tanker still can sink and spill a lot of oil. Why not compartmize the oil into double lined giant tidy tanks. The tanker sinks and the oil cans float to be picked up.
Hey He spoke, I like that, the kiss formula.Just Like I have been saying why not double walled pressure sensitive pipeline one end to the other.
So our Provincial Government demands five conditions be met before it will approve the Enbridge Northern Gateway Pipeline, then begins paying the costs and undertaking the work to full fill the five (5) the conditions it demanded from who knows who!!??
What a complete joke this is turning out to be… time to wake up sheeple!!!
No matter what safety measures Enbridge comes up with they are still the incompetent company that caused the Kalamzoo spill. If Enbridge would of done the maintenance on the Kalamazoo pipeline maybe they could of prevented that spill. They knew the pipe needed maintenance for 5 years and did nothing until it burst. The spill would have been less if the controller would of believed his instruments and shutdown the flow at the first sign of trouble but no he kept pushing the go button until someone on the ground thousands of miles away said STOP!
The best safety standards in the world are useless when you have morons at the controls!
They are still cleaning it up …….
people#1 …I see you are using your favorite term “sheeple” again … cool … perhaps look at it from this perspective …
The Province says the study … lays the foundation for building a world-class marine spill response and preparedness system
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Lays a foundation, sets a standard, raises the bar from current practice … this is actually a good move by the provincial government … by setting the starting point (or foundation), the province has at least picked the venue for the scrap and thrown the first punch . … works for the scrappers I have seen win
or as my daddy used to say, best to pick your own path before some one else picks it for you … we may not want a pipeline but if we are going to get stuck with one, lets make sure it is on our terms
I am half way through reading a great book that should be required reading for pipeline proponents.
The book is ‘Command and Control’ by Eric Schlosser.
Its a book about the history of nuclear weapons, their use, the strategies behind nuclear warfare, and the dangers and accidents in the command and control and safe keeping of these weapons. A heavily researched book with lots of factoids and newly declassified insights.
One thing that comes clear in nuclear planning assessments is they always leave open the unknown risk factor of human ignorance, stupidity, and plain out right deception as risk factors they can not ever fully quantify, and with nuclear weapons this uncalculated risk is considered the single greatest risk.
You can have the best system control in the world and its the human element that can negate all of it.
IMO the stupidity often starts at the top. With nuclear war planning that is certainly the case. The amount of accidents and close calls that have happened is staggering and always covered up. Unforeseen human element always seems to find the weak spot.
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