HazSub Spill Response Plans
On August 18, 1990, the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA 90) was enacted into law. Section 4202 of that Act amended the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA or Clean Water Act) to require tank vessels and marine transportation-related facilities to prepare and submit to the US Coast Guard plans for responding, to the maximum extent practicable, to a worse case discharge, and to a substantial threat of such a discharge, of oil or a hazardous substance carried in bulk as cargo.
ASEAN Adopts Oil Spill Contingency Plan
International Maritime Organization (IMO) technical assistance and institutional support has been instrumental in the recent adoption of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Oil Spill Contingency Plan.IMO said that the plan was adopted by the 24th ASEAN Transport Ministers Meeting, held in Bangkok, Thailand (8 November). The Regional Oil Spill Contingency Plan provides for a mechanism whereby ASEAN Member States can request…
Protesters Storm Shell's Niger Delta Crude Station
Hundreds of Nigerian protesters stormed a crude oil flow station owned by Shell in the restive Niger Delta on Friday demanding jobs and infrastructure development, a Reuters witness said. The protesters complained they were not benefiting from oil production in their area, a common refrain in the impoverished swampland that produces most of Nigeria's oil. They also demanded an end to oil pollution in the area. Soldiers and security guards did not disperse the crowd as it entered the Belema Flow Station in Rivers State…
Shell Battles Nigerian Communities in High-stakes Lawsuit
Nigerian communities say domestic courts unfit to try case. A court in London will decide in coming weeks whether Royal Dutch Shell can face trial in the UK over oil spill allegations in Nigeria, a decision some legal experts predict could attract more cases against multinationals in Britain. The High Court will judge whether members from two communities, Bille and Ogale in Nigeria's oil-rich Delta region, can sue the Anglo-Dutch company in British courts.
OPOL Announces Executive Team Appointments
The body responsible for the offshore oil and gas industry’s voluntary pollution compensation scheme has announced two appointments to its executive team. The Offshore Pollution Liability Association Limited (OPOL) has appointed a new managing director, Jacquelynn Craw, with effect from December 1. OPOL also confirmed the reappointment of its current chairman, Colin Wannell, with effect from January 1, 2017. Craw succeeds Niall Scott as managing director, who has held the post since 2011.
Nigerian Protesters Widen Demonstration against Chevron
Protesters blocked the gate to offices of U.S. oil company Chevron in Nigeria's Niger Delta on Monday, widening a week-long demonstration to demand jobs and housing, a protest organizer and a community leader said. Youths, most of them unemployed, have also blocked the entrance to Chevron's Escravos oil storage tank farm since last week, claiming the facility had destroyed their housing settlement. "What we shut down on Monday is Chevron's administrative and logistics office in Warri that serves Escravos," said Collins Edema, a protest leader.
Militants Blow up Nigeria Crude Pipeline
Militants blew up another crude pipeline in Nigeria's Niger Delta, a youth and protest leader said on Thursday. Protesters also continued to block the entrance to a Chevron oil depot in the restive southern region for a third day. On Wednesday, a previously unknown group called Delta Greenland Justice Mandate said it had attacked a crude pipeline belonging to state oil firm NNPC and local firm Shoreline Natural Resources in Urhobo in Delta state. "It is true but I don't have details yet," said Collins Edema, a youth leader.
Protesters Block Chevron Facility in Nigeria
Protesters blocked the entrance to a Chevron oil facility in Nigeria's restive Niger Delta on Wednesday, demanding jobs and housing, a protest leader said. "Chevron has not fulfilled many of its promises," said Collins Edema, a youth and protest leader in the Ugborodo Itsekiri community in Delta state, home to Chevron's Escravos oil depot. Edema said the facility had been blocked and that more than 300 people, mostly local unemployed youths, had joined the protest, but Reuters could not confirm that figure. He said the U.S.
South Africa's fuel fund Heads Resign After Chevron bid
The heads of South Africa's state-owned Strategic Fuel Fund resigned on Friday, a day after the Department of Energy said it would investigate the fund's unauthorised bid to buy Chevron's assets in the country. The fund, which reports to the energy department, said on Wednesday it had applied to buy a 75 percent stake in Chevron's refinery and such downstream assets as retail service stations. But such a bid needed the energy minister's consent, which the fund had neither sought nor obtained, the energy department said.
Oil Spill Response: Responder Immunity Analyzed
On February 16, 2016, Judge Carl J. Barbier of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana granted summary judgment in favor of the various commercial oil spill response companies involved in the federal government’s response to the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. The responders had been sued by numerous individuals claiming that they incurred damages, including personal injury and/or…
NOAA, Deepwater Horizon Trustees Announce Draft Restoration Plans
NOAA and the other Deepwater Horizon Natural Resource Trustees today released a 15-year comprehensive, integrated environmental ecosystem restoration for the Gulf of Mexico in response to the April 20, 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion and spill. Implementing the plan will cost up to $8.8 billion. The explosion killed 11 rig workers and the subsequent spill lasted 87 days and impacted both human and natural resources across the Gulf.
Offshore Industry to Focus on Spill Response
Industry, government and regulators join the debate at Interspill 2015. The oil and gas industry is set to discuss the importance of maintaining focus on oil spill response across all sectors at the three day Interspill conference and exhibition in Amsterdam from March 24-26. Rob Cox, technical director at IPIECA and Interspill chairman, believes it is crucial that spill prevention and response remains a high priority even as the many initiatives set up after the 2009/10 offshore incidents are starting to deliver results.
Interview: Oil Spill Repsonse Insights from MSRC's Benze: Steven T. Benz, President and CEO, Marine Spill Response Corporation (MSRC)
As President and CEO of MSRC, Steve Benz presides over the largest oil spill response company in the United States (and worldwide). In that position since January 1996, he has during that tenure, overseen several critical phases in the Company’s evolution. These include a major restructuring in the late 1990s to make it more competitive; growth throughout the 2000-2009 period, including acquisition of several companies; leadership in overseeing MSRC’s role in responding to the 2010 BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico…
Noble Pleads Guilty to Enviro Charges Surrounding Kulluk
Noble Drilling (U.S.) LLC was charged with environmental and maritime crimes for operating the drill ship Noble Discoverer and the drilling unit Kulluk in violation of federal law in Alaska in 2012, the Department of Justice announced. Under the terms of a plea agreement filed in federal court today, Noble will plead guilty to eight felony offenses, pay $12.2 million dollars in fines and community service payments, implement a comprehensive Environmental Compliance Plan, and will be placed on probation for four years.
ICS: Oil Pollution Compensation Regime under Threat
The running of the global regime for compensation from oil pollution from ships may be under threat, due to a decision by governments to wind up the 1971 International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund (IOPCF), says the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), the global trade association for shipowners. At next week’s IOPCF meeting in London, ICS, in conjunction with BIMCO and Intertanko, will argue that it is premature to wind up the 1971 Fund when there are still outstanding claims not covered by the current 1992 Fund.
Arctic Council Received First Tranche from Russia
Russian Ministry of Finance transferred the first tranche of 5 million euros for implementation of environmental projects of the Arctic Council. This amount is the first payment of Russia’s financial contribution with the total amount of 10 million euros to the Project Support Fund of the Arctic Council, established by the Nordic Environment Finance Corporation (NEFCO). The funds are to be transferred in two tranches of 5 million euros each in 2014 and 2015, respectively, reports RIA Novosti.
Marine Salvage Saves Time, Money, Lives & the Environment
Though maritime transportation is unequivocally proven as the safest and most environmentally benign means to move goods from ‘point A to point B,’ it is a given that accidents do happen. When they do, having a qualified, competent marine salvage company around can be the difference between minor incident and major tragedy. For insights on the maturation and future of marine salvage sector, MR reached out to the leadership of the American Salvage Association (ASA) for answers.
Disasters at Sea & Their Impact on Shipping Regulation
The history of marine safety is soaked in water and written in blood. “I think that most people will tell you that changes in marine safety are almost exclusively disaster-driven,” agrees Dr. Josh Smith, a professor at Kings Point and interim director of the American Merchant Marine Museum. It hasn’t always been that way. Actually, it’s been worse. Despite some efforts early on to exert some control over shipping practices, going to sea has been accepted as a risky undertaking as long as man has floated vessels.
Interview: Rich Hobbie, Water Quality Insurance Syndicate (WQIS)
An interview with Rich Hobbie, the leader of the Water Quality Insurance Syndicate (WQIS), the largest underwriter of pollution liability insurance for marine vessels in the United States. Can you give our readers an overview of your business today. The Premium income and growth factors in the marine insurance industry are very stagnant right now. And competition is quite heavy in all areas. In the U.S. market and in the marine market in general, there are new players. The London market has gotten more aggressive over here.
Canada Seeks Tightened Marine Oil Spill Plan
Canada moved on Tuesday to strengthen its response plan for oil spills at sea ahead of the development of new pipelines that would sharply increase tanker traffic in Canadian waters if they are built. Among the new measures, the federal government said it would remove a per-incident liability cap on a domestic clean-up fund, which means that all the money in the fund could be made available to clean up a single spill. It also pledged to cover spill costs if clean-up funds were exhausted.
