This Week's Headlines
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Officials Clean Up After Oil Spill in Lamar County
BP Alaska Still Risks Environmental Disaster
Hazmat Team Cleans Fuel Spill in Fairfax
BP Finds Pipe Corrosion at Its Newest Alaska Field
Ship-to-Ship Oil Transfer Firm Admits 35,000-Gallon Spill
CSB Releases Strategic Plan for 2007-2012
SCAA, AEA Offer Webinar on Distributor/Manufacturer Relations
Who Else Should Receive Spill Briefs?
SCAA Annual Meeting Set for May 15-17 in
Washington, DC
The Spill Control Association of America is headed to the nation’s
capital for its 2007 Annual Meeting. This meeting provides great
educational and networking opportunities for all members of the spill
response community. SCAA members and prospective members are invited to
attend. DETAILS
Officials Clean Up After Oil Spill in Lamar County
Emergency management officials are
continuing to clean up and test the environmental effects of an oil
spill in a waterway near Purvis, Mississippi. A pipeline crossing a
small stream ruptured February 27 and officials believe between 400 to
450 barrels, or about 20,000 gallons, of oil were released into the
stream.
The waterway flows into Clear Creek, which joins the Pearl River in
Marion County just north of the Mississippi-Louisiana state line. Tests
are being conducted to determine the spill's impact on wildlife.
Analyses indicated the spill would not seriously impact the nearby
environment. Also it seemed no endangered species were threatened. Teams
from M-D-E-Q and the U-S- Fish and Wildlife Service plan to conduct more
studies to determine the spill's effect on wildlife.
DETAILS
BP Alaska Still Risks Environmental Disaster
Less than a year after a corroded pipeline
ruptured causing the largest oil spill in Alaskan history, BP (British
Petroleum) has continued to implement severe cost-cutting measures at
its North Slope facilities, making it vulnerable to another
environmental disaster, a leading critic of the company has charged.
In a four-page letter sent earlier this month to Congressman John
Dingell, chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Chuck
Hamel, an oil industry watchdog, alleges that he has obtained hard
evidence from BP whistle-blowers that the oil behemoth substituted water
for corrosion-inhibiting chemicals in Prudhoe Bay pipelines, and
instructed its employees to allow its equipment to break down before
replacing it. Hamel said BP is trying to save money at the same time the
company has earned record profits on oil production
BP was forced to shut down half of Prudhoe Bay's production last winter
after wellheads were found leaking oil onto the tundra. Hamel further
alleges that BP suffered huge production losses in December due to a
leak at a Prudhoe Bay tank that went unreported, a claim that the
company has vehemently denied.
Additionally, BP oilfield workers have said that critical shortages of
operators at Prudhoe Bay gas collection facilities are putting
employees' lives in danger. The employees told Hamel that they raised
their concerns with BP executives more than five months ago and the
issue has yet to be addressed.
DETAILS
Hazmat Crew Cleans Fuel Spill in Fairfax
A hazardous materials crew from the Fairfax (Virginia) County Fire and Rescue Department is working to clean up a major fuel spill in the city of Fairfax. Lt Raul Castillo said 1,900 gallons of fuel spilled near the loading dock of a commercial building in the 9600 block of Colonial Avenue. DETAILS
BP
Finds Pipe Corrosion at Its Newest Alaska Field
Oil major BP Plc has detected corrosion in piping at its most modern oil
field in Alaska, delaying the field's restart from an unplanned
shutdown. BP shut the 47,000 barrels per day Northstar oil
field, which lies six miles offshore of the Prudhoe Bay field in the
Beaufort Sea, after a worker noticed a small leak in some piping
associated with the facility's gas plant.
Northstar began production in October 2001 and sends its oil by undersea pipeline to a connection with the Trans-Alaska Pipeline near Prudhoe Bay. BP's operations in Alaska have come under intense scrutiny since undetected corrosion caused the largest ever oil spill at the Prudhoe Bay oil field in March 2006. Government-ordered tests revealed further corrosion in August, forcing the field to be partially shut for several months.
BP is replacing the pipelines that leaked at Prudhoe Bay and has revamped its corrosion detection methods there. A federal criminal investigation was opened into the spill but no charges have been laid. DETAILS
Forth Ship-to-Ship Oil Transfer Firm Admits 35,000-gallon Spill
The company wanting to carry out controversial ship-to-ship oil transfers in Scotland's Firth of Forth admitted one of its ships was involved in an accident in which 35,000 gallons of fuel were spilled into the Gulf of Mexico. After being challenged by the Scottish Green Party, SPT Marine Services said there had been a "navigational incident" between two vessels maneuvering into position for a transfer in 1995, and 850 barrels of oil were spilled into the sea. Beaches on the southern coast of the United States were polluted as a result. DETAILS
CSB Releases Strategic Plan for 2007-2012
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) released its new Strategic Plan for 2007 through 2012, setting priorities and allocating resources in support of its mission to prevent chemical accidents.
The plan contains a new emphasis on
conducting new CSB safety studies that will include significant safety
recommendations. The Board also plans to focus on broadly disseminating
report findings,
lessons, and recommendations through innovative agency outreach efforts.
In the plan, the CSB establishes five
strategic agency goals that it hopes to accomplish over the next six
years. The four mission goals focus on investigating chemical accidents,
conducting safety studies, broadly disseminating agency findings, and
successfully closing safety recommendations. The fifth enabling goal
targets the development and retention of a high-performing workforce.
This plan was completely revised during 2006, with a heightened emphasis
on investigations, studies, recommendations, and outreach efforts that
have a significant potential to impact chemical safety.
DETAILS
SCAA, AEA Offer Webinar on Distributor/Manufacturer Relations
SCAA and the Association Education Alliance are offering a webinar titled Distributor/Manufacturer Relations: Demonstrating Total Cost Savings. Tim Underhill will make the presentation March 28, 2007 from 1 p.m. – 2 p.m. EST.
Manufacturers and distributors add value
with the products and services they provide their customers. The ability
to communicate that value, beyond price, is difficult for many
companies. As the prices of steel, energy, plastics and other
costs rise, the need to demonstrate your value is also rising.
This presentation will focus on why customers need suppliers that can
reduce their total operating costs and why you need to show your value.
It will show you how to document your value quickly and easily.
DETAILS
'''You’re one of those environmental lawyers? They’re evildoers. Yesterday it’s a tree, tomorrow it’s a salmon, the next day it’s, ''Let’s not dig up Alaska for oil because it’s too pretty.'' Let me tell you something, I came out here to enjoy nature. Don't talk to me about the environment.'' -- Denny Crane
Who Else Should Receive Spill Briefs?
SCAA's Spill Briefs is distributed free of charge to representatives of member companies. If there's someone else in your organization who might benefit from this newsletter, send their name and e-mail address to info@scaa-spill.org.
The Latest News from SCAA
Here's the latest news from the Spill Control Association of America.
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Coming Events
May 15-17, 2007
SCAA 2007 Annual Meeting
Sheraton National Hotel
Arlington, Virginia
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