This Week's Headlines
EPA Sharpens Focus on Ecological Benefits of Regulations
Exxon Valdez Spill Damages Cut in Half
SES Mounts a Major Response to the Lebanon Oil Spill
PHMSA Revises Hazardous Materials Regulations
Coast Guard Seeks Volunteers for Response Exercises
Unified Command Responding to Oil Spill at Midway Atoll
EPA Provides Incentives to Reduce Emissions, Increase Recycling
Who Else Should Receive Spill Briefs?
EPA Sharpens Focus on Ecological Benefits of Regulations
What benefits do people actually derive from clean air, water and land?
EPA has taken a major step towards answering this question with the
release today of its Ecological Benefits Assessment Strategic Plan (EBASP).
EPA has traditionally been able to quantify human health benefits more
easily than total ecological benefits when making regulatory decisions.
The EBASP will help fill this gap by enabling the agency to more
comprehensively address the full economic value of environmental
protection.
The EBASP will be a vital tool for agency decision-makers, supplementing
current practices for identifying and quantifying the ecological
benefits of the agency's policies and actions. According to Benjamin
Grumbles, assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Water, "This plan
will boost environmental protection by advancing knowledge of ecosystem
benefits. Understanding the value of a clean stream or a healthy coast
informs decisions and improves environmental results."
The plan was a collaborative effort among EPA's Offices of Research and
Development; Policy, Economics and Innovation; Water; Prevention,
Pesticides and Toxic Substances; Air and Radiation; and Solid Waste and
Emergency Response.
More on the Ecological Benefits Assessment Strategic Plan
Exxon Valdez Spill Damages Cut in Half
A federal appeals court slashed in half the
$5 billion punitive damage award against Exxon Mobil Corp. for the 1989
oil spill from the Exxon Valdez off the coast of Alaska.
The U.S. Court of Appeals in San Francisco reduced the damages the jury
awarded against Exxon to $2.5 billion from the original $5 billion,
which had been reduced to $4.5 billion.
The court called $4.5 billion excessive in relation to the economic harm
the spill caused, according to a court filling.
The court said in its ruling that Exxon's "prompt action" to clean up
the oil and compensate the plaintiffs for economic losses helped
"mollify, at least to some material degree, the reprehensibility in
economic terms of Exxon's original misconduct."
SES Mounts a Major Response to the Lebanon Oil Spill
The summer’s war in Lebanon resulted in the destruction of several roads and bridges, and the bombing of the Jiah Power Station. The oil reserves from the Power Station spilled into the sea and contaminated the entire northern coastline as far as Syria.
Awarded a contract by the U.S. Agency for International Development and assisted by personnel from ADNOC, SEACOR Environmental Services (SES) set about the clean-up of a badly affected section of coastline from the historic marina of Byblos to Anfeh in the north. DETAILS
Source: SESME News
PHMSA Revises Hazardous Materials Regulations
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued a rule revising the hazardous materials regulations to maintain alignment with international standards. Voluntary compliance is authorized as of January 1, 2007. Mandatory compliance is required as of January 1, 2008. 71 Fed. Reg. 78595
Coast Guard Sets Schedule for Response Exercises
The U.S. Coast Guard issued a notice announcing the National Preparedness for Response Exercise Program (PREP) triennial exercise cycle for 2007 through 2009. Comments on the notice should be submitted by February 27, 2007. The Coast Guard also requests industry participants to volunteer for scheduled PREP Area exercises. 71 Fed. Reg. 78449
Unified Command Responding to Oil Spill at Midway Atoll
The U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Pacific Environmental Company (a SCAA member) are aggressively responding to an oil spill within the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument at Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. The spill occurred at approximately 8:30 p.m. December 29 when a Japanese fishing vessel, the Kotobuki Maru No. 38, suffered damage to a fuel oil tank while delivering a crew member to Midway for medical evacuation. DETAILS
Source: Hawaii Reporter
The U.S. Coast Guard issued a press release stating that adverse weather has delayed response to the oil spill from the pipeline in the Gulf of Mexico offshore of Galveston. A second press release states that the pipeline has been secured. Plans are being developed for permanent repairs. The cause of the incident is under investigation.
American Pollution Control
Inc. of New Iberia, a full service environmental contractor that
specializes in emergency spill response and hazardous waste remediation,
recently acquired Oil Stop LLC.
Oil Stop is a major oil and chemical containment boom manufacturing
company based in Harvey, LA.
AMPOL President and CEO, Kirk Headley said that acquiring Oil Stop was
an effort by the company to diversify and better handle the needs of
clients. Emergency response to hazardous material spills, site
remediation, bio-remediation, oil-based mud recovery are among the
services offered.
Headley said that having Oil Stop as a part of AMPOL will eliminate the
step of retrieving supplies. This will ultimately cut down on time
needed to respond.
AMPOL serves oil and gas companies, industrial companies and government
organizations providing emergency and non-emergency toxic and hazardous
materials containment, collection, and assistance with transport and
disposal.
EPA
Provides Incentives to Reduce Chemical Emissions and Increase Recycling
Nationwide
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency finalized a Toxics Release
Inventory (TRI) rule that encourages reductions in chemical emissions
and increases in recycling at facilities nationwide. EPA also announced
its decision to continue requiring TRI data reporting on an annual
basis.
These changes in no way affect the specific chemicals or amounts of
chemicals facilities are authorized to release to the environment. In
addition, the final rule does not exempt any facility from reporting
their releases, nor does it remove any chemicals from the TRI. The rule
allows facilities that completely eliminate releases of persistent,
bioaccumulative and toxic chemicals (PBTs), and recycle and treat no
more than 500 pounds of such chemicals, to use a shorter reporting form.
By reducing long-lasting PBTs, EPA and facilities are delivering a
cleaner environment.
For non-PBT chemicals, the rule allows businesses to use the simpler
reporting form if their releases are no more than 2,000 pounds of waste
as part of an overall waste management limit of 5,000 pounds. By
imposing the 2,000 pound cap on releases for non-PBT chemicals, EPA is
encouraging businesses to rely on preferred waste management methods,
such as recycling and treatment, rather than disposal and other
releases.
More information about the final rule
About TRI
''Having is not so pleasing a thing as wanting. It is not logical, but it is often true.'' -- Mr. Spock
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.
You can find an archive of SCAA's newsletters on SCAA's web site.
Let us know what you think of the online newsletter. Send your comments or article ideas to Jackie King.
Coming Events
May 15-17, 2007
SCAA 2007 Annual Meeting
Sheraton National Hotel
Arlington, Virginia
SCAA Staff
Executive
Director
443-640-1085
ext. 105
Director of Meetings & Member Services
443-640-1085
ext. 112
Financial Manager
443-640-1085
ext. 103
SCAA Headquarters
2105 Laurel Bush Rd.
Suite 200
Bel Air, MD 21015
443-640-1085
fax: 443-640-1086
Disclaimer:
Although the Spill Control Association of America has made every effort
to be accurate, unintentional errors may appear.
© 2007 Spill Control Association of America. Unauthorized
re-distribution of this newsletter (including posting of links to this
newsletter on the Internet) is strictly prohibited. Please contact
info@scaa-spill.org for
re-distribution authorization.