Marine Link
Thursday, March 28, 2024
SUBSCRIBE

Marine Spill Response News

01 Dec 2022

Scania to Power MSRC's Oil Response Vessels

(Photo: Scania)

Engine manufacturer Scania on Thursday announced it has been selected by Marine Spill Response Corporation (MSRC) to power its new fleet of five 47-foot Skimmer oil response vessels, built by Rozema Boat Works. Powered by twin DI13 087M 700hp engines provided by Cascade Engine Center, the new vessels will be delivered in 2023.Formed in conjunction with the Marine Preservation Association in 1990 by oil and gas companies, MSRC is a not-for-profit organization with U.S. Coast Guard OSRO classification in every U.S. captain of the port zone except Alaska.

13 Apr 2022

The New 'New York'

(Photo: Sandy Hook Pilots Association)

When it came time to replace their 50-year-old station vessel New York, the Sandy Hook Pilots Association thought long and hard, weighing their options to determine the best possible solution. They traveled the country, to Houston, San Francisco and up to the Columbia River, and even to Europe—the Elbe River in Germany and Rotterdam in the Netherlands—to ride with other pilots in search of an answer.“We looked at everything from SWATH (small-waterplane-area twin hull) boats to helicopters to big boats in Europe…

17 Mar 2022

Converted OSRV Added to Sandy Hook Pilots Fleet

Photo courtesy Sandy Hook Pilots

Sandy Hook Pilots Association welcomed its new Pilot Station Boat New York, a converted Oil Spill Response Vessel (OSRV), which, at 208 feet long, is the largest in the Sandy Hook Pilots fleet.While welcoming the its new addition, Sandy Hook Pilots retired its predecessor, also named New York, which has been a familiar sight in the Port of New York and New Jersey harbor for nearly 50 years.On February 3, the new P/B New York sailed to its new home, the Sandy Hook Pilot base in Staten Island…

20 Jan 2022

Hornblower Acquires Two Offshore Vessels

(Photo: Hornblower Group)

Hornblower Group announced on Wednesday it has acquired two offshore vessels: the Seaward Explorer and Seaward Endeavor, previously the California Responder and Pacific Responder, respectively. Seaward Services, Inc. (SSI), part of the Hornblower Group of maritime businesses, is offering the multipurpose supply vessels for charter, with prompt availability.The Seaward Explorer and Seaward Endeavor were built at VT Halter Marine in Mississippi, commissioned by Marine Spill Response Company (MSRC) in response to the Exxon Valdez oil spill.

07 Sep 2021

Canada's New Oil Spill Response Boats Powered by Scania

(Photo: Scania)

Engine manufacturer Scania said it has been selected by the Western Canada Marine Response Corporation (WCMRC) to power four 52-foot oil spill response landing crafts.Currently in production by family-owned Burlington, Wash welded aluminum boat manufacturer the William E. Munson Company, the vessels are powered by twin keel-cooled 750 HP Scania DI13-liter 088M engines with Twin Disc 5095 marine gearboxes, supplied by distributor Cascade Engine Center. Propulsion is provided by Hamilton 403 waterjets. This combination offers a top speed of 35 knots at full power.

29 Jun 2020

Ireland Publishes Marine Spill Response Plan

© Alexander Lupin / Adobe Stock

Ireland's Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport published a new plan establishing a national framework and strategy to coordinate marine pollution preparedness and response in the waters of the country's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). The National Maritime Oil & HNS Spill Contingency Plan (NMOSCP) addresses all oil and HNS pollution whether it originates from ships, harbors, offshore units or oil/HNS handling facilities and land-based sources.Additionally the NMOSCP is consistent with the relevant International Conventions to which Ireland is a party.

22 Apr 2020

Autonomy on Trial

(Image: Wartsila)

When discussing the arrival of autonomous workboats, many – especially those developing the technologies that enable them – say it’s is not a matter of if, but when. In fact, autonomous harbor tugs are already being put to the test in Singapore, where authorities hope to establish the technological infrastructure to enable fully autonomous ship operations. In the U.S., an autonomous vessel was shown to be able to respond to marine oil spills.But is autonomy really the future?

21 Aug 2019

Sea Machines Demonstrates Autonomous Spill-Response Vessel

As a part of its cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Transportation Maritime Administration (MARAD), Boston-based Sea Machines Robotics announces that it has successfully demonstrated its autonomous systems in action on board a Kvichak Marco skimmer boat during events held along the Portland harbor earlier today.Sea Machines’ technology opens a new era of capability for the marine industry, and today the company demonstrated its ability to increase the safety, productivity and predictability of response for marine oil-spill operations.

24 Jul 2019

Sea Machines to Demo Autonomy for MarAd

Photo: Sea Machines

Sea Machines Robotics has been a progressive leader in advancing autonomy in the maritime space, and today it announced a deal with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MarAd) to demonstrate the value of Sea Machines’ autonomous technology in marine oil-spill response ops. The scope of the deal has Sea Machines installing its SM300 autonomous-command system aboard a Marine Spill Response Corp. (MSRC)-owned MARCO skimming vessel and will train MSRC personnel to operate the system.

23 Jul 2019

Regulatory Crewing Challenges for Offshore Wind Vessels

Photo: © halberg/Adobe Stock

Every day we see more and more news about how the planning for new offshore wind projects continues to expand with the increasing investment from both domestic and foreign interests in these projects. This is resulting in both developers and contractors making logistics plans to secure vessels and crew for the purposes of meeting the demands necessary to crew and operate vessels in support of future wind farm operations. Unfortunately, there are challenges associated with the…

12 Dec 2018

2018 Green Apple Spill Exercise

Committed to providing tugboat and towing vessel operators with a platform to meet regularity requirements and collaborate with local resources, the annual event also reminds us that Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance.On September 28 2018, American Marine Associates, LLC (AMA) coordinated and hosted the 3rd annual Green Apple Spill Response Exercise in Bayonne, NJ. The Green Apple Spill Response exercise was established specifically for the tugboat and towing vessel industry operating in New York Harbor.

18 Nov 2018

Work‘bots’: Autonomous Vessels Arrive

The near-shore and inland workboat fleet is at the leading edge for autonomous vessel developmentWhile the advent of autonomous workboats are not exactly mainstream, you better believe that in the not-too-distant future they will be a reality on waterways in and around the U.S. Today there remain more questions than answers, particularly on the legal, logistics and insurance side of the coin. But the technology is evolving at record pace, providing many in the industry with mixed emotions. Excitement. Controversy. Curiosity. Skepticism. These are just a few of thoughts, and emotions that arise to any mention of the topic of autonomous vessels.It’s happening now.

13 Nov 2018

U.S. Flag Vessel Safety

Image: NTSB

Congressional and Agency Actions to Implement Changes to U.S.-Flag Vessel Safety Requirements Three Years after the M/V El Faro IncidentOctober 1, 2018 marked three years since the tragic sinking of the M/V El Faro – ranking as one of the worst maritime disasters in U.S. history and resulting in the highest death toll for a U.S. commercial vessel sinking in almost 40 years. Following this incident, both the  National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and U.S. Coast Guard spent considerable  effort to investigate this incident.

13 Jun 2018

Spill Prevention & Response: Old Lessons, New Challenges

Credit: and paid for by Sea-Machines

Emerging spill response trends fit into two big categories: technology and a combination of economic and social forces. Both will shape what comes next.Florida’s stunning Tampa Bay stands out as exactly the kind of place where you have to think about hazardous materials emergencies. It was 25 years ago, on August 10, 1993, that a freighter collided with two barges near the entrance of Tampa Bay, causing a fire and spilling over 32,000 gallons of jet fuel, diesel, and gasoline and about 330,000 gallons of heavy fuel, devastating beaches, wildlife and habitat.

07 Mar 2017

MSRC Names Dulisse CEO

Oil spill response organization Marine Spill Response Corporation (MSRC) has named Carmine Dulisse as its new President and CEO effective March 1, 2017.   Dulisse joins MSRC after more than 30 years with ExxonMobil in various roles, including the maritime and crisis management arenas. He was one of the founding officers of the Marine Well Containment Company (MWCC) in the capacity of Health, Safety, and Environmental Officer from 2011 to 2015, prior to returning to ExxonMobil as the corporation’s Global Emergency Preparedness & Response Manager. He served in this capacity until retiring from ExxonMobil and joining MSRC on March 1.

16 Dec 2016

Could Offshore Crewing Requirements Make Things Worse?

(Photo: Joaquin Andres Bosqued)

It has been years (2009) since I last wrote an article discussing the availability of U.S. citizens to work offshore in support of oil and gas projects during a downturn in the economy. And now, it is even worse. With the price of oil and gas remaining depressed for many months now, and the many new developments related to drilling ashore, and domestic vessels remaining stacked in the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), companies are working hard to find work in any market around the world. This downturn in activity also means less jobs for U.S. citizen seafarers.

22 Aug 2016

MSRC CEO to Retire in April 2017

Photo courtesy of MSRC

The Marine Spill Response Corporation (MSRC), the nation’s leading oil spill response organization, has announced that Steven T. Benz, the company’s President and CEO, will be retiring on April 30, 2017. Tim Plummer, Chair of the MSRC Board of Directors, said “We are thankful to Steve for his many years of strong leadership. During his tenure, he has solidified MSRC as the preeminent spill response organization in the nation, as demonstrated by the critical role MSRC played in the “Deepwater Horizon” response.

31 Dec 2015

California Vessel Response Plans Altered

Steamship Mutual advises that beginning January 1, 2016 Marine Spill Response Corporation (MSRC) will no longer provide California Shoreline Protection (CASP) and On Water Response Coverage services for vessels calling at the Port of Hueneme, Calif. and/or transiting the southbound traffic lanes of the Santa Barbara Channel. However, MSRC will continue to meet the planning standards for 12 hours and greater in the Santa Barbara Channel and Port Hueneme and will respond in these areas in the event of an incident. Furthermore, from January 1, 2016, So Cal Ship Services (SCSS) will provide CASP response services to meet the two hour skimming…

02 Jun 2015

The Ever-Evolving Rapid Response Skimmer

Kvichak’s Rapid Response Skimmers (RRS) are perhaps best known for their use by the U.S. Navy, but the design of these robust and well-designed units has evolved over time and today boasts placement in virtually every major spill organization. When, just this past October, Kvichak Marine won a U.S. Navy contract for 12 30-foot Rapid Response Skimmers (RRS) for delivery over the next 18 months, with options for up to 30 additional skimmers to be delivered through 2019, that wasn’t necessarily earthshaking news. That’s because the aluminum Kvichak RRS is already the Navy’s tier one response asset. The new craft will supplement the Navy’s current fleet of over 85 units in operation in Navy ports worldwide since 1994.

02 Sep 2014

BSEE Conducts Oil Spill Response Equipment Review

Earlier this week, BSEE's Oil Spill Response Division (OSRD) conducted an onsite review of oil spill response equipment listed in DCOR, LLC's Oil Spill Response Plan for platforms offshore Long Beach, Calif. The visit included verification of equipment and response vessels maintained by Marine Spill Response Corporation. OSRD verifies the equipment listed in each operator's plan on a rotating basis in addition to reviewing maintenance and training records. BSEE oversees oil spill planning and preparedness for U.S.

19 Sep 2014

USCG Cutter in Oregon Spill Drill

The crew of Coast Guard Cutter Fir, a 225-foot buoy tender homeported in Astoria, Oregon, participated in a Spilled Oil Response System exercise near Blake Island, Washington, Wednesday. The exercise was part of an annual response exercise and included members of the Coast Guard 13th District Response Advisor Team, Pacific Strike Team out of Novato, California, Coast Guard Auxiliary, Washington State Department of Ecology, Harley Marine Service Inc., Navy Region Northwest, Washington State Ferries, and the Marine Spill Response Corporation.

27 Jul 2015

BSEE Tests GoM Response Equipment

Photo: BSEE

The U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) informs it has recently tested and verified the sound working condition of various response equipment used in the Gulf of Mexico region. Analysts with BSEE’s Oil Spill Preparedness Division boarded the pollution control vessel Louisiana Responder at Fort Jackson, La. on July 14 to test the response readiness of Anadarko Petroleum Corp. While conducting an equipment verification, the team witnessed the testing of a skimmer and other associated equipment, stored in Buras, La., on the Mississippi River.

19 Dec 2014

Interview: Oil Spill Repsonse Insights from MSRC's Benze: Steven T. Benz, President and CEO, Marine Spill Response Corporation (MSRC)

Steve Benz, president and CEO, 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…