British Columbia Coast News

1.54 billion liters of grey water were generated by ships off the British Columbia coast in 2017 - the equivalent of more than 600 Olympic-size swimming pools, said a study.World Wildlife Fund Canada says cruise ships traveling between Washington state and Alaska are responsible for dumping "the vast majority" of the potentially toxic grey water that ends up off the B.C. coast each year.Cruise ships accounted for 1.37 billion (almost 90%) of the 1.54 billion liters of grey water generated off the B.C. coast in 2017, the study revealed.Grey water — the drainage from dishwater, galley sinks, and showers — may contain contaminants ranging from grease, oil and flame retardants to disinfectants, fecal coliform and micro-plastics, among other substances.

SAAM SMIT Canada Inc. (SST Canada) held a blessing ceremony for a new RAstar 3200-W escort tug named SST Tsimshian Warrior built by Turkey’s UZMAR Shipyard.This new Robert Allan Ltd. designed tug brings formidable capabilities to the west coast of British Columbia, Canada.Principally intended to serve AltaGas’ newly opened LPG terminal, the SST Tsimshian Warrior is both the most powerful tug of its kind on the coast, as well as the most environmentally friendly in Canada.With an IMO Tier III compliant exhaust after-treatment system, a first on a tug in Canada and pioneering in the world as well, the tug’s emissions of NOx, SOx, and particulate matter are dramatically reduced from levels seen on even the most recent generation of tugboats.Powered by CAT 3516E engines each producing 2…

Canada's National Energy Board (NEB) regulator recommended on Friday that Ottawa approve expansion of the government-owned Trans Mountain oil pipeline, but made new, nonbinding recommendations to mitigate harm to Pacific Ocean killer whales and the environment.The pipeline is in the national interest as it will create jobs and give Canadian oil access to more markets, the NEB said in a report. But expanding it is likely to significantly harm the killer whale population off the coast of British Columbia and increase greenhouse gas emissions from ships…

Turkish shipbuilder Uzmar Shipyard has inked a deal with Saam Smit Canada Inc. (SST Canada), a joint venture partnership between Boskalis of the Netherlands and Saam S.A of Chile, for the construction of a new escort tug for operations in British Columbia, Canada. Designer Robert Allan Ltd. said the state-of-the-art RAstar 3200-W tug will be capable of safely performing all ship-handling roles, including berthing, unberthing and escort duties, including in heavier weather conditions.

Underwater noise has been identified as a key threat to at-risk whales. In order to better understand and manage the impact of shipping activities on whales throughout the southern coast of British Columbia, a hydrophone listening station has been deployed by the Port Metro Vancouver, with support from the University of Victoria’s Ocean Networks Canada and JASCO Applied Sciences, to monitor underwater vessel noise in the Strait of Georgia. The hydrophone listening station deployment and monitoring activities are part of the Enhancing Cetacean Habitat and Observation (ECHO) Program…

Montreal has emerged as an export base for Western Canadian heavy sour crudes as prospects to construct new pipelines to the British Columbia coast, Eastern Canada and U.S. fade. Suncor, owner and operator of the 137,000 b/d Montreal East refinery in Quebec, loaded 35,000 mt of Western Canadian Select (WCS) crude from Montreal East onboard the Panamax tanker Sparto Sunday, according to market sources. Sparto is bound for the Motiva Norco refinery in Louisiana. This is believed to be the first time Western Canadian crudes are being shipped from Montreal into the U.S. Gulf Coast. Suncor, in addition to its tankage at its Montreal East refinery, has leased tankage at Kildair’s Sorel-Tracy terminal in eastern Montreal.

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. It also said it will lift its ban on the use of dispersants in cases when using them offers a net environmental benefit. Dispersants are chemicals that break down oil slicks but can also harm marine life.

A steel boat can continue to serve for many years if properly maintained. Seaspan Marine is the largest towing company on the British Columbia coast. Utilizing the services of their sister companies Vancouver Drydock, Vancouver Shipyard and Victoria Shipyards, they do much of their own repair and maintenance work. The upgrade and maintenance of the 25.24 by 7.56-meter (82.8 x 24.8) Seaspan Cutlass was done at Seaspan’s Vancouver Shipyard, which was the yard that built the tug and her sisters, including the Seaspan Cavalier in 1975. Both tugs have received similar upgrades.

Kitimat LNG partners Apache Canada Ltd. (Apache Canada) and EOG Resources Canada Inc. (EOG Canada) announced that they have agreed to purchase the 50 percent interest in the Pacific Trail Pipelines Limited Partnership (PTPLP) they do not own from Pacific Northern Gas Ltd. (PNG) for $50m. Apache Canada and EOG Canada will pay PNG $30m on closing – expected by the end of February – and a second payment of $20m when the purchasers decide to proceed with construction of the Kitimat liquefied natural gas (LNG) export facility. "Acquiring the PTP is an important step in building a comprehensive system that will enable Apache and EOG to tap Asian markets for our abundant natural gas resources in the Horn River Basin and elsewhere in Western Canada," said Janine McArdle, president of Kitimat LNG.

According to a Feb. 24 report from The Gazette, a sunken Canadian steamship that offered luxury cruises for decades along the British Columbia coast, then served a crucial role during the Second World War transporting troops, supplies and Jewish refugees, is now polluting the waters of a major Pacific Ocean inlet. The Princess Kathleen, a Canadian Pacific cruise ship sank in a storm off southeast Alaska nearly 60 years ago and has been identified as the source of a persistent oil slick in waters north of Juneau after U.S. Coast Guard officials dived to the wreck site last week. (Source: The Gazette)

The Pacific States/British Columbia Oil Spill Task Force will hold its 2002 annual meeting in Tacoma on July 23. The meeting will last from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Sheraton Tacoma Hotel, 1320 Broadway Plaza, and is open to the news media and the public. The task force was formed in 1989 to coordinate oil-spill prevention and response policies that cover some 55,826 miles of coastline, from the Beaufort Sea to the Baja Peninsula, plus the Hawaiian islands. The theme for this year's meeting, Doing It Right: Balancing Regulatory and Non-Regulatory Approaches, will focus on the roles that government regulators and private industry play in reducing the number and severity of oil spills.

Motor yacht Kensington on the ways at Jensen Motor Boat Company, circa 1929. For more than a hundred years, the Pacific Northwest has ranked as a center for vessel design, construction and preservation. Beginning with the advent of the Pacific cod fishery in the 1880s, utilizing the raw material afforded by the vast Northwest forests, Seattle-area boat builders began creating one of the world’s great fishing fleets. Soon, they would craft sailing ships to support the lumber and cargo trades, and work boats that sustained Pacific commerce.

Speaking durig a recent Business Summitt held by the Mayor and City Council of Prince Rupert, Premier Dan Miller voiced his support of the development of the offshore oil and gas industry on the coast of British Columbia. "I am not opposed to it [the lifting of the moratorium on offshore oil and gas exploration]," said Premier Miller. From the Mayor and Council Business Summitt came the recommendation that a Canada/British Columbia offshore petroleum board be established. This board is to have decision-making capabilities along the lines of those established in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. Currently, there is both federal and provincial legislation preventing offshore oil and gas exploration on Canada's west coast.