Restoration Begins for T/V Westchester Spill
Federal and Louisiana agencies settled with Marine Oil Trader 3, Ltd. and Ermis Maritime Corp. for the November 2000 T/V Westchester oil spill into the Mississippi River in Plaquemines Parish, La. With oversight from the Commerce Department’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), U.S. Department of the Interior’s U.S. restoration projects to address the resources injured by the spill. On Nov. 28, 2000, the T/V Westchester grounded in the Mississippi River at River Mile 38, discharging approximately 500,000 gallons of crude oil into the Mississippi River downstream from New Orleans in Plaquemines Parish, La. hunting opportunities. to conduct a natural resource damage assessment to identify and restore injured natural resources.
Tanker Grounding Renews Safety Calls
The grounding of the oil tanker Westchester in the Mississippi river has had no immediate impact on the freight market but brokers say it could spark a longer term flight to quality, causing freight rates to rise further. "The Westchester was an 1981-built ship so there'll be a renewed focus on modern ships," said one Oslo-based tanker broker. Other sources talked of a self-imposed ban by charterers on single-hulled ships. "So far there's been no visible effect on rates," Reuters reported a U.S. The 83,000-ton Westchester ran aground on Tuesday close to the 38-mile mark of the Mississipi river as a result of losing power due to an engine failure.
