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Pollution Control Hearings Board News

02 Apr 2018

Barge Company Fined for Fertilizer Spill into Columbia, Snake Rivers

A local barge company has been fined $18,000 for spilling 40,000 gallons of liquid urea ammonium nitrate into the Snake and Columbia rivers. Urea ammonium nitrate is a common fertilizer that is corrosive to steel. An investigation by the Washington Department of Ecology found that two steel tank barges owned and operated by Tidewater Barge Lines, Inc. were not properly maintained, causing the liquid fertilizer to spill into the rivers during three separate incidents in April 2017. The first spill occurred between April 11 and 21 during transfer and storing operations at the Tidewater Snake River Terminal in Pasco. Investigators determined that 16,639 gallons of urea ammonium nitrate were released by Barge No. 78 due to corrosion of the storage tank.

11 Sep 2013

Olympic Tug & Barge Fined for Port Angeles Oil Spill

The Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) is fining Olympic Tug & Barge of Seattle $16,500 for spilling oil into Port Angeles Harbor last November. The spill occurred when a company-owned fuel barge was overfilled while being loaded with fuel oil. Ecology determined the Nov. 7, 2012, heavy fuel oil spill occurred because of an error by the barge operator. More than 1,700 gallons of fuel spilled to the deck of the barge with nearly 50 gallons entering Port Angeles Harbor. The oil transfer was being conducted at the Tesoro Port Angeles Terminal located at the foot of the spit Ediz Hook. Olympic Tug & Barge had oil containment boom placed around the barge prior to starting the fuel transfer which helped contain the spill.

17 Feb 2010

Sound Freight Penalized for Discharge

The owner of a tug that released oily bilge water into the Columbia River last year is being penalized $21,000 by the Washington Department of Ecology. Sound Freight Lines’ tug Black Hawk discharged an estimated 150 gallons of lubricating and diesel oils while transiting near Willow Grove on the Columbia River during the morning hours of Jan. 29, 2009. The sheen went unreported until mid-day when observers on the river called the U.S. Coast Guard and Ecology. By then, it was too late for responders to do more than collect samples for further investigation. Ecology spills investigators collected samples from all the commercial vessels that had been in the area at the time of the spill and were able to match the oily discharge to the Black Hawk’s bilge contents.

18 Nov 2008

Trident Seafoods – 2nd Bowfin Fuel Spill

The Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) has fined Seattle-based Trident Seafoods $30,500 for an oil spill in December 2007 that sent almost 500 gallons of fuel into the Hylebos Waterway in Commencement Bay. The spill happened while the company’s tender vessel Bowfin was tied up at Trident Seafoods’ dock in Tacoma. A Trident Seafoods engineer began transferring diesel fuel between two tanks onboard the Bowfin. It appears a small fuel line became plugged, causing diesel to run out of a tank vent, across the deck and overboard. The company found the spill the evening of Dec. 10 after a diesel smell was traced back to the Bowfin.

06 Nov 2003

Company Fined for Spilling in Port Angeles Harbor

The Department of Ecology (Ecology) has fined owners of the Gaz Diamond propane tanker $75,500 for spilling oil into the Port Angeles harbor in May 2002. The Gaz Diamond is owned by the Naftomar Shipping and Trading Company Ltd., based in Greece. The ship spilled 1,188 gallons of fuel oil when its tanks overfilled while refueling. The oil washed up on nearby beaches and docks along the southern shore of the Ediz Hook peninsula near the U.S. Coast Guard Air Station. Cleanup efforts lasted five days and involved oil skimming vessels, thousands of feet of oil containment boom and hundreds of oil snares staked along the shore. Oil collected in nearby commercial fish pens, on docks, log booms, private boats, the public boat launch, a U.S. Coast Guard vessel, and the Puget Sound Pilot Station.

17 May 2004

Boatbuilder Fined for Waste Violations

The state Department of Ecology (Ecology) has fined Glacier Bay Inc. $39,000 for repeatedly failing to meet five safety and environmental requirements for handling dangerous waste. While the Monroe boat-builder fulfilled some portions of the state's dangerous-waste regulations, it did not consistently correct the five violations between April 2002 and March of this year. During that time, Ecology tried to help the company come into compliance by making technical assistance available. The company failed to properly label drums that stored waste acetone and did not provide adequate secondary containment in case of leaks or spills. Acetone is highly flammable and requires special safeguards to prevent fires or explosions, and its fumes are toxic.

30 Aug 2007

Ship Fined for Failure to Have Oil Spill Readiness Plan

The Washington Department of Ecology (Ecology) has levied an $8,500 fine to the Greek shipping firm Marmaras Navigation Co. Ltd. for operating a cargo vessel in Washington waters without a state-approved oil spill readiness plan. The penalty against Marmaras Navigation marks the first time Ecology has levied a fine under its new oil spill contingency plan rule adopted in October 2006. Ecology requires that cargo and passenger ships, tank vessels, oil storage facilities and pipeline companies demonstrate that they can mount an effective, timely response if they spill oil. Under the rule, the vessel must either have their own approved spill readiness plan or be enrolled in one of the two non-profit organizations with approved plans that cover vessels in Washington.