Coast Guard personnel from Sector St. Petersburg, along with members from Port Manatee and Tampa Fire and Rescue, conducted a pollution-response exercise at the Port of Manatee in Palmetto, Fla., from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. today. The exercise was aimed at testing and improving the Coast Guard's ability to assemble, deploy and operate a Vessel of Opportunity Skimming System (VOSS). A VOSS is used to isolate and collect the spilled substance during or after a spill. A VOSS is designed to be transported to a spill site and convert a vessel, 60-feet or longer, into a single-ship, substance-recovery platform. The Falcon, a 90-foot tug owned by Sea Bulk Towing, was used in today's training exercise. The last time a VOSS was deployed in the Tampa Bay area was Aug.