State Lands Commission News

The GEF-UNDP-IMO GloFouling Partnerships project has concluded its inaugural Research and Development Forum and Exhibition on Biofouling Management, in Melbourne, Australia (1 to 4 October).Bringing together experts, regulators and industry representatives to discuss the latest advances in research, regulations and technologies related to marine biofouling across all maritime sectors, this is set to become the project’s biennial “signature event”.Over 170 participants and 40 speakers took part in a program that focused on how biofouling affects different maritime industries, including shipping, aquaculture and ocean renewable energies…

California will block the transport of petroleum from new offshore oil rigs through its state, officials told Reuters, a move meant to hobble the Trump administration’s effort to vastly expand drilling in U.S. federal waters. California's threat to deny pipeline permits for transporting oil from new leases off the Pacific Coast is the latest step by states trying to halt the biggest proposed expansion in decades of federal oil and gas leasing. Officials in Florida, North and South Carolina…

Vessel operators calling at California ports are reminded of the state’s new biofouling management regulations and reporting requirements under its Marine Invasive Species Program 2018, said GARD. The state of California is known for its enforcement of stringent environmental regulations. In addition to complying with stricter air emission requirements under the California Ocean-going Vessel (OGV) Fuel Regulation, vessels calling at California ports must also comply with regulations for ballast water discharges and biofouling enforced under the state’s Marine Invasive Species Program. The California MISP is designed to prevent, and eventually eliminate, the introduction of non-indigenous species into State waters and is administered by the California State Lands Commission (SLC).

We are quickly approaching September 8, 2017, the date when the International Ballast Water Convention will enter into force requiring ships to manage their ballast water using methods to remove or render harmless organisms contained within their ballast water. This is in an effort to halt the spread of invasive species that have crippled many local ecosystems, both monetarily and environmentally, in some cases causing irreparable damage. In the U.S., the regulations are already in place. Recently, the U.S.

The California State Lands Commission (CSL) has promulgated a letter to clarify its interpretation of existing ballast water requirements under the California's Marine Invasive Species Act (MISA) informs the UK P&I Club. In its letter, California recognizes that in certain limited circumstances under federal law a vessel may not be required to deviate or incur delay in order to conduct a ballast water exchange.  However, CSL explains that MISA does not provide for any exemption based on deviation or voyage delay. CSL has also updated its map to more correctly depict the 200 nm boundary for the US West Coast, including those waters extending south of California. The .PDF letter may be downloaded at: bit.ly/1s7mKdq Source: UK P&I Club

California State Lands Commission has passed Senate Bill (SB) 814, which will become effective on January 1, 2014. Among its provisions, SB 814 amends Public Resources Code section 71205.3 and delays implementation of the interim performance standards for two years. NB: this delay does not apply to the implementation of the final discharge standard of zero detectable living organisms for all size classes by January 1, 2020. On June 21, 2013, the California State Lands Commission approved a report to the California Legislature recommending a delay in the implementation of California's interim performance standards for the discharge of ballast water. The recommendation was based on the lack of advisable treatment technologies to comply with all of California's standards.

The California State Lands Commission's (SLC) report '2013 Assessment of the Efficacy, Availability, and Environmental Impacts of Ballast Water Treatment Systems for Use in California Waters' concludes that no shipboard ballast water treatment systems are currently available to meet all of California’s performance standards for the discharge of ballast water. Commission staff reviewed 75 shipboard ballast water treatment systems for this analysis, however, significant limitations in the existing data hamper the ability of Commission staff to determine if shipboard ballast water treatment systems are available to meet California’s performance standards.

Installation or use of an USCG accepted Alternative Management Systems (AMS) does not waive a vessel's requirement to meet the California Code of Regulations ballast discharge performance standards. In accordance with the California Public Resource Code and California Code of Regulations, vessels may manage ballast water using an alternative, environmentally sound method approved by the California State Lands Commission or the USCG as being at least as effective as ballast water exchange, using mid-ocean waters, in eliminating nonindigenous species. As any USCG accepted AMS must demonstrate efficacy at least as effective as mid-ocean exchange…

Final Restoration Plan Completed for Cosco Busan Oil Spill; Projects will Address Impacts from Ship that Struck the Bay Bridge. State and federal trustee agencies have released the Cosco Busan Oil Spill Final Damage Assessment and Restoration Plan. The document summarizes the injuries to wildlife, habitat, and recreational uses from the oil spill that occurred on Nov. 7, 2007. It also describes a number of restoration projects that will be implemented to compensate for injuries from the spill.

Oil Spill Proceeds Of Settlement to Fund Projects and Restore Natural Resources Largest Oil Pollution Act Settlement in History of the Law. Federal, state and Bay-area officials announced a comprehensive civil settlement with the owners and operators of the M/V Cosco Busan, resolving all natural resource damages, penalties and response costs that resulted from the ship striking the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge in 2007, and subsequent oil spill in the San Francisco Bay. The event killed thousands of birds, impacted a significant portion of the Bay’s 2008 herring spawn, spoiled miles of shoreline habitat and closed the bay and area beaches to recreation and fishing. The U.S.

The S/R American Progress, a double-hull U.S. flag tank ship, operated by SeaRiver Maritime, Inc., and fitted with the BALPURE ballast water management system from Severn Trent De Nora, is authorized to discharge treated ballast water into the water of California. Authorization was granted by the California State Lands Commission in accordance with California Public Resources Code Section 71204.3(d), which authorizes vessels to manage their ballast water using alternative, environmentally…

According to a June 1 report from the Los Angeles Times, the State Lands Commission lashed out at Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's attempt to reverse its rejection of the first new oil drilling in California waters since 1969. At a contentious hearing in Santa Monica, the commission passed a resolution urging legislators not to go along with Schwarzenegger's plan, which would revive a drilling project off the Santa Barbara County coast that the commission killed in January. (Source: Los Angeles Times)

California Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. filed a lawsuit today on behalf of the California Department of Fish and Game Office of Spill Prevention and Response, State Lands Commission and State Water Boards against the owners, operators and pilot of the M/V Cosco Busan, the shipping vessel that spilled more than 53,000 gallons of oil into San Francisco Bay. “This was a preventable accident that had tragic consequences,” Attorney General Brown said. On November 7, 2007, the Cosco Busan, piloted by John Cota, hit the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge’s Delta Tower. The crash caused approximately 53,569 of gallons of oil to spew into San Francisco Bay and spread to the Pacific Ocean and along Bay Area shorelines.

The California State Lands Commission (SLC) released its Ballast Water Treatment Technology Testing Guidelines, available at: http://www.slc.ca.gov/Spec_Pub/MFD/Ballast_Water/Documents/TestingGuidelinesFinal_101008.pdf The guidelines are intended to provide treatment technology vendors with a standardized protocol to verify treatment system compliance with California’s ballast water performance standards and water quality objectives. (Source: Holland & Knight)

Legislation has been favorably reported out of the Senate Committee in Commerce, Science, and Transportation that would, if enacted, constitute the first official steps by the federal government to come to grips with biofouling of the hulls of ships. The Ballast Water Management Act of 2007 (S. 1578) would, among other things, require the U.S. Coast Guard to conduct a study of vessel-borne vectors (other than ballast water and sediment), specifically including vessel hulls, anchors, and equipment.

The California State Lands Commission (CSLC) will conduct a business meeting in Sacramento on March 25.  Among the items on the calendar is a request for authority to enter into a contract to support vessel modifications and conduct shipboard ballast water treatment research.  The plan calls for the CSLC to contribute $100,000 toward a $700,000 effort to install an experimental ballast water treatment system on the California Maritime Academy (CMA) training ship GOLDEN BEAR and conduct beta testing and calibration.  Calendar Item C76 (Source: HK Law).

Hyde OptiMarin LLC, a joint venture of Hyde Marine Inc. of Cleveland, Ohio and OptiMarin A/S of Stavanger Norway, is delivering four new full-scale OptiMar Ballast Water Treatment Systems during 2001, systems designed to control the spread of Aquatic Nuisance Species in ship's ballast water. Hyde OptiMarin delivered the first ever full-scale ballast water treatment system using ultraviolet light with cyclonic separation pretreatment for installation aboard the cruise ship "Regal Princess". This system has been operating continuously since May 2000. The first new system was installed in August 2001 aboard the cruise ship "Sea Princess". The 220 ton/hr.

The California State Lands Commission (SLC) issued a Letter to Interested Parties stating that the ballast water fee for vessels arriving in California will be increased from $200 to $500 per qualifying voyage, effective February 1, 2004. The SLC also issued the text of the Emergency Regulation effecting the change. Looks like a Schwarzenegger Special to me. (Source: HK Law)

The California State Lands Commission (SLC) is sponsoring Prevention First 2002 , an onshore and offshore pollution prevention symposium and technology exhibition in Long Beach on September 10-11, 2002. Topics are expected to include issues such as human factors and ballast water management.

The California State Lands Commission (SLC) issued a Notice of Proposed Regulatory Action relating to management of ballast water on ships of 300 gross registered tons or more arriving in California after having taken on ballast water from places within the Pacific Coast Region. The Pacific Coast Region is defined as coastal waters on the Pacific Coast of North America east of 154°W longitude and north of 25°N latitude, exclusive of the Gulf of California. While several alternatives are provided for, the major ballast water management measure proposed is the exchange of the ship’s ballast water in near-coastal waters (waters that are more than 50 nautical miles from land and at least 200 meters deep). Under the proposal, the SLC would assess a per voyage fee of $500.

The California State Lands Commission issued a notice stating that it is preparing a draft environmental impact report regarding a proposal to install and maintain a fiber optic cable from San Luis Obispo to Hawaii and Asia. A public scoping meeting will be held in San Luis Obispo on November 27. Written comments should be submitted by December 6. Source: HK Law

With eyes on more than 400 environmental and safety concerns, the U.S. Coast Guard officially stopped the clock last week on the approval process for the liquefied natural gas (LNG) project planned for the southern stretches of the Santa Barbara Channel. A proposal from Texas-based NorthernStar Energy to convert the Platform Grace oil rig — some 10 miles off the coast of Santa Barbara and directly adjacent to the boundaries of the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary — into an LNG facility had been on a fast-tracked review process that could have seen the Clearwater Port project approved as soon as next June — until now, that is. In a letter sent directly to NorthernStar on October 30, the Coast Guard, in conjunction with the U.S.

The California State Lands Commission issued a Notice of Proposed Regulatory Action that would, if adopted, establish performance standards for the discharge of ballast water for vessels operating in California waters. The Proposed Regulations were released separately, along with the Initial Statement of Reasons. Comments on the proposal should be submitted by June 6. Review of the proposed performance standards causes one to despair for the art of the feasible. Source: HK Law