Seattle barge firm must pay $14,000

Tuesday, February 12, 2008
The Columbian

Seattle barge firm must pay $14,000

A Seattle-based barge company has been fined $14,000 for spilling 50 gallons of diesel fuel into the Columbia River during a fuel transfer at the Port of Vancouver in December­ 2006.

Olympic Tug & Barge was fined after an investigation announced by the state Department of Ecology on Monday.

“An Ecology investigation found that Olympic Tug & Barge was negligent for the spill due to poor positioning of the barge and transfer hoses, hose connections, hose draining procedures and inexperience of the lead worker who was under pressure to hasten the job,” according to a news release issued Monday.

The release added that Olympic had fired the tankerman for failure to follow company policies.

The agency also announced a $1,000 fine against Malaysia-based Barber Ship Management, which owned the freighter involved in the spill.

According to Ecology, the spill occurred after an Olympic barge transferred fuel to the auto carrier Cosmos Express while the vessel was moored at a Port of Vancouver berth. The tankerman lost control of the fuel hose and it swung out over the side of the barge, spilling diesel onto the barge’s deck and into the river.

The captain of the Cosmos Express quickly reported the spill to the U.S. Coast Guard and Ecology, but the Olympic barge’s tankerman initially reported only a small spill to the barge deck. Inspectors found diesel fuel downstream the next day, and the crew member admitted fuel had spilled from the barge deck.

“Anytime oil is spilled to the water, it damages the environment,” Jim Sachet, Ecology spill response specialist, said in a prepared statement. “We rely on quick and accurate information from the spiller to make sure that the oil spill is controlled and cleaned up as much as possible.”