March 25

Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg, D-N.J., has introduced a bill to protect the environment from oil spills by encouraging the use of double hulls for non-tank ships and implementing recommendations by the National Transportation Safety Board in response to a 2007 oil spill in San Francisco.

Sens. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., and Mark Begich, D-Alaska, have co-sponsored the legislation, which was introduced 20 years after the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska.

"The last thing we need is another Exxon Valdez," Lautenberg said. "We must protect New Jersey’s and our nation’s environment and economy from the threat of a major oil spill.ö

The Oil Spill Prevention Act of 2009 would require improved fuel tank designs on non-tank vessels, including double-layer protective fuel tank designs. The bill would also strengthen the Coast Guard´s medical review process for licensing pilots and merchant mariners and direct the Coast Guard to make improvements to its vessel tracking system to prevent navigational errors and accidents.

Non-tank vessels do not transport hazardous material but may transport other types of cargo or serve as passenger or fishing vessels.

Non-tank vessels accounted for the highest number of spills between 1973 and 2004, according to the Coast Guard, although tank vessels and barges are responsible for the majority of oil spilled by volume.

Contact Waste & Recycling News senior reporter Bruce Geiselman at 330-865-6172 or bgeiselman@crain.com

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