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Alaska Maritime Prevention & Response Network Receives Prestigious “Osprey Award” for Environmental Protection

May 21, 2020

U.S. Coast Guard recognizes Network's outstanding achievements in marine environmental protection to support safe, sustainable shipping

 

ANCHORAGE (May 21, 2020) - The Alaska Maritime Prevention & Response Network (Network) has been awarded the Rear Admiral William M. Benkert Marine Environmental Protection Award of Excellence from the United States Coast Guard. The Network received the top-level, prestigious Osprey Award for its innovative programs, commitment to its participants and Alaska, and proven results in protecting the marine environment throughout Prince William Sound and Western Alaska. The Coast Guard only selects one organization nation-wide every two years to receive the coveted Osprey Award.

"On behalf of our Board, staff, enrollees, and our many partners, I am humbled and honored to accept this distinguished award," Network President and CEO Buddy Custard said. "This recognition from the Coast Guard is a testament to the quality of our programs and our ongoing efforts to support safe, sustainable shipping in Alaska and throughout the maritime industry. I'm proud of the contributions we have made and look forward to continuing our work on incident prevention, rapid-accident response, and pioneering safety measures in the future in furtherance of protecting the marine environment."

"Our programs support over 4,700 enrolled vessels, representing more than 500 shipping companies based around the globe, as they strive to comply with OPA 90 and their own commitments to environmental protection," said Mike Moore, Chairman of the Network Board of Directors. "Our team is committed to developing, implementing, and improving prevention and response capabilities, and providing confidence not only to our client vessels but also to the people of Alaska, environmental groups, state and federal government officials, and the public we all serve."

The William M. Benkert Award is the premier environmental protection award within the maritime industry presented by the Coast Guard. The biennial award was created in 1995 to recognize outstanding achievements in marine environmental protection that go beyond mere compliance with industrial and regulatory standards. The award criteria include the following critical success factors:

  • environmental policies

  • objectives and targets

  • pollution prevention activity

  • safety management

  • outreach

  • partnership

  • performance metrics

The award program has five levels of recognition - Osprey, Gold, Silver, Bronze, and Honorable Mention - to acknowledge an applicant's progress in pursuing environmental excellence. The Network was presented the award today at the North American Marine Environment Protection Association's (NAMEPA) virtual "Safety at Sea" event.

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The Alaska Maritime Prevention & Response Network is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit corporation founded to pioneer the development and implementation of Alternative Compliance Programs that achieve Oil Pollution Act 1990 (OPA 90) compliance for non-tank vessels and tank vessels that operate in Western Alaska. For more information and background on the Network, visit alaskaseas.org.