New spill response hub adds protection to Western Alaska
Protection of Alaska’s vast marine environment has a new oil spill response equipment hub in Adak Alaska, thanks to vessel participants in Alaska Maritime Prevention & Response Network’s (Network) Alternative Planning Criteria (APC) program for Western Alaska.
Alaska Chadux personnel traveled to Adak on April 26th – 30th to inspect newly purchased and delivered oil spill recovery equipment and establish Chadux’s newest equipment hub. Objectives for this visit included operating the new equipment, identifying local resources and providing oil spill response training to local Chadux member company employees.
Chadux’s newest hub and the equipment it contains is funded using a grant from the Network. The Network is funded by owners and operators of vessels enrolled in the Network’s APC. These participants pay fees for federal regulatory compliance options while operating in the Aleutian Islands and Western Alaska and a large portion of these fees go to enhance oil spill response capabilities.
As a result of the Network’s enhanced response equipment initiative and in strategic partnership with Chadux, Adak now has a “Western Alaska Response Package”, the second such package staged in the Aleutians. The first Response Package is in Dutch Harbor and each includes 3000 feet of ocean boom 2000 feet of shoreline protection boom, a 2000 barrel per day oleophilic skimmer, towable storage bladders, wildlife hazing kit, personal protective equipment and associated support equipment to respond to oil spills. The Adak equipment is packaged and stored at the Aleut Corporation facilities in custom equipment boxes and standard 20 foot shipping containers for handling efficiency and prompt deployment by response personnel.
In the last eight months, the Network, using revenue provided through fees paid by the maritime industry have funded acquisition of over 2 miles of ocean boom, over 5 miles of shore protection boom and over 17,000 barrels of daily recovery capacity. This equipment will provide new equipment hubs planned for Atka, Cold Bay, St. Paul and Kotzebue and enhancement of existing hubs in Anchorage, Kodiak, Dutch Harbor and Nome.
The Network is a non-profit maritime organization headquartered in Anchorage, Alaska. The Network monitors risk reduction routing measures and provides enhanced oil spill response capability for participating vessels throughout the Aleutians, Western Alaska and the Arctic waters off Alaska.