A New Direction for Federal Oil Spill Research and Development

Opening Statement By Rep. Lynn Woolsey

Mr. Chairman, thank you for holding this hearing today, and for allowing me to make an opening statement.

Oil spill prevention and mitigation is important to me not only because I think it’s vital to protect the environment and coastal economies, but also because my district has been seriously affected by what many consider a minor spill. And as a result of this, I’ve been witness to how difficult an oil spill cleanup effort can be…even with the best available technology.

As some of you remember, on November 7, 2007, the container ship Cosco Busan collided with the San Francisco Bay Bridge, and released 58,000 gallons of oil into San Francisco Bay.

Because of the complex tidal mechanics that are present in the Bay, the spill spread rapidly and quickly affected a large area of the North Coast, including the Golden Gate National Recreation Area; the Point Reyes National Seashore; and both the Gulf of the Farallones and Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuaries.

The pristine beaches of Marin County were soiled, waters off of our federal parklands were sullied, and important restoration projects in Richardson and San Pablo Bay were threatened.

In addition, the spill killed thousands of birds, many marine mammals, and no one knows how many fish…and I can’t help but think that this oil spill played at least some part in the closure of the Sacramento River salmon fishery that migrates through the San Francisco Bay on their way out to sea. All in all, about 200 miles of coastline were affected by this spill.

That’s why I have introduced the H.R. 2693, the “Federal Oil Spill Research Program Act.’’ This bill coordinates federal research and development of oil spill prevention, detection, recovery, and mitigation to ensure that all the relevant agencies are working together for common solutions.

In addition, the bill provides grants to institutes of higher learning and research centers to improve technologies used to prevent, combat, and clean up oil spills.

One thing that I heard again and again from the people who were tasked with cleaning up our mess was that the technology they were using just wasn’t adequate to get the job done. Actually, of the 58,000 gallons of oil that were spilled into San Francisco Bay, only about a third of that amount was recovered.

It’s clear that current technology is inadequate to prevent and protect us from oils spills if we can only recover such a small percentage with what’s available. And, I know with the right focus and effort, we can do much, much better.

H.R. 2693 will help to ensure that the federal government is taking an active role to prevent oil spills, and that when they do occur, we have the best possible technology to minimize negative impacts to ourselves and the environment.

Mr. Chairman, again, I thank you for holding this hearing, and I look forward to the testimony from our distinguished witnesses.
 

Opening Statement By Chairman Brian Baird

Good morning and welcome to today’s hearing investigating federal oil spill research and development.

This morning’s hearing provides us with an opportunity to examine current federal R&D efforts to prevent, detect, or mitigate oil discharges. In addition, the Subcommittee will receive testimony on new legislation introduced by Representative Woolsey entitled, The Federal Oil Spill Research Program Act of 2009. As a cosponsor of this legislation, I want to thank Ms. Woolsey for her dedication to this important issue.

Twenty years ago, the Exxon Valdez oil tanker ran aground and spilled nearly 11 million gallons of crude oil in Alaska's Prince William Sound. In its first sweep, the oil spill killed about 250,000 seabirds, 4,000 sea otters, 250 bald eagles, and more than 20 orca whales, according to World Wildlife Federation. Two decades later, huge quantities of oil still coat Alaska's shores. Of the 11 million gallons of crude oil that drained from the stranded tanker, more than 20,000 gallons remain in isolated coves and underneath the sand.

The Exxon Valdez disaster provided the impetus for the passage of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA 90), which expanded the oil prevention, preparedness, and response capabilities of the federal government and industry.

The OPA 90 has been a success story in many ways. Since the bill was signed into law, the volume of oil spilled from tankers into U.S. waters has fallen from an average of 70,000 barrels per year to an average of 4,000 barrels per year – a decrease of 95 percent. A phased move from single to double hulls is one of the most visible of OPA 90’s achievements.

However, new challenges exist today that were not apparent when the bill was authorized. Although oil leaked from tankers has vastly decreased, oil spills from other vessels and from on-land sources remain high. In 2007, a 900-foot container ship, the Cosco Busan, struck the San Francisco Bay Bridge, spilling over 50,000 gallons of oil into the Bay. This accident has brought renewed attention and focus to current federal government procedures, practices, and research.

Following this event and other recent accidents, it is clear that the United States needs a more robust research and development strategy to reduce the environmental and economic impacts of oil spills. Currently, responders face increasing challenges arising from an increase in maritime transportation, potential for offshore energy exploration in remote locations, aging infrastructure, and new fuel stocks and blends.

Title VII of OPA 1990 created an “Interagency Oil Spill Research and Development Program” with the goal of coordinating federal research to encourage the development of new technologies to address oil spills. Despite the Interagency Committee’s detailed research plan, there have been modest technological advances in oil spill cleanup technology since the enactment of the law in 1990. In the last Plan issued by the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Oil Pollution Research, released in 1997, the Committee reported “most of the technology and information gaps of 1990 remain.”

According to the Committee on the Marine Transportation of Heavy Oils, most oil spills experience a 10 to 15 percent rate of recovery. More recent estimates have reported an increase in recovery rates to 40 percent in best case scenarios. Given these low recovery percentages, additional research and development is necessary to reach acceptable levels of mitigation.

Due to the high environmental and economic cost of oil spills such as the Cosco Busan and the current lack of directed research, a reinvigorated research and development program is needed to improve the effectiveness of oil spill response efforts and ecosystem mitigation at a fraction of the cost of a single large spill.

The Federal Oil Spill Research Program Act seeks to reorient the current federal interagency research and development program created in OPA. The legislation would improve the Federal Government’s research and development efforts to prevent, detect, or mitigate oil discharges. The bill provides a new direction to the existing program by guiding research towards new challenges and making the interagency structure for this program more efficient. Through this reauthorization, the responsible federal agencies will be better equipped to quickly and effectively respond to oil discharges both inland and in coastal waters.

We have an excellent panel of witnesses with us this morning who will share their views on oil spill response, recovery, and mitigation. I thank you all for being with us here today, and I look forward to your suggestions related to the Federal Oil Spill Research Program Act.
 

Witnesses

Panel

0 - Mr. Stephen Edinger
Director of the Office of Spill Prevention and Response (OSPR) California Department of Fish and Game California Department of Fish and Game
Download the Witness Testimony

0 - Mr. Doug Helton
Incident Operations Coordinator Office of Response and Restoration National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Office of Response and Restoration National O
Download the Witness Testimony

0 - Dr. Albert D. Venosa
Director of the Land Remediation and Pollution Control Division National Risk Management Research Laboratory Office of Research and Development National Risk Ma
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0 - Rear Admiral James Watson
Director of Prevention Policy for Marine Safety Security and Stewardship U.S. Coast Guard Security and Stewardship U.S. Coast Guard
Download the Witness Testimony