"It’s like déjà vu all over again," Minister of Environment Barry Penner said in Squamish Saturday afternoon.
Penner had just completed a helicopter tour of Howe Sound and Squamish estuary, hard hit by Friday’s 25,000-litre fuel spill from a Norwegian cargo ship. Penner was referring to the fact that the spill occurred on the one-year anniversary of a CN train derailment and caustic soda spill into the Cheakamus River.
He said the spill was not huge but still significant.
"I was surprised at how far south and how quickly some of the fuel managed to make it in 24 hours. I could see it along the eastern side of Highway 99, on shore in little bays and in bigger blobs out in Howe Sound," Penner said.
The 200-metre long Westwood Anette, guided by a B.C. coast pilot, was reversing away from port in a restrictive narrow area between docks and dikes about 2:30 p.m. Friday when strong south winds pushed her back toward port. Although dock fenders were in place, dolphin pilings punched two, six-inch diameter holes through the steel-plated hull, puncturing one fuel tank in the process.
Kiteboard instructor Alex Noke-Smith, 34, was about 100 metres from Squamish’s port terminal at the time of the spill. He initially thought a wind shadow was approaching.
"Then all of a sudden the waves went from whitecaps to black and I was like, we have to get out of here right away."
Noke-Smith, a student and another kiteboarder were caught in the bunker sea fuel that spilled from the vessel. Coated in oil that seeped under their suits, the kiteboarders made it safely to shore then were taken to hospital, treated for eye irritation and cleaned up.
By Sunday morning, two-thirds of the spill had been recovered from around the Squamish dock area with vacuum pumps and portable and ship-based skimmers.
A portion of the nearby Squamish estuary, home to Canada geese, cormorants, herons and mallards, was hard hit. Bunker sea fuel, which does not evaporate or decompose as rapidly as diesel fuel, could be seen one kilometre from the ship reaching hundreds of metres up estuary side channels. A flock of 80-100 oil-coated Canada Geese gathered in mud flats amidst an overwhelming smell of bunker fuel.
Brian Clark, a Ministry of Environment biologist initially leading the response efforts, said there were no reports of dead birds from the spill and asked the public to report any distressed birds to a designated telephone line put in place Saturday, but asked that oil-soaked birds not be approached or handled.
Initial plans to let waterfowl weaken to a state where they could be more easily captured sparked outrage amongst local environmentalists. By Wednesday, however, many were onside with environmental agencies’ plans.
"After speaking to people with Environment Canada I’ve known for years I absolutely can’t help but feel they really are doing the best they damn well can, given the circumstances," said Edith Tobe of the Squamish River Watershed Society.
Bill Wareham, a David Suzuki Foundation scientist, echoed her remarks, pointing out that waterfowl are particularly difficult to catch.
"They can fly straight up or sideways at 40 miles an hour," Wareham said. "They (response agencies) could spend a huge amount of time and money and personnel effort out there and not catch very many birds."
Tony Toth, of the B.C. Wildlife federation provided a more blunt opinion.
"Canada geese are a dime a dozen," he said. "The wildlife strategy is perfectly good."
Gary Smith, Alex Noke-Smith’s father, was at the scene Friday and said initial response was slow and inadequate.
"The little boom they showed up with at first was enough to contain maybe 50 gallons, not 30,000," Smith said. More inflatable booms put in place around the ship by response crews and at mouths of estuary side channels didn’t show up for several hours, he said.
Squamish acting mayor Mike Jenson said he was initially frustrated with response efforts. Told at first it was a minor diesel spill, when he discovered it was a major bunker sea fuel spill his first thought was for the estuary and beach areas.
"It was quite disconcerting at 7 a.m. (Saturday) when I went down and saw the thick ooze at low tide."
Jenson has consistently been at the incident command post at the Squamish RCMP detachment building.
"I’ve been here to make sure the community’s interests are looked after," Jenson said. "Squamish has been giving them our input, we’re the ones that are saying what are you doing about the wildlife, about the estuary, about the spit and the marina? We’re making sure that our local priorities are addressed."
District of Squamish environment staff are working with Ministry of Environment, Canadian Coast Guard, Canadian Wildlife Service and the ship’s owners, Gearbulk Shipping Canada, who have contracted Vancouver-based Burrard Clean Operations to undertake containment and clean-up efforts. Transport Canada, Environment Canada, and Transportation Safety Board investigators are looking into causes of the accident.
Coast Guard’s Don Rodden said the amount of oil recovered is impressive.
"Usually, for a spill of this significance, recovery is in the vicinity of 10-20 per cent. From that perspective the recovery has been very successful."
Environment’s Brian Clark said care has been taken to ensure response worker safety in and around the terminal, contaminated by mercury in its years as an industrial chemical port.
"We did raise the issue of mercury in sludge and looked at it but it’s not a concern. Mercury, if any, is at very small levels and deep in sediments," Clark said.
Clark said it could be a week before remaining free-floating oil can be recovered and transferred to storage tanks before being disposed of at an appropriate facility. Estuary clean-up efforts will take longer. Although initial plans were to cut oil-soaked sedges and grasses back to ground level, Clark had revised that plan by Sunday.
"Grasses have proved so effective in stopping oil from coming in any further to the marsh that we’ve decided to leave the grass up and concentrate on cleaning the foreshore area."
Clark said once free floating oil is fully contained grasses will be cut back. He predicted the affected area, about one square kilometre, will restore itself by fall.
Kiteboard instructor Noke-Smith isn’t so sure. After spending close to an hour Friday in a hospital shower cleaning himself of bunker fuel, he said his worries are not for himself or for his business.
"That (Friday) morning I’d been sitting on the rocks at the spit watching two seals fighting over a salmon, two ospreys diving for something and a stupid little seagull trying to get some of the salmon," Noke-Smith said. "And all I can think to myself now is, am I going to get to see that again?"
