Proceedings magazine is a communication tool for the Coast Guard's Marine Safety & Security Council. Each quarterly magazine focuses on a specific theme of interest to the marine industry.
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Arctic Oil Reserves Gain Attention Ice Experts The DRAT is always available to supplement the local responders when they are in need of advice, equipment, or even an extra worker. It also provides first responder operations and awareness-level training to all D17 operational units. As oil reserves around the world become more scarce, and drilling in remote locations— such as the deep ocean basins and the Arctic region — has become more urgent exploration into these areas, especially the Arctic, has revealed large fossil fuel deposits that require unique methods of retrieval. With this increased interest in Arctic drilling and shipping, the possibility of oil spills in the area also increases, thereby elevating the need to ensure efective oil spill preparation and response in the delicate Arctic environment. The response advisory team trains and plans for incidents all year long. To prepare for cold-weather operations, team members attend international oil and ice conferences and coordinate training with the Anchorage Navy Supervisor of Salvage unit. During annual joint ice training, Army, Air Force, Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, and Alaska state employees conduct drills using a full decontamination station setup, oil spill response equipment designed for ice conditions, and ground-penetrating radar devices that detect oil under ice. Fortunately, the U.S. Coast Guard has spent years preparing for environmental cleanups and oil spill disasters. The D17 DRAT also maintains equipment for mechanical recovery and trains with Air Station Kodiak C-130 crews using the aerial dispersant delivery system (ADDS). Additionally, the DRAT conducts sling load operations, carrying oil spill response equipment to remote locations with helicopter crews from Air Station Sitka, and conducts oil booming operations with small boat stations from Ketchikan, Juneau, and Valdez. The district response advisory team also Coast Guard Cutter Sycamore crewmembers deploy the cutter's inspects and maintains containers filled spilled oil recovery system equipwith oil spill response equipment on an ment. U.S. Coast Guard photo by annual basis. These containers, known as Petty Offcer Kelly Parker. "band-aid boxes," contain items such as oilabsorbing boom, drum retention systems to retain "mystery" drums flled with unknown hazThe VOSS, divided into two sets, is located in Ketards, personal protective equipment, salvage pumps, chikan and Anchorage. It is a modular, portable, oil generators, small skimmers, temporary storage recovery skimming system secured to and operated devices, and cleanup kits containing brooms, shovels, from a vessel of opportunity at a spill site. With this and different sorbent materials. This pre-positioned system, vessels ranging from 60 to 400 feet can transequipment can help the Coast Guard or the local harform quickly into oil recovery vessels. It has an effecbormaster during an initial response. tive daily recovery rate of 2,126 barrels and a max- Mechanical Recovery The Coast Guard also trains on using mechanical methods for oil recovery — specifcally the spilled oil recovery system (SORS) and the vessel of opportunity skimming system (VOSS). www.uscg.mil/proceedings imum sweep width of 42 feet off either side of the vessel. It is designed to skim oil effectively at up to three knots, depending on sea state, oil viscosity, and thickness. continued on page 49 Summer 2013 Proceedings 47