Anti-Industry Nuts Exploit Grain Carrier Spilling Bunker Fuel

[Anonymous]

The Marathassa was in Vancouver to pick up grain. It loses 2800 litres or so of bunker fuel. About 80% is recovered. No threat to human or safety. Things quickly return to normal.  



Result; anti-pipeline, anti-Canadian oil activists conflate it with pipeline infrastructure development. More foreign money will line the pockets of "charitable" organizations doing the dirty work of their paymasters. Canada's aim to gain foreign market share suffers an unfair setback and OPEC laughs all the way to the bank.

[Anonymous]

There have been something like 26 fatal air crashes in BC since 2005. Yet, this Cypriot-flagged ship is a catastrophe. ac_rollseyes



BTW, Gregor Robertson is calling it a "crisis" and blaming cuts from the federal government. His worst nightmare. Hyberbole on roids. What a disingenuous idiot.

[Gay Boy Roberto]

Christy Clark is critical of the Coast Guard response, namely six hours to get the booms around the ship. She suggests the province of BC - not the Coast Guard - be the leader in case of future spills.



Is she another nut exploiting the spill?



Meanwhile some of the toxic spill has reached the beaches of West Vancouver.

[Romero]

No threat to human or safety. Things quickly return to normal.

I can't imagine where you're getting your info from. You're just assuming, I guess.

People in Vancouver are being warned to stay away from some downtown-area beaches as crews continue to clean up a toxic spill that mucked up parts of the scenic coastline.



The Vancouver Park Board says city staff are patrolling English Bay, Sunset Beach, Second Beach and Third Beach, telling people to avoid the water until the health and ecological implications are clear.



http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/04/10/public-warned-to-avoid-do_n_7041190.html">//http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/04/10/public-warned-to-avoid-do_n_7041190.html

80% isn't 100%.



People are rightfully upset at the poor response. It took twelve hours for Port Metro Vancouver to inform the city. Thanks to Harper, Vancouver no longer has the Coast Guard base which would have been on the scene with the proper equipment within minutes.



The Coast Guard says it could take days or weeks to clean up the beaches. This is "things quickly return to normal"?



If this is the response we have for a 2,700 litre spill, then we are clearly not capable of handling a large oil spill.

[Anonymous]

I can't imagine where you're getting your info from. You're just assuming, I guess.

People in Vancouver are being warned to stay away from some downtown-area beaches as crews continue to clean up a toxic spill that mucked up parts of the scenic coastline.



The Vancouver Park Board says city staff are patrolling English Bay, Sunset Beach, Second Beach and Third Beach, telling people to avoid the water until the health and ecological implications are clear.



http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/04/10/public-warned-to-avoid-do_n_7041190.html">//http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/04/10/public-warned-to-avoid-do_n_7041190.html

It's not assumption, it's called covering your ass until even the slightest  risk of slipping and bumping your head can be eliminated. It happens every single time an accident happens whether it is rail, boat, truck or ship.

80% isn't 100%.



People are rightfully upset at the poor response. It took twelve hours for Port Metro Vancouver to inform the city. Thanks to Harper, Vancouver no longer has the Coast Guard base which would have been on the scene with the proper equipment within minutes.



The Coast Guard says it could take days or weeks to clean up the beaches. This is "things quickly return to normal"?



If this is the response we have for a 2,700 litre spill, then we are clearly not capable of handling a large oil spill.

No lives lost, no damage to public infrastructure or private property, nobody hurt, fuel spill contained in a short time and the company responsible will pay for clean up. The Coast Guard informed just about everyone including Native bands but not the city of Vancouver and judging by the ignorant statements of your mayor, I'm thinking that was a good idea.  ac_toofunny

Anyway, it sounds like someone at the Coast Guard dropped the ball here by not following the script. Governments like to point the finger at each other, but at the end of the day it is someone not doing their job. Not that I think waiting to inform an idiotic mayor over a minor, non-life threatening incident is a big crime.



Closing Kitsilano does not mean response times within international standards. Marine spill response has actually improved under this government. Administrative penalties for polluters, mandatory marine response plans for oil terminal operators and increased frequency for measures already in place, such as annual inspections for all tankers and offshore aerial surveillance.





As for conflating oil tankers to boats and ships losing fuel, that is the kind of silly ingenuous hyperbole I was talking about idiots exploiting. A cargo ship hauling grain is NOT a double crude hulled tanker ffs. You have ferries, pleasure craft and commodity ships hauling fuel all the time. Small fishing boats and pleasure craft are the main source of fuel leaks not oil tankers that have been docking in Vancouver for many, many decades.

[Romero]

No lives lost and no damage doesn't mean it's nothing. It may take weeks to clean up. Will we get the money back to pay for it?



Closing Kitsilano meant it took 6 hours to contain the spill instead of being able to get there in minutes. Kits had around 350 calls every year. A fast response to this spill alone would have been worth keeping Kits open. Harper claimed there would be more resources and vessels available after Kits closed. So where were they? It's like claiming that closing a fire station is enhancing public safety.



"Marine spill response has actually improved under this government". Why would you even bother with such a statement when we can all see it's not true?



Nobody's conflating oil tankers to boats and ships losing fuel. It's about the lousy response. We now see how bad things could be if there ever is a large oil spill.

[Anonymous]

People in Vancouver are being warned to stay away from some downtown-area beaches as crews continue to clean up a toxic spill that mucked up parts of the scenic coastline.



The Vancouver Park Board says city staff are patrolling English Bay, Sunset Beach, Second Beach and Third Beach, telling people to avoid the water until the health and ecological implications are clear.



http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/04/10/public-warned-to-avoid-do_n_7041190.html">http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/04/10 ... 41190.html">http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2015/04/10/public-warned-to-avoid-do_n_7041190.html

There was a spill into a river from a chemical plant North of Barrie, Ontario more than 10 years ago. It was soap that got into the water. The public was banned from enjoying the water until confirmation was given what was in the water. Even after that, the public could not use the river on that hot summer day until the clean up was complete. It was an inconvenience, but so is a multi car pile up on the 400 when you are on your way to the cottage.

Christy Clark is critical of the Coast Guard response, namely six hours to get the booms around the ship. She suggests the province of BC - not the Coast Guard - be the leader in case of future spills.



Is she another nut exploiting the spill?



Meanwhile some of the toxic spill has reached the beaches of West Vancouver.

It seems the BC premier and the mayor of Vancouver were either deliberately untruthful or were too quick to point blame before all the facts were established. As more information come out afterward, they both look petty and opportunistic..



This morning they said that they have cleaned up the oil in the water and now they can work on the beaches. It will be a short term inconvenience, but life will return to normal. Think of it like a working on a road that you normally use to get to work. It needs to be done, but while it happens it raises your blood pressure. On second thought, that is a bad example. People go to beaches on days off and they can always go to some other place for a couple weekends.