2003 Buzzards Bay Oil Spill: History and Cleanup Under the MCP
Rich Packard, MassDEP, Hyannis, MA
Kevin D. Trainer, GeoInsight, Inc., Westford, MA
Richard J. Wozmak, EnviroLogic, LLC, Londonderry, NH

Swanson Creek (MD) Oil Spill: Response and Restoration
Erich R. Gundlach, E-Tech International Inc., New Paltz, NY

The FAST: MassDEP Field Assessment and Support Team
John J. Fitzgerald, MassDEP, Wilmington, MA

Tankers, Tankers and More Tankers
Dan Crafton, MassDEP, Lakeville, MA
Dave Slowick, MassDEP, Springfield, MA
Kingsley Ndi, MassDEP, Wilmington, MA
Nick Child, MassDEP, Worcester, MA

Biofuels and the Environment
Gregory Wilson, U.S. EPA, Washington, DC

Response Considerations for Releases of Ethanol-Blended Fuels
Curtis C. Stanley, Shell Global Solutions (US) Inc., Houston, TX
Brent P. Stafford, Shell Global Solutions (US) Inc.

2003 Buzzards Bay Oil Spill: History and Cleanup under the MCP

Richard F. Packard, MassDEP, Oil Spill Prevention and Response Program, 973 Iyannough Rd, Hyannis, MA 02601, USA, Tel: 508-946-2865, Email: richard.packard@state.ma.us
Kevin D. Trainer, C.P.G., P.G., LSP, GeoInsight, Inc., 319 Littleton Road, Suite 105, Westford, MA 01886 USA, Tel: 978-692-1114, Email: kdtrainer@geoinc.com
Richard J. Wozmak, P.E., P.H., LSP, LEP, EnviroLogic, LLC, 50 Nausha Road, Londonderry, NH  03053, USA, Tel: 603-421-2777, Email: rwozmak@envirologicllc.com

In April 2003 a tank barge carrying more than 4 million gallons of No. 6 fuel oil grounded at the entrance to Buzzards Bay.  The resulting spill of approximately 100,000 gallons was the second largest spill in Buzzards Bay history, with more than 93 miles of coastline affected.  Buzzards Bay is heavily used for commercial and recreational purposes, and portions of Buzzards Bay are sensitive habitat for threatened or endangered species.  As with any marine oil spill of this size, the response involved the coordinated efforts and resources of federal, state, local, and private agencies.  However, unlike spills in other jurisdictions, oil spill response and cleanup in Massachusetts utilizes a Licensed Site Professional (LSP) to ensure compliance with Massachusetts cleanup regulations.  This presentation will discuss the spill itself, the transition of the spill response from the emergency cleanup directed by Unified Command to LSP-directed comprehensive response actions, development of clean-up approaches, challenges in defining “significant risk to public welfare” and public involvement issues during the spill response.

Swanson Creek (MD) Oil Spill: Response and Restoration

Erich R. Gundlach, E-Tech International Inc., 15 River Park Drive, New Paltz, NY 12561, Email:  ErichEti@cs.com 

A pipeline break on 7 April 2000 spilled 126,000–139,000 gallons of No. 2 and No. 6 fuel oils   into the brackish water environments of the upper Patuxent River, Maryland.  Particularly impacted was a large marsh area adjacent to the break. This presentation will present an overview of the spill management system used to combat the spill and recover the oil, marsh planting and restoration implemented during the response, cleanup end points used by the State of Maryland to sign off on shoreline habitats as requiring no further treatment, and the results of the damage assessment process implemented by state and federal trustees 

Marsh cleanup operations guided by U.S. EPA included mechanical trenching, limited low-to-moderate pressure flushing, hand recovery using sorbent pads and working from placed boardwalks, and the aerial application of fertilizer (bio-stimulation).  During the response, the damaged marsh was replanted with a total of 22,896 plugs of Spartina alterniflora and 2,880 plugs of S. patens.  Vegetative recovery was approximately 85% after year 1 and 99% after year 2.  Despite the successful replanting, damage assessments conducted by the natural resource trustees gave little credit for the restoration of the oiled marsh area.  Other aspects of the damage valuation for the spill will also be presented.

The FAST: MassDEP Field Assessment and Support Team

John J. Fitzgerald, Northeast Regional Office, MassDEP, 205B Lowell Street, Wilmington, MA 01887, Tel: 978-694-3308, Email: John.j.fitzgerald@state.ma.us

 Many response agencies and contractors have recognized the value of conducting timely on-scene analysis of environmental media during spill events and other environmental emergencies.  This often involves the deployment of a “mobile laboratory” as well as an assortment of specialized instrumentation and equipment.  The optimal use of these resources depends, however, on the development and implementation of effective strategies, systems and procedures.

 MassDEP has recently enhanced its capabilities in this regard by designing and procuring a well-equipped mobile lab vehicle (aka the FAST vehicle.)  Effective utilization of this new asset will be based on the field response principles of the Incident Command System (NIMS/ICS) combined with the “Triad” approach to data acquisition and utilization, with particular emphasis on systematic planning, dynamic work plans, and real-time/near-real-time measurement techniques.  This presentation will describe the capabilities of the FAST vehicle and explain how it has been used during recent emergency responses, and how it could have been used on earlier ones.

Tankers, Tankers and More Tankers

Dan Crafton, MassDEP, Lakeville, MA
Dave Slowick, MassDEP, Springfield, MA
Kingsley Ndi, MassDEP, Wilmington, MA
Nick Child, MassDEP, Worcester, MA

Large quantities of petroleum products are transported on roadways throughout Massachusetts every day via tanker trailer truck.  Occasionally those trucks crash and cause large spills that result in a variety of environmental and safety hazards. Have you ever wondered how those get cleaned up?  While the commuters are dealing with the traffic snarls, environmental responders are working with local, state and federal responders to address explosions, neighborhood evacuations, fish-kills, and damage to sensitive environments. MassDEP Emergency Response staff will present several case studies illustrating a range of recent tanker trailer petroleum spills that affected wetlands, waterways and water supplies, and discuss short- and long-term assessment and cleanup responses.

Biofuels and the Environment

Gregory Wilson, Ph.D., U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Emergency Management (OEM), Regulation and Policy Development Division, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW (5104A), Washington, DC 20460, Tel: 202-564-7989, Fax: 202-564-2625

Congress recently passed legislation mandating increased usage of transportation-related biofuels, which have prompted a phenomenal growth in biofuel-related infrastructure.  Growth in the development of biofuels, particularly biodiesel and ethanol, is raising a number of questions about how biofuels behave in the environment 

The refining and distribution infrastructure used for biofuels have both similarities and differences from the infrastructure used for conventional petroleum fuels.  Consequently, expansion of the biofuel sector will require tailored response capabilities.  While the attention has so far been focused primarily on some of the environmental benefits of expanding use of biofuels, there also needs to be greater clarity on how existing environmental response capabilities apply to these fuels.

This presentation summarizes recent energy legislation driving biofuel production and distribution.  It also discusses the relationship between biofuels and conventional fuels, focusing specifically on those issues related to responding to biofuel incidences.  Finally, the presentation discusses real-world case studies on biofuel-related responses.

Response Considerations for Releases of Ethanol-Blended Fuels

Curtis C. Stanley, Shell Global Solutions (US) Inc., HSE Consultancy - Soil and Groundwater Management, Westhollow Technology Center, EC-218, 3333 Highway 6 South, Houston, TX 77082-3101, Tel: 281-544-7675 Fax: 281-544-8727, Email: Curtis.Stanley@Shell.com
Brent P. Stafford, PhD, PG, Shell Global Solutions (US) Inc.

Concerns regarding potential impacts to safety and environmental resources from releases of ethanol-blended fuels along with appropriate response measures have increased due to the rise in use and transport of ethanol fuel blends. Potential release scenarios include ethanol-blended gasoline (10-20% v/v ethanol) or E85 (85% v/v ethanol) leaking from underground storage tanks at service stations, and fuel grade (denatured) ethanol (95-97.5% v/v ethanol) spills during transport or after reaching bulk terminals.  

The hydrophilic properties of ethanol drive the environmental transport of these fuels and influence the locations and geometries of generated non-aqueous phase liquid (NAPL) secondary source zones from the gasoline or denaturant fuel fractions. Also, due to the ability of highly concentrated ethanol to dissolve NAPL, large releases of fuel grade ethanol may exacerbate impacts to groundwater or surface waters at sites with pre-existing NAPL in soils or sediments.  As a result, commonly understood and utilized conceptual models used as tools for site management for released (non-ethanol blended) fuels may be inadequate for some ethanol fuel blends.  Finally, considerations related to secondary conditions (e.g. methane generation, BOD in surface water, etc.) is discussed.

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