From the Office of Senator Kerry

Wednesday, September 10, 2003

Five Southeastern Massachusetts lawmakers are calling upon the Coast Guard to implement several navigation safety proposals in Buzzards Bay to help prevent future accidents like the disastrous oil spill that struck the bay in April. Senators Edward M. Kennedy and John F. Kerry, and Congressmen Barney Frank, William D. Delahunt and James P. McGovern today released a letter they sent yesterday to the top Coast Guard official in Massachusetts, urging the adoption of more stringent safety rules that would apply specifically to oil and other hazardous cargo vessels passing through the bay.

In the letter, which was sent to Admiral Vivian Crea of the Coast Guard’s First District, the Members of Congress recommend the adoption of a new requirement that single-hulled vessels and barges carrying oil or other hazardous cargo in Buzzards Bay be escorted through the bay by a second tug boat. In addition, the elected officials call for a new rule mandating the use of Automatic Identification System technology for barges passing through the bay to allow for easy tracking of barges that are transporting hazardous cargo. Finally, the lawmakers point out that harbormasters in communities along Buzzards Bay have identified a number of potentially confusing navigation chart listings with the potential to compromise safety, and they urge the Coast Guard to work with the harbormasters to ensure that any dangerous chart ambiguities are clarified.

The recommendations grew out of suggestions and ideas that were presented at a July 14 New Bedford forum hosted by Congressmen Frank and Delahunt, and attended by representatives of the Coast Guard and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); state and local government officials; fishermen, particularly people from the shellfish industry; area environmental organizations; and members of the public. While the Senators and Congressmen have expressed their support for legislation that would speed up the timetable for phasing in the requirement that all oil be transported in double-hulled vessels, the public forum focused on safety proposals that wouldn’t require passage of legislation, but could be implemented directly by the Coast Guard. Because Buzzards Bay is a Regulated Navigation Area, the Coast Guard has the authority under existing federal law to establish navigation safety requirements that apply only to the bay, without the necessity of passing new legislation.

A copy of the letter is attached.

September 9, 2003 Admiral Vivian Crea First District United States Coast Guard 408 Atlantic Avenue Boston, MA 02110 Dear Admiral Crea: We are writing to request that the United States Coast Guard take a number of actions to strengthen the provisions regarding the Regulated Navigation Areas (RNAs) that govern Buzzards Bay and the Cape Cod. As you know, a large volume of the oil that is shipped in these areas passes through on single-hull vessels. In light of the recent and previous oil spills in the region, which is an especially environmentally sensitive and navigationally challenging area, we are urging the Coast Guard to take several steps to reduce the likelihood of future spills. Single-hull vessels have proven to be an unacceptable liability and while the ideal resolution is to expedite their phase out as soon as possible, we believe that in the interim we must strengthen the regulations that govern their transit and we believe that there are several steps that should be taken to do just that. First, we request that the Coast Guard assess the feasibility of mandating that all single-hull vessels or barges, carrying oil or other hazardous cargo into the region, have an assist tug to safely escort them through the region. The assist tugs in question should meet sufficient technical standards that will allow them to provide immediate assistance if the primary tug or tanker have navigational failure. And they should have the appropriate equipment onboard to facilitate the capture of a vessel, combat fire, and manage low-level spills until the appropriate authorities can arrive on the scene. The safe transit of oil and hazardous cargo currently depends solely on the capabilities of the tug assigned to the barge. It is clear that an additional assist tug would greatly improve the likelihood of a safe transit through our unique coastal waterways and we strongly urge its implementation. Also, given the importance of tracking and monitoring the location of vessels passing through the Buzzards Bay region, we applaud the Coast Guard's recent decision to mandate the use of an Automatic Identification System (AIS) for tugs larger than sixty-five feet. This is an important step, but we believe that the barge itself should also be tracked. The technology to track the location of these dangerous barges is readily available and would clearly diminish the future possibility of these vessels running aground. In the event that a barge did run aground, the ability to pinpoint its location would improve response time. The time has come for this technology to be implemented and we strongly support the acceleration of this process. Lastly, we believe the Coast Guard should reexamine its traffic lanes, anchorage points, and technical terminology within the area, particularly by moving traffic lanes for vessels with hazardous cargo further offshore. This extra distance could provide valuable time to prevent a disabled vessel from running aground. Our local Harbormasters have also pointed out that there may be some potential problems regarding the chart listings that these vessels use for their navigation. An example being, "Green Can #1" with the letter "G" above it on the 13218 chart could be confused for the "G#1" that marks the western end of Buzzards Bay. We request that you work closely with our local Harbormasters, local officials, and shipping industry to clarify any chart listings that may lead to potential problems. We have greatly appreciated the Coast Guard's effort addressing the recent and past oil spills in our area and we ask that you apply that same diligence in implementing our suggestions to reduce the likelihood of such spills occurring again. Mandating the use of assist tugs and tracking technology, coupled with safer traffic lanes, would significantly reduce the future possibility of these dangerous vessels running aground and we strongly urge you to implement these measures as expeditiously as possible. Thank you for your time and attention to this matter and we look forward to your response. Sincerely, _____________________________ _____________________________ Senator Edward M. Kennedy Senator John F. Kerry _____________________________ _____________________________ Congressman Barney Frank

Congressman William D. Delahunt _____________________________ Congressman James P. McGovern