Robson Bight Update

May 19, 2009 Fuel truck successfully raised with tank intact The fueltruck was contained in a large box to ensure that any spilled diesel would be contained.   Below: The container filled with 1,400 liters of hydraulic oil is hoisted from Robson Bight on May 15. Dirty brown water poured out of the container, and an oily sheen spread across the surface of the water towards the guard boom. Below: Crews in the boats standing by immediately set to work putting absorbent material into the water at the edge of the boom. The small quantity of oil was swiftly dealt with, and within an hour there was no sign of it at all. There was a collective sigh of relief at 3:00 p.m. today when the fuel truck loaded with 10,000 liters of diesel was successfully recovered from Robson Bight Ecological Reserve. The largest threat to the orcas that frequent Robson Bight has now been removed. We congratulate the governments of Canada and British Columbia for mounting the successful recovery operation to raise the fuel truck. In the morning the ocean was flat ocean and by 9:00 a.m. the crew had the yellow metal container box below the water. The box was intended to house the truck and contain a spill of diesel if it ocurred on the way to the surface. For several hours an ROV (remotely operated vehicle) positioned the box around the fuel truck and secured it inside.  Just before 1:00 p.m. the lift began. At it 1:40 it stopped and divers entered the water for a close inspection of the box and tanker. The inspection completed, apparently without any sign of trouble, the lift continued; a few minutes later the yellow roof of the box at last came into view. It took a full half hour of additional inspection and maneuvering before the decision was made to lift the box onto the deck of the attendant barge. Not a drop of diesel had entered the water. Interestingly, on Sunday, May 17, a group of transient orcas headed west in Johnstone Strait, passing just outside the salvage scene. They turned out to be the T18s, the same group of orcas that had been sighted nearby on August 20, 2007, the day the barge spilled its load in Robson Bight.     May 15, 2009 Phase one success Today, after several days of preparation, and waiting for weather conditions to improve, the first phase of the Robson Bight salvage operation was completed successfully.  The target was a cube like container filled with dozens of pails of hydraulic oil, some 1,400 liters in all, that lay amidst a field of logging equipment debris at a depth of 200 meters below Robson Bight. After hours of close inspection via an ROV (remotely operated vehicle) it was decided not to lower a metal box over the container as an initial safety step, as doing so may have caused cables to snag in the surrounding debris. Instead, the ROV was used to attach two cables to the container, and after a couple of hours waiting for deep underwater currents to slacken, the container and its toxic load was hoisted directly to the surface.  To guard against the possibility of an oil spill, a boom was deployed downwind from the container, while several other vessels laden with additional booms and cleanup equipment stood close by. The container was kept just below the surface for several minutes, and then hoisted onto the deck of the barge used as the base of operations. Without question, this first phase of the Robson Bight salvage operation has been a success.  The next, and more difficult phase, removing the diesel fuel tanker, will be undertaken sometime within the next few days. Paul Spong, Pacific Orca Lab May 13, 2009 The salvage of the diesel fuel tanker that fell to the bottom of Robson Bight on August 20, 2007, is set to begin. A crew of 30 from Mammoet Salvage, a Dutch company, and Seattle based Global Diving & Salvage, has been preparing for the operation over the past few days. Local First Nations, NGOs and Burrard Clean are acting as independent observers and are helping to monitor for oil spills. Robson Bight is an Ecological Reserve established in 1982 to protect critical orca habitat. The salvage job will start Wednesday, May 13, beginning with a container filled with dozens of pails of hydraulic oil. If all goes well with this initial lift, the fuel truck will be hoisted Thursday, May 14. Oonagh O’Connor of Living Oceans Society and Dr. Paul Spong of the Pacific Orca Society will be onsite during the recovery operation. To avoid the possibility of a spill during the lifting the fuel truck, a metal box will be lowered over the tanker truck. A huge crane on the barge will lift the box and fuel truck to the surface. When the load reaches 10 meters below the surface, divers will inspect the box and tanker to determine whether any diesel has leaked during the lift. If there are no leaks, the box and tanker will be hoisted onto the deck of the barge. At that point, the diesel will be pumped out of the fuel tanker into another storage tank. Oonagh O’Connor, Living Oceans Society Paul Spong, Pacific Orca Lab Contractor chosen to remove Robson Bight wreckage September 5, 2008 The B.C. Ministry of Environment (MoE) announced yesterday that they have awarded the contract to remove some of the logging equipment in Robson Bight. The contract was awarded to Mammoet Salvage, a Dutch company, that will be working with Global Diving and Salvage of Seattle.  MoE also said that pending getting the necessary permits, and provided there is a good weather window, they will recover the equipment this fall.  The MoE Information Bulletin issued states that a corrosion analysis by UBC Engineering professor Akram Alfantazi, “concluded that it would take at least two and a half to three years from the date of sinking for the fuel tank to corrode through.” We look forward to hearing further details on what mitigation measures will be put in place to protect wildlife in case of an accidental spill during recovery, and which equipment the Provincial Government plan to recover.    Click here to read the MoE news release. Pollution charges welcomed in Robson Bight spill July 3, 2008 Living Oceans Society congratulates the Federal Crown for laying charges against the parties allegedly responsible for last summer’s barge spill in the Robson Bight ecological reserve. Campbell River’s Gowlland Towing Ltd., tug boat master Carl Theodore Strom, and logging contractor/equipment owner Ted LeRoy Trucking Ltd. face a number of pollution related charges and are expected to appear in Provincial Court on July 21. More>> No salvage plan announced yet ... April 24, 2008 As yet, no salvage plan has been announced and no request for bids posted on recovering the equipment from Robson Bight. Knowing the amount of planning it will take to make this recovery happen, we are becoming concerned that the government is not committed to the salvage operation before the whales return in June. Environment Minister Barry Penner stated in a Vancouver Sun article on April 19 that it was going to be, "a real challenge to marshal enough equipment and resources to do this before mid-June."  The longer we wait, the more fragile the fuel tank will become, making it more difficult to recover. Hope for the whales of Robson Bight April 18, 2008 Fisheries and Oceans Canada Minister Loyala Hearn and B.C. Minister of the Environment Barry Penner announced that the two governments had entered into a cost sharing agreement to raise the logging equipment that sunk in Robson Bight last August. Living Oceans Society, Greenpeace Canada and concerned whale organizations are congratulating the governments of Canada and British Columbia for showing the leadership to mount a recovery operation. “We are delighted that this ticking time bomb will be removed, and we are hopeful that this happens before the whales return to Robson Bight this summer,” said Jennifer Lash, Executive Director of Living Oceans Society. “It is crucial that the government put the salvage operation up for bid immediately so that the work can begin as soon as is possible.” Though no definite time line for the operation was stated, subsequent comments by Minister Penner clearly indicated that officials are aware that the Northern Resident orcas are expected to return by early summer. Raise Robson Bight wreckage now   An oil cloak can protect Robson Bight during vehicle recovery. April 11, 2008 Fisheries Minister Loyola Hearn was asked if he had a plan in place to recover the wrecked fuel truck and logging equipment from Robson Bight whale reserve before the orcas return in June. He replied: “Sometimes trying to remove things such as the tanker can do more harm than good and we are not going to do that.” The threat of the fuel truck leaking is not a barrier to recovery, as the Minister would have us believe. Nuytco Research, who conducted the underwater assessment, can cloak the truck while it is being pulled to the surface, ensuring that if the fuel tank does leak, the diesel remains enclosed and can be safely removed from the ocean. In order for the equipment to be safely removed in time, the government must take immediate action. How long we have before the fuel truck begins to leak due to corrosion is anyone’s guess, but we can’t afford to gamble. Despite the Coast Guard’s claim last fall that the fuel truck imploded and all diesel had been released, video filmed in December reveals that the fuel truck is sitting upright on the seafloor and appears intact. Likewise, six of the other pieces of logging equipment are sitting upright on the seafloor, intact. There is every reason to believe that the fuel truck is still full of diesel and that the initial spill on August 20 was caused by the four pieces of equipment which were crushed into each other as they came off the barge. They alone contained over 2,000 litres of diesel and could easily have accounted for the slick that spread 14 kilometres along Johnstone Strait. Sorting out who is responsible for this incident and who should ultimately pay for clean-up will take time. What is important right now is that the equipment be removed as a matter of urgency so that this whale habitat, critical to their wellbeing, is protected. The initial spill was bad enough. If the diesel truck and other logging equipment are left in Robson Bight this summer and they release the remaining fuel, a much larger spill would occur and be disastrous for the Northern Resident and Transient orcas that are already listed as “threatened” under Canada’s Species At Risk Act.

Intact fuel truck a ticking time bomb

February 12, 2007: On February 11, the B.C. Ministry of Environment (MoE) posted a video shot during the underwater investigation of Robson Bight last December. There is every reason to believe that the sunken fuel truck’s 10,000 litre tank is full of diesel and should be removed from the bottom of Robson Bight.

Living Oceans Society has not yet been provided with a copy of the video or a report on the operation. As soon as we have a copy of the final report prepared for MoE, we will conduct a full analysis of the situation.

UNDERWATER INVESTIGATION | December 2007

December 17, 2007: We wrapped up the underwater investigation on Saturday, after successfully locating all the spilled equipment. For the record, here’s what we found on the bottom of Robson Bight:

The B.C. Ministry of Environment has agreed to give Living Oceans a copy of the footage. When we have received it we will review it thoroughly and consider Nuytco’s advice before making recommendations on next steps.

A big thank you to Nuytco and the crew of the Aurora Explorer for a job well done!

December 12, 2007: The first day of submarine activities was eventful. Jeff Heaton of Nuytco piloted on the first dive and located the fuel truck within an hour. He was able to capture high quality videotape of the truck.

The fuel truck is sitting upright in 1,150 feet of water, in sediment up to its axles. It is in one piece, with some deformation on each end(i.e. they are concave). We will wait until experts have had a chance to analyze the videotape before drawing any firm conclusions or speculating on the next steps.

Doug Bishop piloted the second dive. He found three pieces of equipment. We will tell you what they are once we have seen the footage.

Our working vessel is the Aurora Explorer of Campbell River. Those on board include Andjela Knezevic-Stevanovic of the B.C. Ministry of the Environment, DanielReid of the Canadian Coast Guard, Jim Borrowman of Stubbs Island Whale Watching, Doug Aberley and Michael Berry representing the ‘Namgis First Nation, and Dorthea Hangaard of Living Oceans Society. A pod of transient orca whales also visited.

Many thanks to Bill Mackay of Mackay Whale Watching for bringing media out to witness this event.

December 3, 2007: After three sunny, calm days in Robson Bight last week, Nuytco identified seven targets (possible pieces of equipment) using rotary scan equipment. Some of these targets could be pile-ups of equipment and some could be geological features. We won’t know for sure until a submarine goes down for a look. Previous sidescan work by the Canadian Coast Guard vessel, the Tully was extremely useful in narrowing down our search area.

Our “Vessel of Opportunity” was the Lukwa , a local whale watching boat owned by Jim Borrowman. Also on board were representatives from the B.C. Ministry of the Environment, the Canadian Coast Guard, two Nuytco staff, two Robson Bight park wardens and Dorthea Hangaard from Living Oceans. The ‘Namgis visited on the first day.

On two out of the three days we encountered petroleum on the surface of the water, always in the afternoon.

The next step is to launch a manned submersible to visit these sites and videotape the wreckage. The submarine will be deployed this Friday,December 7th, weather permitting. After watching the rotary scan heads drop to depths of over 350 metres we have a renewed appreciation for the remarkable depth this equipment is sitting at.

November 23, 2007-The provincial and federal governments have contracted deep sea dive expert Phil Nuytten to inspect the logging wreckage in Robson Bight and make recommendations on the next steps.The first phase of the investigation is scheduled to begin this Tuesday, November 27th, weather permitting. The first phase is likely to include rotary scanning and side scanning which will attempt to pinpoint the exact location of the logging equipment and fuel truck.The second phase will deploy a manned submersible to capture underwater footage of the equipment.

Living Oceans has been invited on-board the working vessel as an observer for the duration of the investigation, and the Province hasagreed to provide us with a copy of underwater footage.

October 20, 2007: Hours after Living Oceans and Greenpeace announced the date of our underwater investigation of Robson Bight, the federal and provincial governments stepped forward and said that they would collaborate on their own underwater investigation.

“We’re very pleased that both levels of government are cooperating to find out what’s happening on the seafloor of Robson Bight,” saidJennifer Lash, Living Oceans Society’s Executive Director. “We need to make sure that the investigation is transparent and happens in a timelymanner. We’re looking forward to finding out more details next week.”

October 19, 2007: The federal and provincial governments remain divided on whether or no tan underwater investigation should take place in Robson Bight. The province still supports the investigation, while the Coast Guard and Environment Canada do not. Meanwhile, regular reports of diesel and other oily substances on the water over the logging wreckage continue to come in. Twyla Roscovich has put together a five minute documentary on this subject, which can be viewed below ("After the Spill").

Thanks to your support (with a special thanks to Greenpeace Canada!), we now have over $40,000 and have booked sidescan equipment and a manned submersible from Phil Nuytten of Nuytco. The sidescan is set to commence October 30th, depending on the weather. We will be filming the event, as well as the wreckage, so check back here for updates.

After the Spill | Calling From the Coast video of Robson Bight six weeks after the barge spill. Produced by Twyla Roscovich.

August 28, 2007 - Greenpeace, Living Oceans Society, and whale watching companies today called on the Harper and Campbell governments to investigate a diesel spill that took place inside an ecological reserve, threatening a population of orca whales.

“We are calling on the federal and provincial governments to launch a submersible camera to immediately inspect the wreckage and develop a strategy to contain any leaks. If the government is negligent in their responsibility to protect this vital whale habitat and marine ecosystem, then we will take action ourselves.”

- Jennifer Lash of Living Oceans Society

Below: CBC News broadcast, August 21, 2007

On August 20 a barge carrying heavy equipment spilled its contents, including a truck carrying diesel fuel, into the Michael Bigg Ecological Reserve at Robson Bight. The spill happened 886 meters inside the reserve boundary.

Living Oceans Society shot this video over the barge at the northern boundary of the reserve at 2:00 pm on August 20.

The fuel truck and other logging equipment relaying at a depth of 350 metres. The truck is estimated to hold 10,000 litres of diesel fuel. While some fuel has spilled into the ocean,there is the possibility of over 9,000 litres remaining at the bottom of the ocean. Neither the federal nor provincial governments have made any attempt to inspect the wreckage and determine the extent of the an up required.

Watch a CBC slideshow of the barge before and after the spill.

Hear OrcaLab’s hydrophone recording of the barge spill. Two family groups of orcas (I15s & I33s)were nearby in Robson Bight when the incident happened. They were vocalbefore the accident and during the intense sounds that accompanied theequipment as it fell to the ocean floor.