Tag: US

The California State Lands Commission (SLC) has published a letter addressing Ballast Water reporting requirements for vessels entering California. The vessels are required to submit the following three forms: Ballast Water Treatment Technology Annual Reporting Form Ballast Water Treatment Supplemental Reporting Form Hull Husbandry Reporting Form   To ensure compliance with reporting requirements under the Marine Invasive Species Act, operators are required to: Supply the Ballast Water Treatment Technology Annual Reporting Form, Ballast Water Treatment Supplemental Reporting Form and the Hull Husbandry Reporting Form (see below) to all vessel masters, owners, operators, or persons in charge; Inform vessel masters, owners, operators, or persons in charge of the submission requirements; Encourage submission of annual forms while a vessel is in California; and Remind clients that failure to comply with the form submission requirements may result in an administrative civil penalty. Penalties may be applied to the master, owner, operator, agent, or person in charge of the vessel in an amount not to exceed $27,500 per violation, with each day of a continuing violation constituting a separate violation.   Ballast Water Treatment Technology Annual Reporting Form Beginning January 1, 2015, a vessel is required to submit this form once per calendar year ...

Exxon Mobil Corporation’s marine affiliate, SeaRiver Maritime, Inc., named the Eagle Bay, the second of its two new U.S.-flag crude oil tankers, at a ceremony at Aker Philadelphia Shipyard. The first-in-class vessel, constructed at the shipyard, incorporates the latest safety, navigation and engine room technologies and will begin supplying crude oil from Alaska North Slope to refineries along the U.S. west coast later this year. The double hull Eagle Bay is 820-feet long and has capacity to carry 800,000 barrels of oil. SeaRiver Maritime’s contract with Aker for two tankers, valued at $400 million, delivered a significant economic boost to the greater Philadelphia region where it generated employment and millions of dollars in revenue. When placed into service, the new tankers’ economic contributions will extend across the United States to Alaska, California and Washington as they begin to support oil production and refining operations. They will replace two existing double hull tankers. “This project has had a significant economic impact, creating more than 1,200 jobs and generating millions of dollars in revenue for the city of Philadelphia, the commonwealth of Pennsylvania and beyond,” said Andy Madden, vice president of ExxonMobil Supply & Transportation Company. “What we celebrate today is a ...

The California Air Resources Board has fined four shipping companies a combined $146,719 for failing to switch from dirty diesel “bunker” fuel to cleaner, low-sulfur marine distillate fuel upon entering Regulated California Waters – within 24 nautical miles of the California coast. “State anti-pollution laws require shippers to do their part to protect air quality,” said ARB Enforcement Chief Jim Ryden. “Shippers who comply are helping to protect the health of those who live, work, and go to schools near ports and shipping lanes.  Many Californians don’t realize that diesel soot and other pollutants can also travel far inland to impact communities nowhere near the sea.  Our Ocean-Going Vessels Fuel Rule strives to protect residents throughout the state from the harmful impacts of ship pollution.” Adopted in 2008, the Ocean-Going Vessels Fuel Rule was designed to reduce fine particulate pollution, oxides of nitrogen and sulfur oxide emissions from ocean-going vessels to improve air quality and public health in California. The companies mentioned below were fined for either failing to switch to cleaner fuel within, regulated waters, or for switching fuels in an untimely manner.  They all took prompt action after being notified of the violations, and, under ARB’s supervision, are ...

Conditions of entry for vessels arriving at US ports from certain countries

Barack Obama, signed into law S. 2444, the Howard Coble USCG and Maritime Transportation Act of 2014

Senator Debbie Stabenow and Representatives Dave Camp (R-MI) and Louise Slaughter (D-NY) introduced the Guarding Our Great Lakes Act, bipartisan legislation designed to protect the Great Lakes from the threat of invasive Asian carp. In announcing the legislation, Sen. Stabenow, Rep. Camp, and Rep. Slaughter issued the following statements. "The Great Lakes are part of our way of life and fuel our economy," said Sen. Stabenow. "We must stop them from being destroyed by Asian carp and other invasive species. This is an emergency, and the time has come for decisive action before it's too late. This bill will call on the Army Corps to begin work on projects that will help prevent the spread of Asian carp and require the Great Lakes Interagency Task Force to move us closer toward a long-term, permanent solution that will keep Asian carp out of our Lakes for good."   "After years of study, we must begin making tangible progress to safeguard the Great Lakes ecosystem and the $7 billion economy it supports - and that is exactly what this bill would do," said Rep. Camp. "The Guarding Our Great Lakes Act would take the next necessary actions to prevent the spread of ...

Noble Drilling (U.S.) LLC was charged with environmental and maritime crimes for operating the drill ship Noble Discoverer and the drilling unit Kulluk in violation of federal law in Alaska in 2012, the Department of Justice announced. Under the terms of a plea agreement filed in federal court today, Noble will plead guilty to eight felony offenses, pay $12.2 million dollars in fines and community service payments, implement a comprehensive Environmental Compliance Plan, and will be placed on probation for four years. In addition, Noble’s parent corporation, Noble Corporation plc, headquartered in London, England, will implement an Environmental Management System for all Mobile Offshore Drilling Units (MODUs) owned or operated by Noble Corporation plc and its direct and indirect subsidiaries worldwide. Noble Drilling (U.S.) LLC was charged in an eight-count Information with knowingly failing to maintain an accurate Oil Record Book and an accurate International Oil Pollution Prevention certificate, knowingly failing to maintain a ballast water record book, and knowingly and willfully failing to notify the U.S. Coast Guard of hazardous conditions aboard the drill ship Noble Discoverer. At the time of the offenses, the Noble Discoverer was operating under contract with Shell Offshore, Inc. and Shell Development, Ltd. for ...

Vessel traffic on the Intracoastal Waterway near Bal Harbour, Florida is restricted following an incident

The American Club has recently announced the publication of its new guide that summarizes key regulations of which shipowners should be aware when trading to and from the United States.

EIA released a new U.S. Crude Oil Import Tracking Tool that allows policymakers, analysts, and the public to more easily track trends in crude oil imports. Users can sort and display crude oil imports by month or year, by crude type (i.e., light, medium, heavy), country source, port of entry, processing company, processing refinery, and more. The tool features graphing and mapping capabilities and a built-in help function. Recent and forecast increases in domestic crude production have sparked discussion about how rising crude oil volumes will be absorbed. To date, a primary mechanism for absorbing increased production has been the displacement of imported crude oil, which has fallen from 8.9 million barrels per day (bbl/d) in 2011 to 7.5 million bbl/d in August 2014. This tool sheds light on the adjustments to imports being made in response to growing production of crude oil within the United States. It is one part of EIA's ongoing effort to assess the effects of a possible relaxation of current limitations on U.S. crude oil exports, which is another avenue to accommodate domestic production growth. EIA is undertaking further work on this larger question, and expects to issue more analysis reports over the coming months. ...