BSEE inspects Shell’s spill response equipment

In late April two members of staff from the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement’s Oil Spill Preparedness Division, Alaska, inspected Shell’s oil spill responder training and the deployment of oil spill response equipment in Valdez, Alaska. Shell is preparing for planned exploration drilling in the Chukchi Sea this summer.

Shell’s contracted oil spill response organizations Arctic Slope Regional Corp. Energy Services and Ukpeagvik Inupiat Corp. own and operate the equipment.

BSEE says that all oil exploration operators must have a BSEE approved oil spill response plan and that the agency conducts inspections and deployment exercises, some unannounced, to validated the viability of a plan and the proficiency of the personnel involved in plan implementation.

Following a recent demonstration of Shell’s undersea oil containment dome, a key component of the company’s Arctic oil spill response arsenal, BSEE Director Brian Salerno commented that Arctic operations require extra effort towards safety and environmental protection.

“We are leaving no stone unturned to ensure operators have addressed all relevant risks,” Salerno said. “It is equally important that operators be prepared to respond in the event of an incident, especially in a scenario which threatens the environment.”

- Alan Bailey

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