Coast Guard: Ko Olina oil slick had minimal impact
Advertiser Staff
U.S. Coast Guard and health officials are searching for the the party responsible for spilling an estimated 500 gallons of marine diesel type fuel that caused a 3-mile slick between Barbers Point and Nanakuli on Saturday and forced the shut down of beaches in the area.
Coast Guard pollution investigators reported yesterday that the oil slick off Ko Olina along the Waianae Coast has mostly dissipated and had little impact on the shoreline.
Swimming lagoons at Ko Olina Resort were evacuated by local resort security personnel as a precaution.
Minor vessel damage has been reported. Boat owners with questions should call the Coast Guard at 842-2672 for more information.
The Coast Guard is leading a multi-agency response that is being directed by a unified command structure at Sand Island's Clean Islands Council to determine a cause and source. The Coast Guard is working closely with the State of Hawaii, State Department of Health and Honolulu Fire Department (HFD).
Once a source is determined, that entity will be brought in to the unified command structure as the "responsible party" and could then be held responsible for the cost of the cleanup.
As a standard course of action, the Coast Guard opened a national oil spill fund case (part of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990) to hire the Pacific Environmental Corp. (PENCO) to perform immediate clean up response.
Coast Guard, HFD and PENCO environmental clean up experts reported no visible shoreline damage this morning after extensive foot patrols. Also, crews on board Coast Guard and Clean Islands Council helicopter flights and an 87-foot patrol boat reported no further signs of pollution or visible oil in the water today.
"This has been a terrific joint response," Capt. Barry Compagnoni, the Coast Guard Captain of the Port, Honolulu, said in a released statement. "It's always unfortunate when we have a spill in Hawaii, but we have the right assets and people on scene. And, fortunately, the weather cooperated and the slick has dissipated. We've done extensive surveys of the coastline and area and the potential threat to the environment has been mitigated."
