You are here: Home >

Activities in States and the Northern Territory

National Plan to Combat Pollution of the Sea by Oil and other Noxious and Hazardous Substances
Annual Report 1997/98

Victoria

Significant Incidents

There were no major spills in Victoria during the reporting period.

There were 83 minor marine pollution incidents reported throughout the state. Clean up action was necessary in 45 of these incidents. Included in the 83 incidents, there were three spills of significance. These were:

a spill of bunker fuel from a ruptured tank on board a vessel in Portland. A significant response was mounted including the use of booms and skimmers over a period of three days. Costs were recovered from the polluter.
a spill occurred from a vessel in the Port of Melbourne which necessitated a response utilising booms and skimmers. Costs were recovered from the polluter.
oil was sighted off Cape Otway in Commonwealth waters. Victorian agencies responded at the request of AMSA as part of the mutual aid arrangements of the National Plan. The National Plan fixed wing aerial dispersant spraying contract was activated and dispersant was successfully sprayed on the oil at sea. As a result no oil impacted the Victorian coastline. Costs incurred by Victorian agencies were reimbursed by the National Plan.

Local Training

During the year over two hundred personnel from a wide variety of agencies have undergone training. Courses included oil spill response management, foreshore cleanup strategies, administrative support and equipment operation.

Equipment Acquisition

In addition to the equipment supplied under National Plan funding as indicated in the earlier section on Equipment, the following equipment was acquired using State funding:

200 metres of general purpose boom; and
Brush Skimmer

Exercises

Joint exercises have been held with Industry during the course of the year in both Westernport and Melbourne. Regional exercises designed to familiarise personnel with the new Incident Control System have been held in each of the four regions. Victorian oil spill personnel also attended Exercise "Barossa" in South Australia as Umpires and Observers.

New or Updated Contingency Plans

The National Plan was expanded during the year to cover response arrangements for chemical and other hazardous substance spills. A working group comprising of the Marine Board of Victoria, emergency services and industry has been formed to develop a Victorian State Marine Chemical Spill Contingency Plan.

Following the revision of the Victorian Marine Pollution Contingency Plan, the four Regional Plans have been revised during the past year. This revision has included the implementation of an Incident Control System for oil spill response similar to that in use by other emergency services in Victoria.

The Marine Board has also signed a Protocol with Aboriginal Affairs Victoria for the provision of Heritage and Cultural data during an oil spill. The Protocol is designed to ensure that there is no damage to archaeological sites along the State's coastline during an oil spill response.

Coastal Resource Atlas (CRA)

Development of Coastal Resource Atlases for the State's coastline has continued during the year with grants from the National Plan. The Surfcoast Atlas has been completed and the first stage of the Kilcunda to Wilsons Promontory Atlas has been developed. In addition, National Plan funds have provided a set of digital mosaic aerial photographs covering both Port Phillip and Westernport Bays for use by oil spill responders.

[back to top]

New South Wales

Significant Incidents

Woolloomooloo Bay

On the evening of 25 February 1998 an oil spill occurred in Woolloomooloo Bay from a disused oil pipeline under the Finger Wharf. The pipeline was damaged by machinery working on the Wharf. It was estimated that 65 tonnes of heavy fuel oil spilled into the Bay. Sydney Ports Corporation (SPC) carried out the response, booming off the wharf area and a section of the Bay. Oil was recovered using the two Marco skimmers and sorbent materials. The oil affected foreshores were washed with low and medium pressure water jets. Clean up operations lasted for three weeks. Due to the rapid SPC response and favourable tidal and wind conditions, only a few minor slicks escaped into Sydney Harbour and were soon dispersed.

Local Training

Newcastle Port Corporation held an Oil Spill Response Course from 13 - 15 May. It incorporated a half day equipment deployment exercise. Foreshore Assessment and Cleanup Workshops were conducted in Port Macquarie (31 March) and Ballina (3 June).

Port Kembla Port Corporation conducted Foreshore Assessment and Cleanup Workshops in Huskisson (25 - 26 March) and Narooma (20 - 21 May).

Sydney Ports Corporation conducted an in-house training program that consisted of 10 different modules of differing levels designed specifically for its work-group teams.

Ampol conducted a Shoreline Cleanup Workshop on 1 - 2 October, which was attended by Ampol, Shell, the Environment Protection Authority and the National Parks & Wildlife Service.

Equipment Acquisition

In addition to the equipment supplied under National Plan funding as indicated in the earlier section on Equipment, the following equipment was acquired using State funding:

2000 metres of sheltered water boom

Sydney Ports Corporation

1 Desmi Terminator skimmer

Sydney Ports Corporation

3 debris scows

Sydney Ports Corporation

Exercises

Teekay Tabletop Exercise

On 11 March, Teekay Shipping (Canada) Ltd conducted a tabletop exercise in Sydney to improve the company's Emergency Response Division preparedness and the working relationships with Australian and NSW regulatory authorities. The scenario involved a 96,640 dwt Aframax tankship discharging at the Caltex CBM Terminal at Botany. During the discharge human error caused the flexible hose to be overpressurised, blowing out the expansion coupling and thus causing damage to a sub sea fitting. This allowed over 200 tonnes of cargo to escape into Botany Bay. AMSA, Office of Marine Administration, Sydney Ports Corporation, Environment Protection Authority and the National Parks & Wildlife Service were involved in the exercise and the half day exercise washup which was held on the following day.

Exercise Clarence

The Northern Rivers Marine Oil Spill Contingency Plan was activated and exercised on 29 April in the Port of Yamba. The exercise scenario was the grounding of a 70 metre cargo vessel one nautical mile inside the entrance to the Clarence River. This was a fully operational exercise involving Newcastle Port Corporation, Office of Marine Administration and Queensland Transport personnel.

BHP Exercises

Port Kembla Port Corporation have participated in two tabletop exercises conducted by BHP, held on 28 April and 14 May. The first was held in Port Kembla involving an incident in the BHP facility and the second, conducted in Melbourne, involved a major oil spill into Port Kembla.

New or Updated Contingency Plans

For the purposes of notification and response to oil spill incidents and District contingency planning, the NSW coast has been divided into three regions and each of the port corporations has been assigned one of the regions. Under these arrangements, the following District Marine Oil Spill Contingency Plans have been prepared and are now in place: Hunter; Mid North Coast; Far North Coast; Illawarra; Shoalhaven and Far South Coast.

Coastal Resource Atlas

The project to transfer the Coastal Resource Atlases (CRA) from hard copy to a GIS format has been completed. The CRA has been produced on CD ROM and distributed to the three NSW Port Corporations, the Environment Protection Authority and the National Parks & Wildlife Service for use and to direct any amendments to the Office of Marine Administration.

[back to top]

South Australia

Significant Incidents

There were no major spills in South Australia during the reporting period. There were two significant minor incidents, which were:

a spill of heavy fuel oil from the Port Adelaide bunker barge on 4 September 1997; and
a spill of heavy fuel oil from MSC Edna at Outer Harbour Port Adelaide.

A response was mounted on 45 occasions throughout the year to minor incidents.

Local Training

The State delivered a number of training courses with a total number of 81 personnel being trained. Courses included Wildlife Response Kit training with the RSPCA, Shoreline Clean up, Equipment Operators Courses and Floating Plant training.

Equipment Acquisition

In addition to the equipment supplied under National Plan funding as indicated in the earlier section on Equipment, the following equipment was acquired using State funding:

Storage bins for booms
Curtain boom buffer units for ship side booms
Storage shed
OH&S kits for State Flying Squad
Maintenance repair kit for National Plan and State equipment

Exercises

The State participated or organised the following exercises:

13 August 1997, Deployment of State, AMOSC, SANTOS equipment and AMR aerial dispersant exercise Port Adelaide Outer Harbour
14 - 15 August 1997, Mobil's Exercise "Tarni"
22 April 1998, Exercise "Power Down", a joint exercise with Torrens Island Power Station and State Emergency Response Division agencies
11 June 1998, Exercise "Barossa" National exercise Port Adelaide Outer Harbour.

New or Updated Contingency Plans

Work is close to completion on the revised State Contingency Plan.

Coastal Resource Atlas (CRA)

Work continued on inputting data into the CRA. Coverage of most of the South Australian coastline has been entered.

[back to top]

Tasmania

Significant Incidents

On 17 January 1998 the vessel Matthew Flinders grounded on Little Dog Reef, Furneaux Group. A plan was declared and the OSC flew to site. Some diesel had escaped from the vessel although this was denied by the skipper. The vessel was refloated on 19January and towed to Flinders Island for repairs. Concerns were raised as to security of agricultural chemicals on board. There were also concerns for the possible effects of the spill on bird nesting, feeding areas and marine sensitive areas.

There were 11 minor marine pollution incidents reported throughout the State. Of these, one required activation of a National Plan response.

Local Training

With assistance from the Queensland Transport, a National Plan Equipment Operators course was held in Hobart on 17 - 18 March.

Twenty three participants, including representatives from unions, government agencies, local government, port companies and a tug company, attended the course.

Administrative Changes to State/NT Response Arrangements

Dr Ian Woodward, the Chairperson of the State Marine Pollution Committee, resigned from the position on 30 June 1998 as a consequence of his resignation as Director of Environmental Management in the Department of Environment and Land Management.

Interim arrangements were subsequently made to fill that position pending a permanent appointment.

On 9 April, Mr John Isaac, the Senior Executive Officer State/Commonwealth Relations and Executive Officer to the State Marine Pollution Committee, was appointed by the Minister for Environment and Land Management as the alternate Chairperson of the Committee.

A Memorandum of Understanding between the Tasmanian Fire Service and the Department of Environment and Land Management was tabled for consideration at the meeting of the State Marine Pollution Committee held on 16 June 1998.

This Memorandum of Understanding is intended to formalise operational policies and arrangements between the Parties to ensure that Tasmania is able to discharge its responsibilities under the National Plan in relation to noxious and hazardous substances. This document is now awaiting formal signature.

Equipment Acquisition

In addition to the equipment supplied under National Plan funding as indicated in the earlier section on Equipment, the following equipment was acquired using State funding:

nine 3 metre sorbent boom
3 boxes of sorbent pads

Exercises

No exercises were conducted during the reporting period.

New or Updated Contingency Plans

The Tasmanian Oil Spill Wildlife Response Plan has now been updated and was reissued on 9 June 1998.

[back to top]

Queensland

Significant Incidents

Collision between Barrington and Austral Salvor

A summary of the collision is outlined under the section Incidents in Australian Waters 1997/98.

There were 60 minor marine pollution incidents reported throughout the State. Of these, 24 required a response to be activated.

Local Training

There were eight Operator Response courses conducted by Queensland Transport officers, with a total of 241 participants attending from industry, local government, port authorities, Queensland Transport, tourism operators and other government agencies.

Equipment Acquisition

In addition to the equipment supplied under National Plan funding as indicated in the earlier section on Equipment, the following equipment was ordered using State funding during the reporting period, with delivery during 1997/98:

2 Ro tank recovered oil tanks
2 heavy oil transfer pumps and ancillary equipment

Exercises

Exercise Clarence was conducted at Yamba in Northern New South Wales on 29 April. It was used to activate and exercise the response action to an oil spill occurring within the scope of the Northern Rivers Oil Spill Contingency Plan. The exercise was written by Queensland Transport. The exercise was attended by personnel from Queensland Transport, Newcastle Port Corporation, NSW State Emergency Services, NSW Fire Services and the Australian Maritime Safety Authority.

New or Updated Contingency Plans

The Queensland Coastal Contingency Action Plan was updated in June and will be reissued during the last week of June/first week of July.

[back to top]

Western Australia

Significant Incidents

Pine Trust Grounding, Shark Bay

A summary of the grounding incident is outlined under the section Incidents in Australian Waters 1997/98.

There were 37 minor marine pollution incidents reported throughout the State with the incident at Shark Bay requiring a National Plan response.

Local Training

The WA Department of Transport conducted seven Equipment Operator courses, including one in Derby following the reopening of the port. A course was also conducted in the Cocos Islands on behalf of AMSA. Ninety five people were trained in equipment operation during the reporting period.

Equipment Acquisition

100 metres of shoreline protection boom
100 metres of Expandi 3000 boom
Rotopac boom deployment/recovery device

Exercises

A discussion exercise was held in Karratha in October. This was facilitated by the State Emergency Service, Police and the Department of Transport and involved all agencies who would play a role in the response to a major oil spill. A desktop exercise was held the following day, simulating a spill in the Port of Dampier.

A similar desktop exercise was held in Geraldton in May. These exercises are conducted by the Department of Transport on behalf of the State Combat Committee and in conjunction with the Port Authorities to test plans and lines of communication.

In June, a chemical incident exercise was held involving a vessel arriving with a leaking container. The vessel was boarded at sea by fire fighters and admitted to the port where subsequently an explosion and fire occurred. The exercise was a cooperative arrangement by Department of Transport, Fremantle Port Authority, the Western Australian Fire and Rescue Service and the State Combat Committee. The exercise was funded by AMSA.

Four equipment deployment exercises have been held in conjunction with the Fremantle Port Authority.

New or Updated Contingency Plans

The Western Australian Marine Oil Pollution Emergency Management Plan was updated and reissued in December 1997.

Coastal Resource Atlas (CRA)

The WA CRA continues to progress in line with National Plan project objectives. The WA program has complied with all National Plan requirements and has achieved the majority of 97/98 data base goals set for WA. Currently the WA CRA is being distributed via CD ROM with the only restriction in its use being a necessity for the software program ArcView to be installed on the client PC.

[back to top]

Northern Territory

Significant Incidents

No significant oil spills occurred in the Northern Territory in 1997/98.

Local Training

The Department of Transport and Works conducted four Equipment Operator Courses and one combined Shoreline and Equipment Operators Course during the reporting period with a total of 68 participants.

Administrative Changes to State/NT Response Arrangements

The Department of Transport and Works has an incumbent in the position of Oil Pollution Equipment and Training Coordinator who is responsible for the conducting of National Plan training in the Northern Territory.

Equipment Acquisition

No major items of response equipment were acquired by the Northern Territory during the year other than equipment supplied under the National Plan (see earlier section on Equipment). The Darwin Port Authority has increased its stocks of absorbent booms and materials.

Exercises

No major exercises were held in the Northern Territory during the year. Nabalco Pty Ltd and Groote Eylandt Mining Company Ltd (GEMCO) have conducted desk top exercises to test the contingency plans for Gove and Milner Bay. The exercises included limited deployment of response equipment.

The Australian Army, 36 Water Transport Troop, based in Darwin, has provided landing barge support during three Equipment Operator Courses.

New or Updated Contingency Plans

Response Tech Pty Ltd delivered the completed the Northern Territory Marine Oil Pollution Contingency Plan (NTPlan) in April 1998. This complements the existing plans for the harbours of Darwin, Gove and Milner Bay. The NTPlan will be tested during an oil pollution exercise in August 1998.

Coastal Resource Atlas (CRA)

The Environment Protection Division of the Department of Lands, Planning and Environment has continued production of the Northern Territory’s Coastal Resource Atlas. Funding is being provided by the Department, the Ocean Rescue 2000 Program and the National Plan.

[back to top]

last updated:
18 June 2001