Does my vessel or railroad need an oil discharge prevention contingency plan?
Spill response in Jack Bay, Prince William Sound. Photo by ADEC staff.
Oil discharge prevention and contingency plans are required for:
- Vessels that transport oil or petroleum products in bulk
- Vessels that conduct oil or petroleum product transfer operations between a vessel and a shore-side facility
- Self-propelled nontank vessels that are over 400 gross tons
- Railroad tank cars that trasport oil or petroleum products in bulk
A vessel oil discharge prevention and contingency plan is required if any of the following conditions exist:
- A vessel operator, owner or charterer operates tank vessels, tank barges or tank ships that transport oil or petroleum products within State waters.
- A vessel requires a Federal Shipboard Oil Pollution Emergency Plan (SOPEP) for bulk oil or petroleum cargo and operates within State waters.
- Oil or petroleum products are transferred onto, into or from a vessel as cargo. This includes any oil or petroleum products that are transferred through hoses, piping or manifolds using a combination of piping and hoses from a shore-side facility to or from cargo tanks on or below the vessel deck. It does not include fuel for vessel operations. It does not include portable containers, filled onshore with oil or petroleum products that are loaded onto a vessel for transport to a destination where the portable container, still containing its original contents, is offloaded from the vessel.
- A vessel transports and transfers oil or petroleum products in bulk for private use. This includes the transfer of oil or petroleum products to tanks or bulk containers on a vessel, to or from a shore-side supply source such as a privately owned tank, tank truck or shore-side petroleum storage facility.
- A vessel is a self-propelled nontank vessel over 400 gross tons. This includes, but is not limited to: all freight vessels, tugs, fishing vessels, passenger vessels and fish processors over 400 gross tons.
- Nontank Vessel Spill Preparedness Presentation
Note: Possessing a federally approved oil discharge prevention and contingency plan does not alleviate a plan holder from complying with Alaska regulations requiring a State approved oil discharge prevention and contingency plan.
Oil Discharge Prevention and Contingency Plans regulations are found at 18 AAC 75.400.