Coast Guard Working to Prevent Oil Spills in New Bedford Harbor

July 20, 2017 5:56 pm

By: Tim Studebaker

NEW BEDFORD, MASS. – New Bedford Harbor has an oil spill problem. It’s not one big spill plaguing the harbor that getting a lot of attention, but dozens of small spills that are starting to add up. Now, the Coast Guard is getting the word out, hoping to stop these small spills that are nearly impossible to clean up.

Lieutenant Lynn Schrayshuen with the Coast Guard Marine Safety Detachment in New Bedford says, “Last year we had 70 spills reported. However, the increased reporting is a positive because previously, sheens weren’t being reported.”

Those spills are all too noticeable to folks that make their living in the harbor.

Fishing Boat Employee Hipolito “Bucky” Almeida says, “You don’t see it with your eyes, but it’s there. People are fishing for stripers and blues. They’re getting it without knowing they’re getting it. It’s a big problem.”

Larger spills are called recoverable spills, meaning they can be cleaned up. The last one of that magnitude was in February. Other spills are too small to recover the oil.

Schrayshuen says, “Having unrecoverable spills is very common. We just had one yesterday. It’s often difficult to find the source of the spill when it’s unrecoverable.”

She says boaters can prevent these small spills by not dumping their bilges into the water. If you cause a spill, and you don’t report it before the coast guard tracks you down, you could face a fine.

Schrayshuen says, “It’s better to come forward if you do have an accidental spill. Mistakes happen, and we’re just looking to find out why the spill happened to prevent it in the future.”

If you see an oil sheen, the Coast Guard is asking you to report it by calling their national response center at 1-800-424-8802.