Prince William Sound Regional Citizens’ Advisory Council held a board meeting in Homer for the first time in nine years last week. The council holds quarterly meetings in a rotation of the towns they represent. The council would have met in Homer in 2021, but held meetings online instead due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The council has representatives from 19 different towns and corporations and receives nearly $4 million in annual funding from Alyeska Pipeline Service Company.
According to the council’s website, they are “citizens promoting environmentally safe operation of the Alyeska terminal and associated tankers.”
At the two day meeting, the board received numerous reports and updates, including an update from Alyeska to address concerns from a safety report on the Valdez Marine Terminal.
Robert Archibald, board president of the council, said that they are waiting for additional actions to take place regarding the report.
“Alyeska has in receipt of that report, and they said they are looking at it seriously,” he said, “so that's as much feedback as we've got from them so far, but it's been disseminated to all the state and federal agencies.”
In addition to these updates, the board also approved different contracts, resolutions and reports. Among those included a report on oxygenated hydrocarbons – a compound found in ballast water treatment that wasn’t measured previously.
The report shows heavy metals are also discharged into Port Valdez every day, even after treatment.
While heavy metal levels don’t reach the limit set by water safety standards, the report brings up concerns with it accumulating in the sediment.
Archibald said the full effects of these oxygenated hydrocarbons are not clear, but that they are continuing to look into it.
“It's an ongoing process, and we'll see if it is a big detrimental effect in the Valdez area or not,” he said, “It's something that is, worldwide is becoming more apparent that there is this issue.”
Another report updated a peer listening training manual. This manual takes a trauma informed approach to guide people on how to support others’ mental wellbeing following technological disasters like oil spills.
Overall, Archibald said that it is vital for the council to exist to oversee the actions of the oil industry.
“It is incumbent on this group to maintain this vigilance over industry because with the lack of funds for government agencies these days and institutional knowledge retiring, it just is paramount that we maintain this vigilance,” he said.
The work of the council isn’t finished after this meeting. Their next meeting will be in Anchorage this coming January.
