BP BHEAD INT H [atlas:bill]

AN ACT Relating to oil spill prevention measures for oil tankers; amending RCW 88.16.190; creating a new section; providing an effective date; and declaring an emergency.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that the marine waters located in and adjacent to the Strait of Juan de Fuca between the state of Washington and Canada are some of the most pristine and diverse marine waters in the United States and include irreplaceable natural resources. The area includes such national treasures as the Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary and the Olympic National Park, is home to five federally recognized Indian reservations, holds one of the largest sea bird colonies on the west coast, and is the habitat for several threatened and endangered species.

The legislature also finds that the marine waters are of great environmental and economic importance to not only the state of Washington, but also to the people of Canada and the United States. The legislature also recognizes that the marine vessel traffic on these waters presents risks of accidents and oil spills which would be devastating to the environment and to the economy.

The legislature recognizes that transits by commercial vessels through the Strait of Juan de Fuca are projected by the United States coast guard to increase by fifty percent from the year 2000 to the year 2015. Volumes of petroleum movement, including cargo and bunker oil, are conservatively projected to increase by nearly four billion gallons by the year 2015. The legislature also recognizes that this growth in commercial vessel transits and petroleum movement constitute a significant and growing increase in projected oil spill frequency.

The legislature finds that the 1976 legislative requirement of tug escorts for all laden, single-hull oil tankers operating east of New Dungeness, as augmented by federal law, has greatly improved navigational safety in the eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca and Rosario Strait. Extension of this proven safety measure westward to the mouth of the strait, or its equivalent by locating a dedicated oil spill prevention tug will similarly improve navigational safety and correct a growing safety gap in the marine navigation system.

Sec. 2. RCW 88.16.190 and 1994 c 52 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) Any oil tanker, whether enrolled or registered, of greater than ((~~one hundred and twenty-five~~)) forty thousand deadweight tons shall be prohibited from proceeding beyond a point, within the internal waters of the state of Washington and the United States, east of a line extending from ((~~Discovery Island light south to New Dungeness light~~)) Bonilla Point light on Vancouver Island to Tatoosh Island light, unless the conditions set in subsection (2) of this section are met.

(2)(a) An oil tanker, whether enrolled or registered, of greater than forty ((~~to one hundred and twenty-five~~)) thousand deadweight tons may proceed beyond the points enumerated in subsection (1) of this section if ((~~such~~)) the tanker is in ballast or under the escort of a tug or tugs with the ability to control the movement of or stop the tanker. A tanker is exempt from this section if it possesses all of the following standard safety features:

((~~(a) Shaft horsepower in the ratio of one horsepower to each two and one-half deadweight tons; and~~

~~(b)~~)) (i) A bow thruster with a dedicated power source;

(ii) Two rudders with separate steering systems;

(iii) An independent source of electrical power for each rudder and screw combination;

(iv) Twin screws with a dedicated power source to each; ((~~and~~

~~(c)~~)) (v) Double ((~~bottoms, underneath~~)) hulls for all oil, fuel, and liquid cargo compartments; ((~~and~~

~~(d)~~)) (vi) Two radars in working order and operating, one of which must be collision avoidance radar; and

((~~(e)~~)) (vii) Such other navigational position location systems as may be prescribed from time to time by the board of pilotage commissioners((:

PROVIDED, That, if such forty to one hundred and twenty-five thousand deadweight ton tanker is in ballast or is under escort of a tug or tugs with an aggregate shaft horsepower equivalent to five percent of the deadweight tons of that tanker, subsection (2) of this section shall not apply: PROVIDED FURTHER, That additional tug shaft horsepower equivalencies may be required under certain conditions as established by rule and regulation of the Washington utilities and transportation commission pursuant to chapter 34.05 RCW: PROVIDED FURTHER, That)).

(b)(i) The conditions in this subsection (2) do not apply if an oil spill prevention tug, of size and capacity as determined by the department of ecology, is in continuous operation at or near the westward end of the Strait of Juan de Fuca. The oil spill prevention tug shall, to the extent the department determines feasible, include among its operations the escorting of laden oil tankers through the traffic convergence zone where tankers must cross the paths of other vessels entering or exiting established vessel traffic lanes.

(ii) The conditions may be waived by the department of ecology following adoption of rules that substantially reduce the risks of drift grounding, powered grounding, and collision.

(iii) The department of ecology may, based on its own risk analysis, waive the conditions for an individual oil tanker that is unladen or has additional safety features that supersede the features listed in (a) of this subsection.

(3) A tanker assigned a deadweight of less than forty thousand deadweight tons at the time of construction or reconstruction as reported in Lloyd's Register of Ships is not subject to the provisions of RCW 88.16.170 through 88.16.190.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes effect April 1, 2000.