Month: January 2020

Council’s Board of Directors to meet in Anchorage

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The Council will hold a Board meeting in Anchorage on Thursday and Friday, Jan. 23-24, 2020. The meeting will be located in the Imagine Ballroom of the Embassy Suites, at 600 E. Benson Blvd.

The tentative schedule for the Thursday Board meeting session is from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. On Friday, the meeting is scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. The meeting is open to the public, except for executive sessions. Public comments are tentatively scheduled to be taken Thursday starting at 8:55 a.m.

January 2020 Meeting Agenda and Documents

The Council will be conducting regular business during the meeting, including updates from council ex-officio members, staff and committees. Other topics on the agenda include:

  • An activity report by Alyeska Pipeline Service Company on Valdez Marine Terminal and Ship Escort/Response Vessel System operations.
  • Comments from Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, Division of Spill Prevention and Response Director Denise Koch on the current status of the division’s budget for FY2021.
  • An overview by Council staff on recommendations from the Legislative Affairs Committee for a Council position on ensuring the sustainability of the State Oil and Hazardous Substances Release Prevention and Response Fund.
  • An update by Council staff on efforts in response to a public scoping notice issued in October 2019 by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation to solicit comments and input on Alaska oil spill regulations (18 AAC 75, Article 4) and Alaska State Statute 46.04, specifically where the discharge prevention and contingency plan requirements can be eliminated or streamlined.
  • A briefing from Council staff on the status of the state review of the sale of BP Pipeline’s assets to Hilcorp/Harvest Alaska, LLC.
  • An update on U.S. Coast Guard Subchapter M Certificate of Inspection Regulation.
  • A report on the results of Port Valdez mussel transcriptomics monitoring in 2019, conducted in order to understand the potential environmental impacts of the Valdez Marine Terminal. The analysis concentrated on mussel genes associated with crude oil pollution as well as other environmental stressors.
  • A report on Prince William Sound forage fish surveys conducted in 2019. These surveys were conducted from an airplane along the entire coastline of Prince William Sound and were focused on identifying juvenile forage fish (e.g., herring, sandlance, capelin).
  • A summary by Council staff of incidents (e.g., oil spills, fires, malfunctions causing shutdowns, navigational closures, tanker/escort incidents) for the terminal or tankers that have occurred in 2019.
  • Introduction and update by the Council’s new state legislative affairs monitor, Kate Troll.

The meeting agenda provided is subject to change before or during the meeting. Council board meetings are routinely recorded and may be disseminated to the public by the Council or by the news media.

Meet the Board of Directors

News release: Prince William Sound RCAC board to meet in Anchorage

From Alyeska: Brigham McCown named new president of Alyeska Pipeline

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Brigham McCown

Brigham A. McCown will become the next president of Alyeska Pipeline Service Company. The selection was announced by the Trans Alaska Pipeline System’s (TAPS) Owners Committee.

McCown is the second company president hired as an Alyeska employee following Vice Admiral Thomas Barrett, U.S. Coast Guard (Ret.), who was brought on in January 2011 and is retiring.

McCown brings over three decades of executive management, legal, and operational experience in the infrastructure and transportation industries. He currently serves as chairman and CEO of Nouveau Consulting where he advises on matters pertaining to federal security and safety regulations. He is also chairman and founder of the Alliance for Innovation and Infrastructure, a non-partisan think tank leveraging innovation to improve infrastructure safety.

McCown has held several posts at the U.S. Department of Transportation, serving as a direct report to both democratic and republican Secretaries of Transportation including service as the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration’s first deputy administrator. In 2013, he retired from the U.S. Navy after 25 years of combined active and reserve service as a naval officer and naval aviator.

Outgoing president Admiral Tom Barrett, who is working with McCown during a transition period, stated, “I have known Brigham for many years and I share Alyeska’s Owners’ confidence in his excellent fit as Alyeska’s next president and in his ability to lead the organization. I am equally confident in the proud and talented TAPS people, whose dedication to safety, protecting our environment, operational excellence, reliability, efficiency and innovative work will carry TAPS operations into the next 40 years and beyond.”

“Brigham brings a deep and varied range of experience in the regulatory realm to Alyeska, including a sharp focus on operations and an unwavering commitment to safety,” said Jerry Frey, president of ExxonMobil Pipeline Company and chair of the TAPS Owners Committee. “We are confident in his leadership skills, which have been proven in many unique arenas, and in his ability to keep Alyeska and TAPS moving forward during this exciting time for Alaska’s oil and gas industry. Brigham has a high level of enthusiasm for working in Alaska, on the iconic and critical infrastructure of TAPS, and with the men and women of Alyeska Pipeline Service Company.”

“TAPS Owners and Alyeska leaders are grateful to Tom Barrett for his extraordinary leadership,” Frey said. “In his tenure, he built community partnerships, strengthened Alyeska’s culture, advanced the company’s safety record and expanded the focus on ethics, compliance, diversity and innovation. Tom led a transformative shift in Alyeska’s business and maintenance strategy. His leadership and initiatives will have a lasting impact on the company, on TAPS sustainability, and on Alaska.”

With nine years of service as Alyeska president, Barrett is the longest tenured of any Alyeska CEO/President in the company’s 49-year history. During his time at Alyeska, the organization celebrated its 35th and 40th anniversaries, 17 and 18 billionth barrel moved, increased throughput for the first time since 2002, and numerous safety, environment and compliance honors. Under Barrett, the organization evolved and innovated to successfully tackle numerous operational and external challenges.

  • Submitted by Alyeska Corporate Communications.

Recertification application available for public review

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The Council is seeking recertification as the alternative voluntary advisory group for Prince William Sound, as authorized under the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA 90). The application has been submitted to the U.S. Coast Guard, which is charged with assessing whether the Council fosters the general goals and purposes of OPA 90 and is broadly representative of communities and interests as envisioned under OPA 90.

The recertification application is now available for public review:

To obtain a printed copy, contact the the Council at (907) 277-7222, toll-free (800) 478-7221, or email Brooke Taylor.

Comments need to reach the USCG by February 10, 2020, and should reference “PWSRCAC Recertification Docket USCG-2019-0946” in the subject line.

Comments on the application should be sent to LT Ian McPhillips of the USCG:

  • Submit by email: Ian.P.McPhillips@uscg.mil.
  • Submit by mail:Commander, 17th Coast Guard District (dpi)
    PO Box 25517
    Juneau AK 99802
    Attn: LT Ian McPhillips
    Inspections & Investigations
  • Submit online:  Submit comments on the application for Recertification of Prince William Sound Regional Citizens’ Advisory Council

 

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