MAY 6, 2024 — On April 8, 2024, the New Jersey District Court accepted the entry of a settlement reached by NOAA and our co-trustees with Wyeth Holdings, LLC. This settlement compensates for natural resource injuries resulting from hazardous substance releases at/near the American Cyanamid Superfund Site in Bridgewater, New Jersey.
OR&R Weekly Report
The Office of Response and Restoration publishes this weekly round-up of news and information of interest to our partners, stakeholders, and team members. Click to subscribe
MAY 6, 2024 — On April 23 - 24, the Office of Response and Restoration (OR&R), led by Director Scott Lundgren, hosted a two-day tour of major restoration and debris removal projects in Washington State for Deputy Assistant Administrator for Ocean Services and Coastal Zone Management Paul Scholz. A congressional staffer for Senator Patty Murray’s (D-WA) also joined for key events.
MAY 6, 2024 — On October 25, 2023, a local power and water utility experienced a release of diesel fuel from a tank at a plant in Havensight, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. The spill of No. 2 diesel was discharged outside the tank’s secondary containment. Original spill estimates of 33,600 gallons of diesel have since been updated and calculated to be over 50,000 gallons.
MAY 6, 2024 — From April 22-29, 2024, over 2,500 participants—representing 170 governments as well as stakeholders from nongovernment organizations, academia, the private sector, the United Nations, and other international organizations—met in Ottawa, Canada, for the fourth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC-4) to continue negotiations towards a new international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution.
MAY 6, 2024 — From April 23-25, OR&R staff participated in the annual meeting of the National Response Team (NRT) held in St. Louis, Missouri. The NRT provides technical assistance, resources and coordination on preparedness, planning, response and recovery activities for emergencies involving hazardous substances, pollutants and contaminants, oil, and weapons of mass destruction in natural and technological disasters and other environmental incidents of national significance.
MAY 6, 2024 — Ahead of the approaching hurricane season, the Office of Response and Restoration’s (OR&R) Disaster Preparedness Program, in conjunction with the Coastal Response Research Center (CRRC) at the University of New Hampshire, held its 5th annual Hurricane Preparedness Summit.
MAY 6, 2024 — On April 30, several members from the NOAA Marine Debris Program within the Office of Response and Restoration joined OR&R’s Scientific Support and Regional Preparedness Coordinator William Whitmore to host a Marine Debris 101 workshop for partners and stakeholders in the New England region. Roughly three dozen participants attended the 90-minute virtual workshop.
The NOAA Marine Debris Program's Chief Scientist, Amy V. Uhrin gave the keynote address at Sea Grant’s Microplastics in the Coastal Region workshop held April 8-10, 2024, in Charleston, South Carolina.
February 2023
FEB. 13, 2023 — Last week, NOAA's Marine Debris Program, within the Office of Response and Restoration, released the report, "Recycling Opportunities for Abandoned, Derelict, and End-of-Life Recreational Vessels."
FEB. 6, 2023 — The Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) Program recently released new digital data for both Lake Erie and the Atlantic shoreline of East Florida.
FEB. 6, 2023 — NOAA and other federal, state, and tribal natural resource trustees have released a Draft Damage Assessment Plan for the St. Louis River / U.S. Steel site in Duluth, Minnesota, and are soliciting public comments.
FEB. 6, 2023 — Last month, staff from NOAA Marine Debris Program, within the Office of Response and Restoration, presented to a group of educators participating in a Gulf of Mexico Bay Watershed Education and Training project.
FEB. 6, 2023 — The Department of Justice lodged a consent decree on Jan. 30, 2023, that proposes a settlement with Lynden Inc. and others to resolve claims related to releases of hazardous waste pollution on the Lower Duwamish River in Seattle.
FEB. 6, 2023 — Last month the NOAA Marine Debris Program, within the Office of Response and Restoration, hosted a workshop on national implementation of NOAA’s Marine Debris Monitoring and Assessment Project.
FEB. 6, 2023 — The U.S. Coast Guard has recognized two OR&R Scientific Support Coordinators — CDR Faith Knighton and LTJG Kyle Vincent — with a Coast Guard Meritorious Team Commendation for their involvement in the incident management team for the recovery of the F/V Aleutian Isle.
January 2023
JAN. 30, 2023 —On Jan. 26, 2023, the NOAA Marine Debris Program, within the Office of Response and Restoration, released its 2022 Accomplishments Report.
JAN. 30, 2023 — Two virtual public meetings were held on Jan. 25, 2023, to inform the public about the status of the natural resource damage assessment being conducted for the Pipeline P00547 oil spill off of the coast of Huntington Beach, California. Restoration project ideas were also solicited.
JAN. 30, 2023 — After a public comment period, on Jan. 25, 2023 a settlement was finalized to resolve claims related to hazardous waste pollution from the du Pont de Nemours and Company (Dupont Hay Road) site on the Delaware River in Wilmington, Delaware.
JAN. 30, 2023 — On Jan. 25, 2023, the NOAA Marine Debris Program California regional coordinator presented at the Center for Watershed Protection 2023 Watershed and Stormwater Webcast Series.
JAN. 30, 2023 — The Office of Response and Restoration is gearing up for a busy year of training! We are excited to be back in-person, with our classic and most popular Science of Oil Spills (SOS) classes being offered in three locations across the country this year:
JAN. 23, 2023 — The Gulf of Mexico Alliance’s Marine Debris Cross-Team Initiative held its annual two-day meeting on Jan. 10-11 to bring together entities from across the gulf that currently address marine debris issues.
JAN. 23, 2023 — NOAA's Office of Response and Restoration and the University of New Hampshire’s Coastal Response Research Center hosted a virtual workshop on harmful algal blooms on Jan. 17-18. The primary focus of the workshop was communication, preparedness, and response — across the federal government, state agencies, and other key partners — for harmful algal blooms in the Great Lakes region.
JAN. 23, 2023 — Christy Kehoe, regional coordinator for California in NOAA's Marine Debris Program, within the Office of Response and Restoration, presented at the National Fisheries Institute Seafood Science and Regulatory Forum to kick off the Global Seafood Market Conference on Jan. 15.
In 2022, NOAA helped to recover over $114 million from polluters to restore six waterways following oil spill and industrial pollution incidents in Hawaii, Louisiana, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Texas.
JAN. 13, 2023 — On Dec. 13, after a busy fall season of incident response, members of the Incident Management Division of U.S. Coast Guard Sector Puget Sound visited the NOAA Western Regional Center in Seattle.
Opportunity to Provide Input on Restoration for the Pipeline P00547 Oil Spill in Southern California
JAN. 13, 2023 — The public is invited to two virtual meetings to learn about efforts to assess the impacts of an October 2021 oil spill and solicit input for potential restoration actions. The meetings, scheduled for Jan. 25, 2023, will be hosted by state and federal trustee agencies for natural resources impacted by the Pipeline P00547 oil spill off the coast of Huntington Beach in Southern California.
JAN. 13, 2023 — On Dec. 20, 2022 a settlement was proposed to resolve claims related to the hazardous waste pollution from the du Pont de Nemours and Company (Dupont Hay Road) site on the Delaware River in Wilmington, Delaware. Of the total settlement of $1,071,755.84, $808,500 is proposed for restoration activities and $263,255.84 will be allocated to the natural resource trustees for reimbursement of their natural resource damages assessment costs.
December 2022
DEC. 19, 2022 — On Dec. 13, following a competitive review process, the NOAA Marine Debris Program and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation announced the five recipients of the 2022 Hurricane Response Marine Debris Removal Fund.
DEC. 19, 2022 — After plowing a path of destruction through the Caribbean, Hurricane Ian struck Florida on Sept. 28 and moved up the East Coast, with damaging winds, severe flooding, and life-threatening storm surge.
DEC. 19, 2022 — On Dec. 5-9, the NOAA Marine Debris Program, in collaboration with the Environmental Protection Agency’s Trash Free Waters Program, hosted a virtual workshop to identify actions and strategies for the implementation of the Puerto Rico Strategic Plan to Reduce Aquatic Debris.
DEC. 19, 2022 — On Dec. 7, the 2022 Hawai‘i Marine Debris Action Plan Research Webinar Series concluded after taking place throughout November and December.
DEC. 19, 2022 — Extreme heat is one of the leading causes of weather-related illness and death in the United States, causing more fatalities in a typical year than hurricanes, tornadoes, severe storms, and floods. As climate change continues to increase the likelihood of weather extremes, the impacts of heat on communities—especially on their most vulnerable citizens—is likely to worsen.
DEC. 12, 2022 — On Nov. 29, the 2022 Young Pacific Leaders cohort visited the Inouye Regional Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, for a facility tour and presentations from NOAA team members. The Young Pacific Leaders Program is organized by the U.S. government and aims to build the leadership capabilities of youth in the region and strengthen ties between the United States and the Pacific.
DEC. 12, 2022 — On Nov. 22 2022, the Journal of Benefit Cost Analysis published “Discounting in Natural Resource Damage Assessment '' by OR&R’s economists Cameron Duff, Chris Giguere, and Jason Murray, and co-authors from Industrial Economics and the University of Wisconsin.
DEC. 12, 2022 — The Office of Response and Restoration Disaster Preparedness Program serves a vital role for the National Ocean Service’s preparedness and continuity of operations planning. This November, the program celebrated a major milestone — five years of preparing partners and communities to respond to and recover from disasters. Their work is growing in importance and demand as coastal disasters become more frequent and severe.
DEC. 12, 2022 — In early October, NOAA OR&R scientists participated in a functional tabletop exercise in Anacortes, Washington. The purpose of the exercise was to demonstrate the capability of the oil industry and other agencies working together to develop an oil spill response plan that is used to minimize and mitigate the impacts of an oil spill.
DEC. 12, 2022 — Last week, NOAA OR&R and NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service’s Pacific Regional Office, in collaboration with U.S. Coast Guard District 14, hosted an Environmental Consultation Seminar in Honolulu, Hawaii.
DEC. 5, 2022 — OR&R scientists hosted a booth at the “Scientist at Sea Research Symposium” put on by local Eckerd College to showcase student research.