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Bay Sensors Guide Cleanup
The recent Bay oil spill gave the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration's experimental Physical Oceanographic Real-Time System (PORTS) demonstration project it's first real-world test. Although the demonstration project is a year from completion, PORTS got high marks for its role in aiding the cleanup. Designed primarily as a navigational tool, PORTS uses a system of sensors placed throughout the Bay to measure currents, water levels, winds and other physical conditions that helped cleanup teams respond to the oil spill.
According to NOAA's Captain Tom Richards, the information PORTS provided on wind conditions during and after the spill was particularly critical. "There was a frontal passage forecast, which would have put oil on East Bay beaches but the winds didn't occur as forecast," he says. "The PORTS sensors told us which way the wind was really blowing." The information helped pinpoint "convergence zones" - areas where oil would collect and be easy to pick up. PORTS provides more reliable information on winds, tides and other conditions than was available previously. For example, National Weather Service forecasts for winds are based on radar that is focused too high to provide accurate information about the marine layer. Tides are traditionally predicted in tide books based on astronomy, and do not take into account meteorological conditions. Aiding in spill response is only one of PORTS' potential roles. Warner Chabot of the Center for Marine Conservation points out that spills are often caused by ships becoming grounded or impaled on submerged rocks - a particular hazard in the Bay. "PORTS gives accurate data on both depth and currents," he says. "It could be a critical factor in preventing future spills."
In addition, PORTS provides important data to scientists studying Estuary circulation and captains guiding containerships into Bay ports. The big question facing PORTS is how it will be funded after the demonstration project ends in October 1997. NOAA plans to turn the system over to a local manager such as the Marine Exchange, but the $300,000-$400,000 a year required to continue it has yet to be secured. Cal Fish & Game's Pete Bontadelli has proposed a system by which approximately half the funds would come from the oil industry's oil spill administrative fund, which also supports the day to day activities of his Oil Spill Prevention and Response office, with the remainder paid by a coalition of funders including other members of the maritime industry and the state. "The tricky part is determining who benefits from the system and how much it's fair to ask them to pay," he says. The Harbor Safety Committee, Maritime Exchange, the Pilot's Association and the Western States Petroleum Association support Bontadelli's proposal, which will require approval by the state legislature in 1997.
Contact: Tom Richards (415) 556-0858
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