U.S. Navy Ship Salvage Manual Volume 6 - Oil Spill Response

S0300-A6-MAN-060• Securing the spill source and preventing further discharge• Containing spilled oil and/or diverting it away from sensitive areas• Recovering spilled oil from the sea surface• Cleaning oil fouled shoreline, structures and wetlandsThe elements of a functional contingency plan were discussed in Paragraph 1-4. Reference to awell-written contingency plan can help response managers to:• Identify the cause(s) of a spill to facilitate securing the source• Identify sensitive areas that should be protected• Estimate probable oil spill movement and spread• Determine optimum deployment of containment and recovery assets for the prevailingconditions• Identify sources of primary and backup response assets and procedures for mobilizingthem• Identify sources for logistics and other support services and procedures for accessingthem3-5.1.1 Securing the Source. Oil spilled from a very large or unlimited source, such as a pipelineor well, cannot be contained effectively until the spill source is secured. Unless oil can be recoveredand removed as fast as it is spilled, the spreading oil slick will eventually flow under, over oraround containment barriers. Limited oil sources, such as ship’s tanks or shoreside storage facilitieswill stop discharging oil on their own in a relatively short time, but it is still desirable tosecure the source as soon as possible to limit spill size. Spill sources are secured by one of the followingmeans:• Transferring liquids from damaged tanks to sound tanks aboard a ship casualty• Transferring liquids from damaged tanks to another vessel (lightering)• Plugging or sealing submerged gas vents, tank overflows and damage openings; closingsubmerged valves, sounding/ullage openings, etc., that may have been left open atthe time of the casualty.• Stopping pumps, closing valves and or isolating damaged piping if the spill is causedby a pipeline leak3-13