Questions on oil spill grow; bird toll rises

SAN FRANCISCO – Birds injured by an expanding Bay Area oil spill popped up as far away as the Farallon Islands on Friday while government officials scrambled for more equipment in hopes of catching the fragmenting slick.

Meanwhile, a growing chorus of observers began to raise their voices in wonder about how a relatively modest spill could spread out of control so quickly in one of the world's most advanced shipping ports.

It all began Wednesday morning when the freighter Cosco Busan struck a Bay Bridge tower and spilled 58,000 gallons of heavy bunker fuel into San Francisco Bay.

"I've actually been quite surprised it's taken so long for everyone to get their arms around the spill," said Linda Sheehan, the executive director of the California Coastkeeper Alliance who also sits on an advisory committee that reports to the California Office of Spill Prevention and Response. "I'm actually quite surprised and disappointed."

John Bradley, deputy manager of the San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge Complex, said 12 mures and three pelicans were spotted with oiled plumage on the Farallon bird sanctuary Friday, 25 miles west of the Golden Gate Bridge. The slick had not reached the islands, and the birds probably picked up the oil in the bay before visiting the islands.

But the spill had stretched 10 miles beyond the Golden Gate by Friday afternoon, and Bradley worried that oil will eventually reach the Farallon chain, an internationally significant haven for birds, elephant seals, sea lions and other marine life.

"It concerns me," Bradley said. "If the oil keeps getting out there, it could be a serious problem."

A total of 94 oiled birds have been treated so far by a team of veterinarians stationed in San Francisco. Another 28 – mostly surf scoters – have died , according to the state Department of Fish and Game.

Crews worked all day Friday trying to save birds. Officials expected the number of injured and dead animals to increase.

At the Berkeley Marina, workers clad in white protective suits and wielding 10-foot-long nets tried to rescue birds covered in oil.

Mark Russell walked gingerly along the rocky shore, approaching a sea duck coated in a thick, tarlike film. "Darn it," Russell, 38, exclaimed as the duck flapped its oil-covered wings, flew about 10 yards and escaped the reach of his net. "We can save 'em if we can get to 'em. But it's tough to get to 'em."

Floating blobs of oil lapped against the rocky shoreline. A heavy smell of fuel blew with the breeze.

A total of 11 skimmers and 18,000 feet of collection booms had been deployed across the bay on Friday to retrieve the spilled bunker fuel, a heavy byproduct of the gasoline refining process that is burned as fuel by cargo ships. An additional 60,000 feet of boom material was brought to the scene Friday.

The skimmers had so far collected about 17,500 gallons of the spilled oil, but the rest had been spread widely by wind and the bay's vigorous tides.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency and announced that the state would tap into a $54 million trust fund set aside for oil spill cleanup. Even he was perplexed by the accident.

"How does a ship, with that much space available, how does a ship hit the bridge?" the governor asked at the Fort Mason command center when shown a map of the bay and where the vessel struck the bridge.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein called on the Department of Homeland Security to conduct a full investigation, and the state Assembly Committee on Natural Resources scheduled an emergency oversight hearing for Thursday.

The accident happened about 8:20 a.m. Wednesday in heavy fog when the ship struck the base of the bridge tower, tearing open a fuel tank in the side of the hull.

A Coast Guard incident log obtained by the Associated Press shows its first vessel did not arrive on the scene until 9:03 a.m. Oil skimming equipment did not arrive until 9:50 a.m.

This account was supported by a statement released by an attorney representing Capt. John Cota, the harbor pilot in command of the ship at the time of the accident. The statement said cleanup crews did not reach the site until 90 minutes after the accident.

Coast Guard Rear Admiral Craig Bone called the sluggish response unacceptable.

Coast Guard officials also suggested a communications breakdown between the local harbor pilot aboard the Cosco Busan and the ship's crew may have led to control errors.

"We think there might be some problems there," said Coast Guard Capt. William Uberti.

In California, every vessel over 300 tons that enters state waters must have a contingency plan approved by the state Office of Spill Prevention and Response, an agency within the Department of Fish and Game.

The plan tells the ship's crew what to do in the event of a spill and must be renewed every five years. It also requires the ship's owners to contract with private companies to clean up any oil spill. These companies are licensed by the state and expected to respond before government agencies to any oil spill.

Ted Mar, chief of the marine safety branch at the Office of Spill Prevention and Response, said the Cosco Busan had a current contingency plan on file. Its two response contractors, Marine Spill Response Corp. and National Response Center, also had current and valid state licenses.

Fish and Game, however, refused to provide The Bee with copies of inspection reports on the cleanup companies. Such reports would reveal whether the companies maintain adequate readiness.

"We still have an active and current investigation on this event, so right now we are not releasing any of the documents," said Steve Edinger, assistant chief of the Department of Fish and Game.

Officials said the cleanup will not be finished soon. "We could be out here weeks; we could be out here months," said Fish and Game Lt. Rob Roberts.

About the writer:

• Call The Bee's Matt Weiser, (916) 321-1264. Weiser reported from Sacramento and Milbourn from San Francisco and Berkeley.