Amendment to the Spill, Compensation and Control Act of 1976
The Managers have been made aware of new legislation in New Jersey, USA which will have implications for vessels using the navigable waters of New Jersey. The new legislation arises from the oil spill which occurred late in the evening on Friday 26 November 2004 when the single hull tanker “ATHOS 1” struck an underwater obstruction in the federally maintained Mantua Creek area of the Delaware River.
Investigations into the incident revealed that a 6ft by 2ft gash in the vessel’s hull had been caused by an obstruction on the river bed. The obstruction is believed to have been one of, or all of, a 15ft u-shaped steel pipe, an anchor, or, a concrete slab. As a result of the hole in the vessel’s side approximately 265,000 gallons of heavy Venezuelan crude oil was spilt which affected 214 miles of coastline in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland. The new Act which will come into effect on 27 February 2006 amends the Spill Compensation and Control Act of 1976 which protects New Jersey residents from the adverse effects caused by spills of petroleum products or other hazardous substances.
The legislation was proposed and pushed through by the acting Governor of New Jersey, Mr Richard J Cody who has been quoted as saying that by passing the Act, “…we are sending a strong message to oil carriers. You can’t spill in our river and get off easy.” Some commentators view this as ironic as the cause of the “ATHOS 1” spill was arguably due to the federal governments failure to maintain the Mantua Creek free from obstructions. The new Act brings State legislation into line with Federal legislation and vessels that spill hazardous substances will be held strictly liable regardless of fault for all clean up costs regardless of who incurs those costs. To achieve this aim the State is empowered to tax Owners and/or Operators of vessels involved in a spill to assist and pay for these costs. The Act increases the level of liability under the Spill Compensation and Control Act from US$150 per gross ton to US$1,200 per gross ton up to a maximum amount of US$50,000,000. It would appear that the only defence available to the vessel’s Owners and Operators is if the spill was caused solely by war, sabotage or an act of God.
This limitation may be breached if it is shown that the discharge of oil or hazardous substances was the result of the gross negligence or wilful misconduct of the Owner or Operator of the vessel. It should also be noted that if the vessel’s Owner or Operators can not provide evidence of financial responsibility sufficient to cover the costs of clean-up then the State may also hold the facility to which discharge was to be made jointly and severally liable for the clean up and removal costs.
For further information, Members should contact the Managers.