Response to Oil Spills and Other
Accidents in Waters around Japan

Tomoo Miura, Director, Marine Environment Protection
and Disaster Prevention Division, Guard and Rescue Department,
Japan Coast GuardMajor Maritime Accidents in 2007

Okinawa

October 28
Cargo ship Tsuruyoshi Maru
No. 38 (199 tons) collides
and sinks

Miyakojima

April 19
Tanker Fukutomi Maru
(180 tons) scrapes bottom

December 2
Tanker Daitoku Maru
No. 16 (199 tons) runs
agroundAugust 11
Magnesium hydrate leaks
from factory

July 10
Cargo ship Faith (2,485tons) sinks

August 8
Fishing boat Kosho Maru No.1 (19 tons)
runs aground
April 23
Cargo ship Jane (4,643 tons) runs aground

January 23
Acid phthalicanhydride released
into atmosphere

April 21
Styrene monomer leaks from chemical tanker
Shoei Maru No. 8 (499 tons)

June 29
Hazardous latex liquidleaks from factoryMay 20
Vessel for sale Flourish(106 tons) runs aground

April 1
Container ship Takeko(8,957 tons) collides andleaks oil
November 11 Lumber transporter Inaba
Pride (4,531 tons) sinks

October 5
Cargo ship Grand Free (499tons) collides and sinksSeptember 26
Fishing boat Hokusho Maru No.3
(19 tons) catches fire and sinks

January 23
Cargo ship Ping Yang No.
8 (1,424 tons) catches fire
January 15
Papermaking wastewater leaks
from papermaking plant

June 14
Oil leaks from Pakistan navy tanker PNS
Moawin (11,626 tons)
July 4
Oil leaks from Maritime Self-Defense Forcesubmarine JDS Oyashio (2,750 tons)
July 27
Container vessel M/V Wan Hai 307 (25,836 tons)
collides with cargo ship M/V Alpha Action (77,211tons)
October 4
Cargo ship Oominesan ( 499 tons) runs aground
October 30
Cargo ship Suam (1,204 tons) runs agroundSt. Vincent-Registered Cargo Ship JaneRuns Aground

1. Accident Outline
At around 0400 on April 17, the Jane ran aground 150 m off
the coast near the boundary of Miyagi and Fukushima
prefectures, in a depth of 5 m.
On the same day all 17 crew members were lifted off by aJapan Coast Guard (JCG) rescue helicopter.
2. Key Facts about the Jane
• Vessel name: Jane
• Registered in: Saint Vincent and theGrenadines• Gross tonnage: 4,643 tons
• Cargo: 5,248 tons of coal
• Fuel on board: Estimated 63 tons
(class C heavy oil 33 tons, class A heavy oil 25tons, LO 4.5 kiloliters)• Crew: 17 (all Russians)• Vessel owner: Pluricom Limited• P&I insurer: Ingosstrakh

SendaiAccident
siteMiyagi
Prefecture

Fukushima
Prefecture
Soma Port3. Response(1) From initial occurrence to issue of ship removal order Following the accident, coordination meetings were held regularly with local
authorities, fishing industry representatives , insurers and others to provide
information on the situation and steps to be taken.
 To prepare for an oil spill, JCG dispatched the National Strike Team to the site,transported spill control materials to the area and set up emergency systems, while
monitoring for oil slicks. JCG also directed ship’s owner on removal of the vessel andother related matters.
 At the coordination meeting held on April 27, people concerned confirmed there
was a risk that the Jane could cause considerable damage to the surrounding marine
environment. Based on this confirmation, on May 7 the Commander , 2nd Regional
Coast Guard Headquarters issued the ship’s owners with a ship removal orderpursuant to Article 40 of the Law Relating to Prevention of Marine Pollution andMaritime Disaster.

(2) From issue of ship removal order to the present On May 19 the P&I insurers entered into a formal contract with US company Titan
Salvage for removal of the vessel, and work was begun on May 21.
 By early August the cargo (approx. 5,264 tons of coal) had been taken off.
 Work was being undertaken to block off openings of the hull and remove sand sittingin the vessel, but these operations were interrupted due to difficulties caused bytyphoons and other factors.
 From December 3 tractors were installed on the beach and these are currently being
used to tow the Jane to shore.

★National Strike Team
Set up in April 1995 in the Search and Rescue Division, Guard
and Rescue Department, Third Regional Coast Guard
Headquarters to take control measures in the event of oil spills orsimilar accidents throughout the country. There are presently fourteams with a total of 16 members.

Formulating response plans

When an oil spill or similar accident occurs, the force isdispatched to the relevant Regional Coast Guard Headquarters
etc. to:•Offer technical guidance, advice and coordination on oil spill
control measures•Advise on formulation of response plans at meetings convened
with relevant agencies.
In normal time, the force conducts training, exercises andmaritime disaster prevention research

Ascertaining andassessing situation

Conducting and evaluating spill
control activities

Tanker Collision/Oil Spill off Taean Peninsula, Korea

Accident site

1. Accident Outline
On December 7, the Hong Kong-registered tanker
Hebei Spirit (146,000 tons), which was anchored sixnautical miles, northwest of Shin Island, Taean
County in Chungcheongnam Province, western
Korea, collided with a crane barge being towed by atugboat. Approximately 12,547 kiloliters of the300,264 kiloliters of crude oil onboard the tanker
leaked into the sea.

2. Key Facts about the HebeiSpirit• Vessel name: Hebei Spirit• Registered in: Hong Kong
• Gross tonnage: 146,000 tons
• Cargo: 300,264 kiloliters ofcrude oil• Vessel construction: Single
hull tanker

3. Japan’s Response(1)Requests from Korea
 Dec. 10: Northwest Pacific Action Plan (NOWPAP) Regional Oil Spill Contingency Plan
activated (deactivated on January 14, 2008)
 Dec. 13: Japanese government receives formal request from Korean government foremergency support(2) Dispatch of Japan Disaster Relief Team and supply oil absorbent
 Within the framework of the NOWPAP Regional Oil Spill Contingency Plan, a Japan
Disaster Relief Team (6 experts) was dispatched in response to a request from Koreaa) Dispatch period: Dec. 15-23, 2007 (nine days)b) Duties: Support for oil spill control activities in affected areas
Persons dispatched• Senior Regional Coordinator, Northeast Asia Division, Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau,
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan• Director for Maritime Disaster Prevention, Marine Environment Protectionand Disaster Prevention Division, Guard and Rescue Department, Japan Coast Guard• Senior Response Officer/Response Officer, Yokohama National Strike Team Station, Third
Regional Coast Guard Headquarters, Japan Coast Guard• Staff of Operation Division, Disaster Prevention Department, Maritime Disaster Prevention
Center• Staff of Secretariat of Japan Disaster Relief Team, Japan International Cooperation Agency
 Supplied 10 tons of oil absorbents

★NOWPAP (Northwest Pacific Action Plan)
United Nations Environment
Programme (UNEP)

Purpose: To protect the marine environment inNOWPAP sea area
Established: 1994

(Nairobi, Kenya)

Regional Coordination Unit
(RCU: NOWPAP Headquarters)
Intergovernmental Meeting•Plans activities•Manages finances•Liaises and coordinates with RACs, andcountries/agencies involved•Convenes Intergovernmental Meeting

Highest decision-making body.
Meets once a year.
Participation

Regional Activity Centres (RAC)DINRAC(Data and Information Network
Regional Activity Centre)

Participatingnations•Builds environmental databases•Builds information networks

Japan, China,Korea, Russia•Monitors via remote sensing•Monitors proliferation of harmful algae

CEARAC(Special Monitoring and Coastal
Environmental Assessment Regional Activity Centre)

POMRAC(Pollution Monitoring
Regional Activity Centre)•Monitors pollutants flowing from rivers•Monitors pollutants falling from atmosphere

MERRAC(Marine Environmental Emergency
Preparedness and Response
Regional Activity Centre)

Participation inmeetings on eachfocal point, etc.

•Responds to oil pollution emergencies•Builds oil drift prediction models•Draws up environmental sensitivity maps

Countries/agencies involved in the case of★NOWPAP Regional Oil Spill Contingency Plan the recent oil spill off Korea are shown inred.

Lead member (countryrequesting support) (Korea)
Large-scale oil spill occurs

Assisting Member(Japan)

National operation
contact point(Korea Coast Guard)

Accident
reportNational operation
contact point（Japan Coast Guard)

Respond according to national contingency plan
If problem exceeds country’s own response capabilities and support is required

Activate NOWPAP Regional Oil Spill Contingency Plan

Competent national
authority (N/A)(Ministry of Foreign Affairs
and Trade, ROK)National operation
contact point(Korea Coast Guard)

Notify decision on assistance

24-hour liaison system•Notify plan activation•Notify name of person appointed as top on-sitecoordinator•Information on pollution accidents

Competent
national authority(N/A)

Assistancedecision authority(Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, Japan)

National operation
contact point(Japan Coast Guard)

Personnel andmaterial assistance

Conduct joint response operations

Dispatch expert teams
Provide oil adsorbents

Distribute reports, etc.

LiaisonLiaisonAssistance decisionauthority

If the interests of several countries are threatened,
coordinate to decide which nation will be the leadingcountry
Request for support

★ Maritime Disaster Prevention CenterHistory
October 1976: Established as an authorized corporation
October 2003: Reformed as an independent administrative agency and took over all the duties of the authorized corporation◆ Disaster Prevention Duties
1.

Take steps to respond oil spills and similar accidents,
acting under instructions from the JCG Commandant

2.

Take steps to respond oil spills and similar accidents,
fight fires using firefighting vessels, and prevent fire
spread, acting under the commission of those
responsible for the accident (ship owners, etc.)◆ Other Duties
3. Maintain stocks of oil spill response materials (oilrecovery equipment, oil booms, oil dispersants, etc.) andlend them under contract to ship owners and otherrelevant parties
4. Conduct maritime disaster prevention exercises＋

5. Research maritime disaster prevention equipment,materials and technologies and publicize the results
6. Gather, compile and disseminate maritime disasterprevention information

2424-hour response,
nationwide network
Oil spill response
HNS* response
Fire response

Crisis response(emergencies)

7. Provide instruction and advice on maritime disasterprevention under commission from ship owners or otherinterested parties
8. Contribute to promoting international cooperation
Maintain and supply materials &equipments
Train and enhance skills of disasterprevention personnel
Develop new technologies and methods

RiskManagement(normal times)

Active for more than 30 years as a core organization playing a key
key role inJapan’
Japan’s maritime disaster prevention system*Hazardous and noxious substances

3. Japan’s Response(3) Response of Japan Disaster Relief Team Local situation survey
 Cooperation for site workers on response measures
 Cooperation in handling of oil spill response materials
and equipment
 Exchange of views with overseas experts, etc.

Exchange of views

Cooperation in recovery methods

4. Situation in Korea after Japan Disaster Relief Team returned to Japan(from Korean media reports, as of December 28, 2007) 20 days after the accident occurred, emergency control measures were largely completed
 An average of 20,000 volunteers participated in response activities each day, a total of morethan 400,000 person-days

5. Achievements of the Japan Disaster Relief Team Provided technical cooperation on response measures in line with local situation survey
 Offered Korean authorities view on accident analysis and response measures based on
expert knowledge gained from the local situation survey and lessons learned from theNakhodka oil spill and other accidents
Summary of cooperation :(1) Control of oil slicks(2) Clean-up of oil washed ashore(3) Future response systems, etc.
⇒ Control measures were taken in accordance with this cooperation, which proved helpful to
the Korean response60th Anniversary of the Establishment of the Coast Guard System