Washington Coastal Seabird Habitat Conserved in Oil Spill Settlement

OLYMPIA, Washington, August 2, 2006 (ENS) - A 1991 oil spill that harmed seabird populations along Washington's outer coast has resulted in 200 years of protection for 900 acres of coastal forests, which are critical nesting areas for federally protected marbled murrelets.

Tribal, state and federal officials gathered Tuesday in Neah Bay to mark the completion of a $5.2 million habitat restoration plan to offset damages to Washington's fish and wildlife populations during the 1991 Tenyo Maru oil spill.

Bags of dead birds await disposal after the Tenyo Maru oil spill (Photo courtesy New Hope, Pennsylvania)

Federally listed as threatened, the tiny seabirds were harmed by oil after the Japanese fish processing vessel Tenyo Maru sank in 540 feet of water about 23 miles northwest of Cape Flattery, the westernmost U.S. point of land.

The Tenyo Maru sank immediately after it was struck by the Chinese freighter Tuo Hai in heavy fog on July 22, 1991. The collision occurred in Canadian waters a short distance north of the United States-Canada border.

Over the following month, the vessel released more than 100,000 gallons of oil into coastal waters. The spill fouled beaches and killed wildlife from Vancouver Island to northern Oregon. The heaviest oiling occurred along the Makah Indian Reservation and Olympic National Park shoreline.

Scientists estimate that seven to 11 percent of the marbled murrelet population along Washington's outer coast were killed in the oil spill.

Marbled murrelets, Brachyramphus marmoratus, are seabirds about the size of a robin. They are the only seabirds whose nesting habitat is in old growth or mature trees.

The marbled murrelet, a small seabird which nests in the coastal, old growth forests of the Pacific Northwest, is listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. (Photo courtesy Cowichan Community Land Trust Society)

Besides marbled murrelets, the spill killed thousands of other seabirds such as murres, auklets, tufted puffins and pigeon guillemots. Oil lingered in giant kelp beds from Cape Alava north to Tatoosh Island and from Tatoosh Island east to Waadah Island.

"The spill couldn't have come at a worse time for area seabirds," said Dick Logan, who leads natural resource damage activities for the Washington Department of Ecology's oil spill prevent and response program. "Fledging birds had just come off their nests and were foraging for food. Since the young birds were unable to fly, most got oiled and died."

The U.S. Coast Guard and other federal agencies, the state of Washington, coastal Indian tribes, and the parties responsible for the spill cleaned up as much of the oil as possible. Responders recovered 4,000 dead birds - just a fraction of those actually killed.

The owner of the Chinese freighter that collided with the Tenyo Maru paid a $9 million penalty that went into a special fund created by tribal, state and federal agencies.

Of the total amount, $5.2 million was earmarked for restoration and preservation projects for marbled murrelets and other seabirds. The other $3.8 million went to recover expenses for agencies that responded to the spill.

The Natural Resource Trustees make up a committee representing the Makah Indian Tribe, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, state Ecology Department, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The trustees used the restoration money to help pay for stationing a rescue tug at Neah Bay, undertaking scientific studies about nesting sites, and a long-term seabird census.

In addition, the trustees purchased conservation easements for two parcels on Makah tribal land to provide future additional habitat for marbled murrelets. These 200 year land use agreements are funded by the trustees on Makah tribal land.

Shorebirds take to the sky at the Willapa Bay National Wildlife Refuge. (Photo courtesy Willapa Bay NWR)

The agreement ensures that this area will not be included in the commercial land base of the Makah Reservation for 200 years, protecting it from commercial timber harvest and other land use activities.

The committee also acquired a third parcel, purchased for $1.2 million at Teal Slough on Willapa Bay that has been permanently transferred to the Willapa Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

The acquisition and agreements permanently protect these marbled murrelet nesting habitats from logging, development, or other activities that are detrimental to marbled murrelet nesting. By protecting and providing natural restoration for these properties, silt deposits on kelp ecosystems at the mouths of streams and rivers are also reduced.

To raise public awareness about sensitive coastal marine resources, the committee of trustees also produced and distributed posters and installed wooden kiosks at the Cape Flattery and Shi Shi beach trailheads.

The Tenyo Maru Oil Spill Restoration Summary Document is online at: http://www.fws.gov/westwafwo/