Lynn C. Woolsey: “we were reminded about just how fragile our waterways are when a ship ran into the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and…”

“we were reminded about just how fragile our waterways are when a ship ran into the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge and spilled 58,000 gallons of oil into the San Francisco Bay. The spill spread and soiled the pristine beaches of Marin County, in my district. It also threatened the Point Reyes seashore and restoration projects in Richardson Bay and San Pablo Bay. Thousands of volunteers, including many of my constituents, spent countless hours cleaning up. Fishermen volunteered their boats and their time to help with clean up efforts. Without their help, the cleanup efforts would have taken much longer, more birds could have died, and more of the oil would have been unrecoverable. Unfortunately, not enough training sessions were offered and many potential volunteers were turned away from helping with the clean up efforts because they lacked the necessary training. We need to learn from this and provide more training opportunities and better utilize potential volunteers. As we move forward, we must also look into new technologies to prevent spills and protect water and beaches. In Marin County, booms across Bolinas Lagoon and Drakes Estero failed and left these areas vulnerable to oil spill contamination. We need to ensure that we have enough equipment to respond quickly and effectively, especially for areas somewhat distant from spill mobilization centers.”