Oil spills and leaking diesel tanks demand immediate, effective cleanup. Government should ensure that happens, whether the work is done by the property owners or taken on by the province. The question of who ultimately pays can be sorted out once the situation is under control and disaster averted.

Thursday, August 14, 2008

It's alleged Campbell River-based Gowlland Towing's 38-foot tug Kathy L was pulling the barge Crown Forest 84-12 down Johnstone Strait, bound for the Campbell River area last August 20 when the barge tipped in the famed Robson Bight Ecological Reserve, spilling 11 pieces of logging equipment containing an estimated 19,000 litres of petroleum into 350 metres of water. Some of the oil started leaking out immediately, sending a slick through the area frequented by northern resident killer whales. The area is famous for the pebble beaches where the orcas rub.