Watchdog touts ‘independent’ mindset
Former German naval architect tabbed for Clear Seas executive job
A one-time German naval architect has been given the job of making B.C. waters safe for several hundred oil and LNG tankers.
Richard Wiefelspuett is the executive director of a new non-profit society called Clear Seas — Centre for Responsible Marine Shipping.
Wiefelspuett, who has studied icebreaker design and researched fast ferries, was succinct about the organization’s mandate.
”There are more ships today, which means more ships can go the wrong way,” said Wiefelspuett, who has been on the job in Vancouver’s old Marine Building since mid-April.
“We will look at mitigation measures, avoidance and prevention. And if something happens, we’ll be looking at whether we have everything in place to respond to spills,” he said.
Clear Seas’ aims are closely associated with a Port Metro Vancouver request two years ago for better information about “oil and LNG” traffic.
Port Metro Vancouver, a federal body which controls the waters in Metro Vancouver, asked the federal government to create a “centre for excellence.”
“The federal government’s support for a centre of excellence would ensure the balance between responsible resource development and the health of our environment and communities,” said the port in its annual budgetary submissions to Ottawa.
The result was a non-profit society called the Centre for Excellence for Marine Transportation of Oil and LNG Commodities in Canada in 2013.
Tha tunwieldy handle was changed to the positive-sounding Clear Seas moniker last year.
The organization will be introduced on July 6 in Vancouver at a launch attended by senior port officials.
Its mandate extends to all Canadian waters.
Wiefelspuett promises Clear Seas will be independent of outside influence even though the feds and industry provide major funding.
“We’re independent, period,” he said.
He said Clear Seas will provide factbased information, issue reports and make them available to all stakeholders, including environmentalists and First Nations.
“We will provide unbiased information about all aspects of shipping. Our research will have a high degree of objectivity. Our mandate is to make it safe and reliable,” he said.
Non-binding recommendations will be issued, which Wiefelspuett hopes will be given serious consideration by decision makers.
“Sometimes we may have to say no,” he said.
The organization has its work cut out, based on the findings of an expert panel on tanker safety convened by Transport Canada in 2013.
“Whenever bulk oil is moved in Canadian waters, there is always a small possibility that a major spill could occur,” said the three-member panel, which included Gordon Houston, former president of the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority.
The experts said there could be as many as 600 oil tankers per year on the West Coast if major pipeline proposals are approved and up to 120 LNG tankers have been permitted on the Fraser River as well.
The experts outlined the problem facing Clear Seas when they said the public is doubtful of authorities’ efforts to prevent nasty spills.
“Some Canadians … are skeptical of the nation’s ability to prevent, prepare for and respond to oil spills,” they said.
Wiefelspuett will present a budget to the society’s board of directors later this year.
The eight-person board includes business heavyweights such as Lindsay Gordon, former president of HSBC Bank Canada, as well as community voices such as Kim Baird, a former chief of the Tsawwassen First Nation who will serve as vice-chair.
Kevin Washbrook, a director at Voters Taking Action on Climate Change, cast doubt on Clear Seas’ contribution to marine safety.
“I don’t think Canadians need an industry-funded centre of excellence. What we need are government regulations which give clear guidance on site selection and risk assessment of routes, like the ones which are provided in the U.S.,” he said.