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Winds And Tides Help With Piscataqua River Oil Spill

Sam Evans-Brown
/
NHPR
Ray Reimold directs a Newington Fire Department boat during an oil spill drill on the Piscataqua river last fall.

 

The US Coast guard says so far it seems that a small oil spill near the mouth of the Piscataqua River has been totally cleaned up before it could reach the shore.

The spill came from oily water held in a tank aboard the research catamaran Ferdinand R. Hassler, after it had been used on the ship.

That tank holds up to 750 gallons, but was only partially full.

The ship’s owner, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, is still working to determine how much was spilled.

The Coast Guard has yet to find any trace of oil on the shoreline north or south of the spill.

“The boom remains around the vessel and the oily water that was discharged has been collected using vaccum trucks and skimmers,” says Lieutenant Scott McCann

McCann says the cleanup was helped by favorable tides and winds.

Agencies, including the state Department of Environmental Services and the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, sent personnel and equipment to the scene. The Coast Guard says at least one vessel anchored nearby appears to have been affected by the oil.

NOAA spokesman David L. Hall said the NOAA is investigating the incident to prevent it from happening again. He added that "any amount spilled is too much."

Sam Evans-Brown has been working for New Hampshire Public Radio since 2010, when he began as a freelancer. He shifted gears in 2016 and began producing Outside/In, a podcast and radio show about “the natural world and how we use it.” His work has won him several awards, including two regional Edward R. Murrow awards, one national Murrow, and the Overseas Press Club of America's award for best environmental reporting in any medium. He studied Politics and Spanish at Bates College, and before reporting was variously employed as a Spanish teacher, farmer, bicycle mechanic, ski coach, research assistant, a wilderness trip leader and a technical supporter.
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