$2M Settlement Reached in 2009 San Francisco Bay Oil Tanker Spill

In 2009, a tanker was responsible for spilling over 400 gallons of bunker fuel into the San Francisco Bay, polluting nearly 6 miles of the pristine shoreline. Today, the ship’s owners have agreed to pay out an almost $2 million settlement to local governments.

The district attorneys of San Francisco and Alameda counties had sued the operator and owner of the Dubai Star. The San Francisco Chronicle reports the incident as: The 600-foot vessel was taking on fuel from a barge south of the Bay Bridge on Oct. 30, 2009, when oil poured from a tank, onto the deck and into the bay.

Further investigations later credited the spill to the failure of a valve that a crew member unsuccessfully shut off when one of the fuel tanks reached capacity. Another crew member failed to notice that the tank level was continuing to rise, another failed to notice oil that was starting to pool on deck, and two overflow alarms failed to sound, according to investigators. The ship’s captain also reportedly took 28 minutes to notify federal or state authorities and downplayed the severity of the spill immensely.

The settlement provides $1.408 million to pay for damage to natural resources and the costs of spill response, along with $550,000 in penalties. The tanker's owner, Panama-based South Harmony Shipping, and its operator, Dubai-based Pioneer Ship Management Services, have also agreed to a court order necessitating them to follow legal standards when transferring oil and maintaining monitoring devices.

To locals, this case will not only ensure the environmental restoration of the area, but will help prevent similar accidents from happening in the future.