AG Healey Files Motion to Defend State Law Preventing Oil Spills in Buzzards Bay

Barge No. 120, owned by Bouchard Transportation Co. Inc., sits four miles southwest of the port of Woods Hole, Mass., after it spilled at least 14,700 gallons of fuel oil into Buzzards Bay, Monday, April 28, 2003. A 12-foot by 2-foot crack was found in the hull of the barge Sunday evening. (AP Photo/Stew Milne)

BOSTON – A motion has been filed on behalf of the state by Attorney General Maura Healey to intervene in a lawsuit over a state law meant to prevent catastrophic oil spills in Buzzards Bay.

The motion to intervene in the case – American Waterways Operators v. United States Coast Guard – was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts in support of the Massachusetts Oil Spill Prevention Act (MOSPA).

The law requires a tugboat to escort all barges carrying oil through Buzzards Bay to prevent oil spills. The state tugboat escort requirement has been in effect since 2011 and, according to the Attorney General’s office, has documented benefits in preventing oil spills.

MOSPA was enacted in 2004 in response to a large oil spill in Buzzards Bay that contaminated the state’s waters, killed endangered sea birds, destroyed shoreline resources, and caused the closure of beaches and shell fishing beds.

The Buzzards Bay Coalition has also filed a motion to intervene.

The American Waterways Operators (AWO), an industry group, is suing the U.S. Coast Guard to try to reopen old litigation challenging the validity of MOSPA.

“Buzzards Bay is a treasured resource that must be protected. It is deeply disappointing that industry has again challenged this common-sense and effective law,” AG Healey said.

“We will work, in partnership with our local communities and the Buzzard Bay Coalition to defend these safety rules, and to protect our natural resources, our coastal economy, and the people and businesses that use and enjoy Buzzards Bay.”

“This lawsuit is yet another shameful out-of-state attempt to prevent Massachusetts from defending Buzzards Bay from a long history of oil spills. For 16 years, the MA Oil Spill Prevention Act has been a huge success by ensuring that all oil shipped through our Bay is escorted by a capable tug and pilot,” said President of the Buzzards Bay Coalition Mark Rasmussen.

“It is reasonable in its approach, easy in its implementation, and supported by local barge operators. The result has been an oil free shoreline and safer navigation on the Bay. We won’t stand for efforts to force the Coast Guard to actually weaken protections for our coast and are honored to join Attorney General Maura Healey in aggressively defending the provisions of the MA Oil Spill Prevention Act in court.”

Fuel oil from a ruptured barge in Buzzards Bay washes ashore on a beach in Dartmouth, Mass., Monday, April 28, 2003. A 12-foot by 2-foot crack found in the hull of Barge No. 120, owned by Bouchard Transportation Co. Inc., released at least 14,700 gallons of fuel oil into the bay. (AP Photo/Stew Milne)

The state has twice successfully defended the state tugboat escort law against challenges by the federal government, AWO, and other industry groups, which claimed MOSPA was preempted by federal law. Last fall, AWO filed a complaint to compel the Coast Guard to reopen that litigation — closed in 2011— so that AWO could again try to invalidate this important state environmental protection law.

“AWO’s lawsuit runs counter to the fact that, according to a recent filing by the Coast Guard, industry stakeholders, including even petrochemical members of AWO, ‘support MOSPA requirements because they provide relatively inexpensive layers of additional protection” to Buzzards Bay,’” the Attorney General’s office said in a press release.

The matter is being handled by Assistant Attorney General Seth Schofield, Senior Appellate Counsel in AG Healey’s Energy and Environment Bureau.

By TIM DUNN, CapeCod.com News Center 

 

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