||| BY STEVE BERNHEIM, theORCASONIAN REPORTER |||
Most of the San Juan County Council meeting of January 26, 2021 was devoted to a presentation from the staff associated with the Islands’ Oil Spill Association (IOSA), a non-profit, community oil spill response organization that provides local oil spill response and prevention throughout San Juan County.
IOSA has trained responders available for quick response to oil spills 24 hrs a day, 365 days of the year. IOSA responds to local spills, smaller spills, and fuel leaks from derelict vessels and is here to protect the County’s small coves, harbors and bays, needs for which might not necessarily be met by any other commercial or government oil spill response enterprise. Tony Parker is IOSA’s new executive director, based presently at the Spring Street Landing in Friday Harbor.
The Council also received an update on the joint effort between the Port of Friday Harbor, IIOSA, and San Juan County for construction of an oil spill response operations base near the Jensen Marina in Friday Harbor. The project will provide office space, maintenance bays for upkeep of boats and trailers, storage for equipment, flexible open space for both training and a response command post, and parking and dock space for spill response trailers and vessels. The operations base is expected to be completed in 2022.
IOSA is looking for new members to join its current Board of thirteen Directors. Volunteers from Orcas Island are currently underrepresented on the Board. Find out more here: Islands’ Oil Spill Association | Community non-profit oil spill response in the San Juan Islands of Washington State.
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Funding of IOSA has been a perennial problem that I hope the Council addresses, along with other stakeholders — such as boaters owners of waterfront property.