Canadian authorities are working to clean up nearly 8,000 gallons of marine fuel oil that was spilled from the Canadian navy ship HMCS Calgary in the Strait of Georgia on Canada’s west coast over the weekend.
Canada’s Maritime Forces Pacific has launched an investigation to determine the cause of the spill. However, according to initial reports, the HMCS Calgary was underway in the strait’s shipping lanes when the spill occurred during an internal fuel transfer on Saturday morning. Approximately 30,000 (7,925 gallons) of F-76 marine fuel oil was spilled in the incident, Maritime Forces Pacific reported.
At this point, the fuel spill response is still in its initial stages and too early to determine a timeline for clean-up and environmental impact.
“As it relates to impact on fisheries or local marine life in the area, at this point, it is too early to tell, but the impact will be evaluated and appropriate actions taken if necessary,” said Maritime Forces Pacific in an update posted to Facebook.
“As a proactive measure we have placed Canadian Armed Forces assets at Nanoose Bay on alert, given direction to our Ready Duty Ship and advised the Western Canada Marine Response Corporation of the situation,” the update added.
Canada’s Department of National Defence is responsible for the environmental response and clean up and is being supported by the Canadian Coast Guard as necessary.