Athos Oil Spill Final Restoration Plan Released

NOAA and co-trustees have submitted a settlement claim to the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund (the Fund) administered by the U.S. Coast Guard for the Athos I oil spill that occurred on the Delaware River on 26 November, 2004, discharging over 263,000 gallons of crude oil. Since the Responsible Party exceeded their limit of liability under the Oil Pollution Act, the Trustees are seeking recovery of their past assessment costs and funding to implement the nine projects described in the final Restoration Plan from the Fund. The co-trustees involved in the case are the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the states of Delaware and New Jersey, and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Photo courtesy of Lou Siegel, South Shore Estuary Reserve Office

Massapequa Creek Fish Passage Installed

On September 28, 2009, construction of a fish ladder at the Massapequa Lake dam located on the south shore of Long Island NY was completed. The restoration of fish passage on Massapequa Creek is part of a settlement agreement between the Potentially Responsible Parties for the Liberty Industrial Finishing Superfund Site in Farmingdale, NY, and the Natural Resource Trustees for the site (NOAA, USFWS, and NYSDEC). The fish ladder is designed to provide passage for anadromous fish such as alewife and blueback herring over the spillway located between the Massapequa Tidal Channel and Massapequa Lake allowing them to reach historic spawning grounds upstream. For more information, contact Reyhan.Mehran@noaa.gov.