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Case: Westchester, LA
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Date of incident: November 28, 2000.
Location: Lower Mississippi River, Louisiana (mile marker 38).
Trustees:
Case status: Settled September 10, 2003.
Overview: On November 28, 2000, the
U.S. Coast Guard Marine Safety Office New Orleans 
was notified that the M/VWestchester lost steerage because of
a crankcase explosion while transiting the Mississippi River. The vessel
grounded and leaked approximately 13,095 barrels of Nigerian crude oil into the
river. Authorities responded quickly by placing booms at key bayous and cuts
and deploying skimmers to collect oil from the water surface. Much of the oil
became trapped in the rip-rap on the river's west bank, which resulted in a
more efficient recovery than is typical for oil spills.
NOAA staff worked with co-trustees to conduct the natural resource damage
assessment. They found that the discharge's major impact was to Mississippi
River shoreline and riverine and coastal surface waters. Several thousand acres
of surface waters, shoreline and adjacent marsh habitats, and the fauna
inhabiting the area were exposed to the crude oil. The trustees conducted an
ecological analysis to determine the scale of marsh creation necessary to
compensate for injuries to all trust resources and services while minimizing
the cost and duration of the assessment so restoration could commence as soon
as possible. They also reviewed potential projects to compensate the public for
lost recreational use of the Mississippi River.
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