Pipeline 101

Spill prevention and response in Prince William Sound

Oil spill prevention and response is an awesome responsibility and one that Alyeska takes very seriously. Alyeska’s Ship Escort Response Vessel System was established in 1989 to prevent oil spills by assisting tankers in safe navigation through Prince William Sound, and to protect the environment by providing rapid and effective response services to the Valdez Marine Terminal and Alaska crude oil shippers in accordance with oil spill response agreements and plans. Since its inception, over 10,000 tankers have been escorted by the powerful SERVS tugs. More than 35 Alyeska employees and 300 contractor personnel are trained and available to conduct response operations. Additionally, the SERVS organization consists of 350 fishing vessels that are contracted for incident response.