Gulf spill: Begich proposes citizen oversight of oil industry

The notion that citizens should help oversee oil industry operations is getting some traction as state and federal lawmakers scratch their heads over what to do next about the Gulf oil spill and the escalating economic and environmental problems.

Alaska Sen. Mark Begich has drafted legislation that would authorize citizen oversight commissions anywhere the industry operates, and other elected officials are considering similar measures.

The Prince William Sound Regional Citizens' Advisory Council, established shortly after the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989, has been inundated with requests for information and guidance on how people who live and work in oil-producing regions can help ensure safer, more environmentally sound operations, according to Stan Jones, director of administration and external affairs for the group.

The council has become something of an international success story in the past 20 years, working to put in place safety measures like double-hulled tankers and tug escorts for tankers. It has acquired a hefty institutional knowledge -- not to mention a library's worth of studies and white papers -- on the oil industry, its business practices and operations, and, perhaps more importantly, how to get the companies to work effectively with citizens and local communities.

Funded largely by the oil industry -- a requirement of the federal law that created the council and a similar group in Cook Inlet -- PWSRCAC sponsors its own scientific research projects, including some that have resulted in improved radar technology and pollution-control systems for tankers and terminal facilities in Valdez. The group also is closely involved in monitoring oil-shipping operations in Valdez and providing recommendations and advice to Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. and tanker operators.

It has no enforcement authority but has managed to steer much of the tougher policy and procedures relating to tanker and terminal operations through public pressure on the industry.

Now, the Deepwater Horizon blowout that continues to spread millions of gallons of crude along Gulf Coast communities is prompting a national effort modeled after the Alaska oversight program.

Jones said he has been spending much of his time responding to requests from lawmakers, community groups and the media. "We got calls from Al-Jazeera and the Rachel Maddow Show on the same day," he said.

Staff and board members from PWSRCAC traveled to the Gulf soon after the April 20 spill to help folks there figure out how to handle the community impact. The board is made up of representatives from the people who were most affected by the Exxon Valdez spill, including fishermen, local officials and environmental advocates.

Besides Begich, Jones said his group has been working with Sen. Bill Nelson of Florida and a congressional subcommittee headed by Rep. Maria Cantwell of Washington state, as well as some state lawmakers.

One point of contention PWSRCAC has been trying to help out on is the public release of daily action plans -- Coast Guard reports that essentially detail what the agency and other spill-response entities plan to tackle on the coming day, where they will be deploying boom, for instance, or sending clean-up crews.

"It's an invaluable amount of information ... very useful to communities," Jones said.

Yet reporters and community members are being told they have to submit federal Freedom of Information Act requests for the documents, a process that often takes several days, sometimes even months or worse.

The plans are routinely released, without a formal public records request, during a spill in Alaska, including in 2006 when officials handled the major North Slope spill.

"When we have a spill here, a ton of those documents are made available immediately," Jones said. "So we've been doing a little advocacy on that, and we're starting to make some headway just by elevating it in the public consciousness."

Begich, who has in the past pushed for an RCAC-type organization for the North Slope, thinks the notion of citizen involvement is critical to keeping oil companies, as well as government regulators, from becoming complacent. Engaged citizens ensure that operators and producers are more transparent and that means better safety standards and greater confidence in the entire system, Begich said Wednesday.