Do you remember where you were during the Exxon Valdez oil spill? It was spring 1989 and those of us that remember it viewed television and newspaper images of the slick waters and the thousands upon thousands of affected animals -- and were shocked and outraged.
This week marks 25 years since the Valdez spilled nearly 11 million gallons of crude oil and damaged 1,300 miles of Alaskan coastline, with some communities still not fully recovered. Media coverage for the past week has provided a review of the spill, the legal battle, and the state of water protection.
Painful is the only word to describe the experience of viewing the photos of seals, birds and poisoned water from the time of the spill. Litigation on the 1989 case and financial settlements for the victims continued until 2008. What are the lessons and what are the changes to the industry since then? National Public Radio looked at this question and found that oil drilling is "both safer and riskier" since that historic spill.
A quick review of news stories in 2014 also provides a stark reminder of the myriad other threats to our waterways: A coal ash release into a river, a chemical spill into West Virginia's water supply, two oil pipeline leaks, and an oil barge accident and spill. These are only the major incidents -- and only over the past two months.
We are reminded that the right to pure water is enshrined right in Pennsylvania's Constitution, and our 83,000 miles of waterways are second only to Alaska's. Yet, our waterways are under heavy assault daily from acid mine drainage, fossil fuel extraction, agriculture, development, and inadequate storm sewers. The Exxon Valdez disaster anniversary reminds us we must be vigilant in protecting our water from all threats.
By the way, the former Valdez was beached in 2012 and sold for scrap. Let's consign disasters like the one in 1989 to the scrap heap of history, too.
Kate Gibbons is northeastern Pennsylvania outreach coordinator for PennFuture and is based in Wilkes-Barre.
