Marine Salvage Capabilities: Responding to Terrorist Attacks in U.S. Ports — Actions to Improve Readiness (2004)

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C O N F E R E N C E P R O C E E D I N G S 3 0 Marine Salvage Capabilities Responding to Terrorist Attacks in U.S. Ports—Actions to Improve Readiness Report of the Committee for Marine Salvage Response Capability: A Workshop August 5–6, 2003 Washington, D.C. TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH BOARD WASHINGTON, D.C. 2004 WWW.TRB.org

Transportation Research Board Conference Proceedings 30 ISSN 1073-1652 ISBN 0-309-09459-3 Subscriber Categories IV operations and safety IX marine transportation Transportation Research Board publications are available by ordering individual publications directly from the TRB Business Office, through the Internet at national-academies.org/trb, or by annual subscription through organizational or individual affiliation with TRB. Affiliates and library subscribers are eligible for substantial discounts. For further information, contact the Transportation Research Board Business Office, 500 Fifth Street, NW, Washington, DC 20001 (telephone 202-334-3213; fax 202-334-2519; or e-mail TRBsales@nas.edu). Copyright 2004 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competencies and with regard for appropriate balance. This report has been reviewed by a group other than the authors according to the procedures approved by a Report Review Committee consisting of members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. This study was sponsored by the Maritime Administration, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Navy Supervisor of Salvage and Diving, Office of Naval Research, U.S. Department of Energy, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the National Science Foundation. Committee for Marine Salvage Response Capability: A Workshop Malcolm MacKinnon III, Chair, Managing Member, MacKinnon-Searle Consortium, LLC, Alexandria, Virginia Paul S. Fischbeck, Director, Center for the Study and Improvement of Regulation, and Department of Social and Decision Sciences, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Sally Ann Lentz, Executive Director and General Counsel, Ocean Advocates, Clarksville, Maryland Reginald E. McKamie, Sr., Houston, Texas R. Keith Michel, President, Herbert Engineering Corporation, Alameda, California Robert C. North, President, North Star Maritime, Inc., Queenstown, Maryland Transportation Research Board Staff Joedy W. Cambridge, Marine Board Staff Director Beverly M. Huey, Senior Program Officer Peter Johnson, Consultant Mary Kissi, Staff Assistant TRB Publications Office Naomi Kassabian, Editor Deborah Uffelman, Proofreader Jennifer J. Weeks, Senior Editorial Assistant Juanita Green, Production Editor Javy Awan, Director of Publications Cover inset photographs courtesy of (clockwise, from top) Donjon Marine Co., Inc., Hillside, New Jersey; Titan Maritime, LLC, Dania, Florida; and Smit Salvage, Annapolis, Maryland.

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Preface Malcolm MacKinnon III, Chair, Committee for Marine Salvage Response Capability: A Workshop The U.S. Navy (USN) Office of the Supervisor ofSalvage and Diving (SupSalv) maintains a capa-bility to respond to maritime accidents and provide ship salvage services in emergencies. Although the office was established primarily to meet military needs for search and salvage, it also provides services to meet certain commercial emergency sal- vage needs. The Navy has overall responsibility for ensuring that the nation has salvage capabilities on all coasts to respond to disasters and to protect the pub- lic interest. Within this context, SupSalv is responsi- ble for emergency marine salvage preparedness in the event of a terrorist incident in U.S. ports and water- ways, and the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) has a broad responsibility for homeland security, including the nation’s seaports. The United States is a world trade leader with an economy increasingly dependent on ocean transporta- tion and the vitality of ports and waterways. If a terror- ist-related or other incident results in the blockage of a harbor or waterway, emergency towing vessels, salvage vessels, experienced divers, and other professionals must be available to respond. In recognition of this need, it was decided to evaluate the status of U.S. marine salvage response capabilities, particularly with respect to poten- tial terrorist-related incidents that could affect commer- cial and military operations in U.S. harbors and waterways. The National Academies’ Marine Board within the Transportation Research Board was asked by SupSalv to assist in the evaluation by conducting a workshop involving salvage experts in both industry and government to consider the status of preparedness and suggest steps for improvement if needed. An ad hoc committee was appointed to plan and conduct the workshop addressing national salvage response capabilities, with particular attention to the consequences of potential terrorist incidents affecting operations in U.S. ports and waterways. Issues that were considered include organizational and interagency coordination as well as response capabilities. The work- shop addressed economic, legal, forensic, environmen- tal, and human casualty issues related to salvage. The principal goals of the workshop were (a) to share infor- mation among relevant agencies, organizations, and other interested parties concerning current salvage response capabilities and (b) to determine if there are any major gaps or concerns with respect to current capabilities and agency roles. The committee membership included experts in marine salvage, port and waterways management, port and harbor safety, ship operations and management, marine and transportation engineering systems, risk assessment and management, and environmental issues. Members had backgrounds in marine salvage response and capability as well as in legal, economic, and envi- ronmental issues; and they understood agency missions and interagency coordination and communications efforts required for effective, efficient salvage response. The committee met before the workshop to develop the workshop agenda and prepare a list of invitees. In meetings following the workshop, the committee reviewed information presented at the workshop and v

M A R I N E S A L V A G E C A P A B I L I T I E S developed resulting conclusions and recommendations for future action. These proceedings contain a summary of workshop discussions and committee recommenda- tions highlighting important topics and issues that war- rant further, more detailed inquiry by the responsible federal agencies. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The work of this committee has been greatly helped by the thoughtful advice and background information pro- vided by all of the participants in the workshop (who are listed in Appendix B) as well as by other government and industry officials who were consulted during the study. The committee gratefully acknowledges the contributions of time and information provided by the sponsor liaisons and the many individuals within and outside government who are interested or involved in port security and salvage issues. The committee would particularly like to thank the liaison representatives Capt. James R. Wilkins, USN, and Richard Buckingham, Naval Sea Systems Command, who responded promptly and with a generous spirit to the committee’s requests for information. The committee is especially indebted to the salvage industry representatives, researchers, and scientists who provided input to the committee. In particular, the com- mittee thanks Capt. Richard P. Fiske of the MacKinnon- Searle Consortium, LLC, and Richard Fredericks, Director of the American Salvage Association, for their helpful advice. Special thanks are also extended to RADM Thomas Gilmour, USCG; Michael Kidby, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; Mark Johnson, Department of Home- land Security; Steve Krueger and Mark Whitworth, Federal Bureau of Investigation; and Capt. James R. Wilkins, USN, who participated in the federal agency panel at the workshop, and to Cappy Bisso, Roger Elliott, Mauricio Garrido, James Shirley, Jr., Robert Umb- denstock, and J. Arnold Witte, who participated in the industry panel at the workshop. The project was conducted under the overall supervi- sion of Joedy Cambridge, Marine Board Staff Director. Beverly Huey and Pete Johnson managed the project and drafted the report under the guidance of the committee. The committee gratefully acknowledges the work and sup- port of Suzanne Schneider, Associate Executive Director of TRB, who managed the review process; of Naomi Kassabian, Editor; of Jennifer J. Weeks, Senior Editorial Assistant; and of Javy Awan, Director of Publications. The report was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the National Research Council’s Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making the published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institu- tional standards for objectivity, evidence, and respon- siveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. The committee thanks the following individuals for their review of this report: Stephen E. Flynn, Council on Foreign Relations, New York; Jacqueline Michel, Research Planning, Inc., Columbia, South Carolina; RADM John Brad Mooney, Jr., J. Brad Mooney Associates, Austin, Texas; and Malcolm Spaulding, University of Rhode Island. Although these reviewers provided many construc- tive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the findings and conclusions, nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this report was overseen by C. Michael Walton, University of Texas, Austin. Appointed by the National Research Council, he was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring committee and the institution. v i

Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .................................................................................................................................1 INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................................7 Background, 8 Approach, 8 Hypothetical Terrorist Scenarios, 9 Panel Discussion Topics, 9 Organization of the Report, 10 SUMMARY OF WORKSHOP DISCUSSIONS......................................................................................................11 Physical Salvage and Harbor Clearance Issues, 12 Financial, Economic, and Political Issues, 14 Legal, Forensic, and Human Casualty Issues, 16 Environmental Issues, 17 COMMITTEE ASSESSMENT OF RESPONSE CAPABILITIES BASED ON WORKSHOP DISCUSSIONS ...........................19 Status of Physical Salvage Response Capabilities, 19 Overview of Current Response Plans, 24 Current Response Organizational Structures, 24 Utility of Exercises or Drills, 25 COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE SALVAGE READINESS............................................................28 Inventory of Salvage Assets, 29 Marine Salvage Response Exercises, 29 Revision of Salvage Response Organizational Structures, 30 Study of Legislative, Regulatory, and Policy Issues, 30 APPENDIX A MARINE SALVAGE RESPONSE CAPABILITY WORKSHOP: AGENDA...................................................................32 APPENDIX B MARINE SALVAGE RESPONSE CAPABILITY WORKSHOP: PARTICIPANTS ...........................................................34 STUDY COMMITTEE BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION .....................................................................................37