The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) today recognized Alyeska Pipeline Service Company with an Outstanding Partner Award for contributions made by Alyeska to the conservation of natural resources in Alaska. The award recognizes employees’ recent work with USFWS to update and implement wildlife protection guidelines for oil spills, and their continuing commitment to protecting wildlife during all Alyeska activities.
“We are humbled and honored to be recognized with this environmental award from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service”, said Brigham McCown, Alyeska President. “Our people are innovative, collaborative, and at the top of their game. Environmental stewardship is a team effort and a responsibility we take very seriously.”
Alyeska personnel Ken Wilson and Stacia Miller were part of a multi-stakeholder effort to revise the Wildlife Protection Guidelines for Oil Spill Response in Alaska, a guidance document for minimizing the impacts of oil spills and response activities on wildlife. Throughout the process, Ken and Stacia worked with the USFWS and other stakeholders to update the guidelines and make them more user-friendly for on-the-ground responders. Alyeska personnel tested the usability of draft tools, forms, and checklists during response exercises and trainings.
“For more than two years, Ken and Stacia helped draft the Wildlife Protection Guidelines, worked to gain support to incorporate new processes into Alyeska drills and spills, and provided honest feedback on those processes,” said Bridget Crokus, Assistant Oil Spill Response Coordinator with USFWS Alaska Region. “The Wildlife Protection Guidelines would not be as useful as they are now without the enormous amount of effort Ken and Stacia. I cannot overstate the importance of their involvement.”
###
About Alyeska Pipeline:
For nearly 44 years, Alyeska has operated the 800-mile Trans Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS), safely moving oil from Prudhoe Bay on the North Slope of Alaska south to the Port of Valdez, the northernmost ice-free port in the United States. The pipeline traverses three mountain ranges, permafrost regions and 34 major rivers and streams. Alyeska personnel work in Anchorage, Fairbanks and Valdez and at pump stations and response facilities all along the pipeline. They also operate the Ship Escort/Response Vessel System (SERVS) for Prince William Sound.