Eighty-three Crowley Owned/Managed Vessels Honored with 2009 Environmental Achievement Awards
Crowley Maritime Corporation was recently honored at a Chamber Shipping of America awards ceremony with Environmental Achievement Awards for 2009.
The awards recognized the environmental excellence of 83 Crowley owned or managed vessels for operating at least two years without any environmental incidents. The Crowley vessels recognized have provided a combined total of 675 years of service without incident. Fifteen of the vessels have each operated 10 years or more without an incident. Of special note are Crowley's tug Pathfinder, which has operated for 32 years without incident; tug Sea Voyager, 18 years and tug Stalwart 27 years.
"These awards celebrate the dedication to environmental excellence of our seafarers and the company personnel shore-side who operate our vessels to the highest standards," said Joseph J. Cox, president and CEO of CSA. "In today's world, it seems our industry only gets front-page news when spills or other environmental problems occur. It is encouraging to see how many vessels go for years achieving environmental excellence. It should be clear to the American public that we in the maritime industry take our stewardship of the marine environment very seriously."
Crowley is among the 64 companies, operating a total of 945 vessels that were recognized for their environmental excellence. All the vessels combined have operated a total of 6,909 years without incident.
"This recognition is a testament to the rigorous work of our crews who ensure our vessels operate safely and in an environmentally responsible manner," said Captain Victor Goldberg, Crowley's vice president of marine operations for petroleum services. "The records of our tugs reflect the dedication of our crews in ensuring our waterways continue to be healthy."
This recognition is the latest in a string of awards Crowley has received for environmental protection and safe operations. Earlier this year, the company was presented with Jones F. Devlin awards by CSA for the exemplary safety record of three vessels: articulated tug barge (ATB) Sea Reliance/550-1; ATB Sound Reliance/550-2; and the tanker Blue Ridge. Crowley customer Tesoro recognized the company with an environmental award for having zero spills and zero incidents in 2008. In prior years, the Alyeska Pipeline Service Company honored Crowley with an Exceptional Award of Merit for its implementation of a new Environmental, Safety and Quality Assurance Management System and for a perfect environmental record at its marine terminal in Valdez, Alaska. The State of Washington recognized the company with their coveted ECOPRO award for excellence in tank-vessel marine safety and environmental security. Likewise, Crowley has received the Legacy Award from Pacific States/British Columbia Oil Spill Task Force and the William M. Benkert Award - the U.S. Coast Guard's premier national award recognizing excellence in marine environmental protection.
Jacksonville-based Crowley Holdings Inc., a holding company of the 117-year-old Crowley Maritime Corporation, is a privately held family and employee-owned company. The company provides diversified transportation and logistics services in domestic and international markets by means of six operating lines of business: Puerto Rico/Caribbean Liner Services, Latin America Liner Services, Logistics Services, Petroleum Services, Marine Services and Technical Services. Offered within these operating lines of business are the following services: liner container shipping, logistics, contract towing and transportation; ship assist and escort; energy support; salvage and emergency response through its TITAN Salvage subsidiary; vessel management; vessel construction and naval architecture through its Jensen Maritime subsidiary; government services, and petroleum and chemical transportation, distribution and sales. Additional information about Crowley, its subsidiaries and business units may be found on the Internet at www.crowley.com.