Cleanup of polluted seafood ship on Foss Waterway is complete, Coast Guard says
The seafood processing ship that was leaking ammonia on Tacoma’s Foss Waterway in August has been cleaned of fuel, oil and hazardous materials, the U.S. Coast Guard announced Friday.
Along with the Coast Guard, the state Department of Ecology and Tacoma Fire Department initially responded to an anhydrous ammonia leak on Aug. 13.
“The vessel was determined to present a significant threat to the environment and the Federal on Scene Coordinator took action to protect public health and the environment,” the Coast Guard said Friday.
Pacific Producer has been moored at the old Martinac ship building facility since August 2022.
On board Pacific Producer, a Coast Guard inspection found severely degraded ammonia tanks on two decks with their gauges painted over in August 2023.
The ship is 77 years old, nearly 200 feet long, and has a history of environmental and safety concerns and fines. The ship arrived on the Foss after its owner, Christos Tsabouris, said he couldn’t find mooring in Seattle.
The 472 gross ton boat was working in Alaskan waters until it sailed to Seattle and then Tacoma. It’s registered to East West Seafoods of Seattle.
In January, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited East West for 20 violations including 17 listed as “serious.” It assessed $208,983 in fines with abatement required by Feb. 23.
The ship has had similar OSHA violations dating to 2012, including sanitation, electrical, fire hazards and a previous ammonia leak in 2018. In 2017, East West Seafoods was fined $50,000 in federal court after it intentionally discharged oily bilge water and raw sewage from the Pacific Producer into the ocean off the Alaskan coast. It then presented false records to the Coast Guard.
