IOSA's Board of Directors and Staff
June 2009

Islands' Oil Spill Association's Board of Directors and Staff
In the back row, left to right is: Bob Freeauf, San Juan Island; Eric Lum, Orcas Island; Becky Hawley, Orcas Island;
Steve Simpson, San Juan Island; Randall Waugh, Lopez Island.  Middle row, left to right: Patrick Kirby, San Juan Island;
Don English, San Juan Island; Miles McCoy, Orcas Island; Bob Van Leuven, San Juan Island; Robyn Albro, IOSA Staff;
Cathy Wilson, Lopez Island; Bill Glass, Orcas Island.  Sitting in the front, left to right: Sam Pottenger, Lopez Island;
Julie Knight, IOSA Director with her dog Luna; Jackie Wolf, IOSA Staff. 
Not shown because he's taking the picture is Gary Alspaugh, San Juan Island (see Gary in the photo below, over by
the window).  Also not shown is Bruce McMullen, San Juan Island; and Wally Lum, Orcas Island.

 

IOSA in the San Juan Islands

     In 1985, oiled birds and clumps of black oil began washing ashore in Mosquito Pass and Westcott Bay on the west side of San Juan Island.  Mainland response agencies were unable to respond during the critical first 24 hours and island residents, who could only watch as the oil impacted shoreline and wildlife, were left with a new awareness that we must be prepared to provide necessary resources for initial response (within 3 hours) on our own. 
     The source of the oil was never discovered but with that incident, community members began to organize and Islands' Oil Spill Association came into being.
By the beginning of 1988, IOSA was ready and responding to spills, with more than 100 community members trained, non-profit status and equipment acquired, operational logistics developed and approval from the U.S. Coast Guard and Washington state agencies obtained.
       By the close of 2007, IOSA had been paged or called regarding a spill or a potential spill 463 times (see Annual Spill Reports), with 100 of these calls requiring the next level of response beyond assessment (read about IOSA's 100th spill response), including containment, clean-up, prevention of a spill through removal of a source and oiled wildlife search & rescue.