A commentary by the founding director of the resource and environmental planning program at Simon Fraser University. He is a former deputy minister of environment for B.C.

Shortly after 9 p.m. on March 23, 1989, the oil tanker Exxon Valdez departed from Alaska destined for California. Three hours later, it ran aground on Bligh Reef and 258,000 barrels of oil spilled into the ocean.

The impacts of the spill on the environment and economy were devastating. More than 100,000 marine birds, 2,600 sea otters and more than one-third of the resident orca population died.

More than 750 kilometres of shoreline were contaminated, and more than 20 years after the spill, 18 of the 28 impacted resources had still not recovered, and compensation for the extensive damages was still unresolved.

Some may think that an Exxon Valdez-type of spill could never happen again with the improvements in marine safety, double-hull tankers and tug escorts.

But while the decline in........

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