Cosco Busan Bird Rescue

San Francisco, April 22-A panel of first responders to the November 7 Cosco Busan oil spill in SF Bay talked about how they helped rescue over 1000 birds.

Of those, over 400 survived to be released back into the wild. Another 650 didn't make it.

The presentation happened on the same day that the Cosco Busan’s pilot was charged with two felonies related to the ship’s crash into the Bay Bridge, which caused the 58,000 gallon oil spill.

Over 2500 birds died because of the spill. Some scientists think that eventually more than 20,000 birds will die as a result of the disaster.

The event was sponsored by the Golden Gate Audubon Society, and was held at the County Fair Building in Golden Gate Park.

Noreen Weeden, chair of the Society’s Conservation Committee, described how her organization mobilized volunteers and employed their services during the disaster.

“We used the skills of our Golden Gate members and their familiarity with the Bay,” she said. “We created a Monitoring and Reporting form, and divided our efforts into San Francisco and the East Bay. We gave the forms to 200 volunteers, and divided San Francisco into six waterfront areas.

“A lot of the oil went to the East Bay. Two-thirds of the birds we found were from the East Bay. A large number were damaged, consisting of 50 species. Of those found, 421 were cleaned and released.

“Keeping stressed birds from being flushed back into the water was a major concern. Lightly oiled birds often flew to non-contaminated areas.”

Weeden said damaged birds were taken to the Oiled Wildlife Care Network trailer in Berkeley, and the International Rescue Research Center in Cordelia, CA.

In retrospect, Weeden said, “No one was prepared. There was no call-to-action plan. Government agencies were unable to utilize trained volunteers.”

Since the spill, Weeden’s group had been advocating for state and federal legislation that hopefully will improve response and accountability in future such crises.

Dr. Greg Massey, a veterinarian and state coordinator for the Oiled Wildlife Care Network, detailed his organization’s role in the response.

“Our mission is to provide the best achievable treatment to oiled wildlife,” he reported. The Network is made up of 25 academic, scientific and rehabilitation organizations.

Massey reported that most of the birds accounted for after the disaster, both damaged and dead, were found in the first week thereafter, peaking on November 11. “A lot of common birds died,” he said.

Dr. Massey also told of the six step Care and Processing protocol for rescued birds, and how personnel, both professional and volunteer, were involved in treating the birds.

Jay Holcomb of the International Bird Rescue Research Center related his group’s pioneering efforts to rescue and rehabilitate birds. “We’ve done over 200 oil spills,” he said. “Our group does rehab besides rescue. 45,000 birds a year besides oil spill go through our rehab centers.” Those centers are in Cordelia and San Pedro.

After a loud irritating sound boomed out of the PA, Holcomb cracked, “The oil companies did it!”

Megan Shaw Prelinger talked about her role in rehabilitating damaged birds last November. Prelinger is a member of the Cordelia facility’s emergency response team. She described in detail the six step rehab process that Dr. Massey had introduced. These include intake, stabilization, cleaning, conditioning and release.

During each step of the process, care givers painstakingly address and monitor the birds’ problems, and provide the treatment needed for their recovery, until they are ready to return in good health to the wild.

For example, the birds have to have time to realign their feathers so that they can be rewoven into a waterproof fabric to keep them dry, as well as for getting used to being in cold water again.

In a Q&A session following the presentation, panelists said that long term effects of the disaster could include problems caused by some oil still being in the water. “If micro-vegetable communities are affected, there could be a ripple effect” up the food chain, one panelist said.

As to direct effect of birds ingesting oil, “The GI (gastrointestinal) tract could be damaged, and systemic effects, such as to the immune system, could lead to anemia” and other diseases.

“Half of the oil was cleaned up, and a lot dispersed,” a panel member reported. There are natural bacteria that can eat oil droplets, once they are small enough, the panel said. The droplets are made small enough by surf action, but that process is slowed in the Bay by lack of surf.

Megan Shaw Prelinger concluded the presentation by asserting, “The media response was disproportionate to ongoing animal emergencies. People can put volunteer energy into addressing those too.”