Primary response contractors for spill cleanup

Primary response contractors are companies or cooperatives with equipment and trained personnel that respond to oil spills. We approve primary response contractors to allow them to be cited in industry oil plans. These contractors maintain caches of pre-staged equipment to support a rapid, aggressive response to oil spills. This equipment is routinely tested in oil spill drills.

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See PRC applications open for public comment
Apply to become a primary response contractor
Get technical assistance for PRCs

State-approved primary response contractors

These approved primary response contractors may be listed in oil spill contingency plans.

Able Clean-up Technologies, Inc.
5308 N Myrtle St.
Spokane, WA 99217
509-466-5255
Expires 2/10/2025

Clean Rivers Cooperative, Inc.
200 SW Market, Suite 190
Portland, OR 97201
503-220-2040
Expires 7/16/2027

Cowlitz Clean Sweep, Inc. (CCS)
55 International Way
Longview, WA 98632
360-423-6316
Expires 11/15/2027

Clean Harbors Environmental
12404 SE Jennifer St.
Clackamas, OR 97015
800-645-8265
Expires 05/4/2026

Focus Wildlife
PO Box 944
Anacortes, WA 98221
800-578-3048
Expires 09/14/2026

Global Diving and Salvage
3840 W. Marginal Way SW
Seattle, WA 98106
206-623-0621
Expires 06/16/2026

GrayMar Environmental Services Inc.
1329 E. Wheeler Rd
Moses Lake, WA 98837
866-472-9627
Expires 12/2/2024

Marine Spill Response Corp.
1330 Industry St., #100
Everett, WA 98023-7123
425-252-1300
Expires 11/01/2026

NRC Environmental Services
9520 - 10th Ave. S., Suite 150
Seattle, WA 98108
206-607-3000
Expires 1/18/2026

NWFF Environmental
1036 Main St.
Philomath, OR 97370
800-942-4614
Expires 12/12/2026

Oiled Wildlife Care Network
Wildlife Health Center,
1 Shields Ave.
Davis, CA 95616
530-752-4167
Expires 11/15/2026

Whitewater Rescue Institute
1620 Rodgers St.
Missoula, MT 59802
800-545-1923
Expires 4/10/2027

Requirements for PRCs

According to our contingency planning rule, an approved primary response contractor must commit to the following:

Have a process to provide 24-hour per day contact for spill response
Begin mobilization efforts immediately upon notification but no longer than one hour from notification of a spill
Maintain equipment in accordance with manufacturer specifications
Identify and train staff and supervisors expected to be deployed on oil spill response tactics or used to meet the plan holder planning standards
Assist plan holders in meeting the requirements for plans and drills
Maintain a list of PRC response equipment on the Worldwide Response Resource List or provide an equivalent electronic equipment list and confirm the accuracy of the list on a quarterly basis
Provide written notification to us and plan holders to whom they are obligated, within 24 hours, of any significant change in the information reported in the approved application
Participate in drill and equipment verification programs

Our oil spill contingency plan rule requires a 30-day public review and comment period on PRC plans and applications.

Apply to become a PRC

Complete the PRC application form and send it to spills.prca@ecy.wa.gov.

Technical assistance for PRCs

Primary response contractor equipment maps. See current locations of PRC equipment in Washington.
Worldwide Response Resource List. Access an online response equipment database.
Oil spill contingency plan rule. Read the rule guiding primary response contractor requirements.

Alternative vessel travel speeds

When reviewing industry oil spill plans, we analyze whether response equipment is in strategic locations that can be moved from a home base to a potential spill site within certain planning timeframes. Standard travel speeds of 35 miles per hour over land and five knots over water and 100 knots by air are applied, unless plan holders request alternative travel speeds and we grant them.

Because you own the equipment and keep records on performance, your customers may ask you for help to meet this requirement (WAC 173-182-350). In order for the request to be accepted by us, new or updated alternative transit speed submissions should be conducted under one of the following options:

Select a measured mile for your test location. This can be a measured mile from designated/charted measured mile markers or between known charted navigational aids. Run the vessel on a measured mile a minimum of four runs (four different directions). Runs should be conducted with normal loads of fuel, water, personnel, boom and recovery equipment on board.

Record the following data and include in your alternative request submission:

Vessel for which the alternative speed is requested
Speed
Run
Location
Date of run

For each of the four runs document:

Distance
Engine RPM
Elapsed time
Calculated speed
Conditions of the day, wind/sea conditions

Average the calculated speed of the four runs to determine the alternative speed for the vessel.

The vessel must travel away from its home base in one direction for one hour. The time test should be conducted with normal loads of fuel, water, personnel, boom, and recovery equipment on board.

Record the following data and include in your alternative request submission:

Lat/long information every 10 minutes for both the destination and return trip (total of approximately two hours).
Description of conditions of the day including weather and sea state conditions.
Engine RPM during the test.
Calculated average speed.

The vessel log should contain the following information:

Vessel arrival time and location, including latitude and longitude.
Vessel departure time and location, including latitude and longitude.
Sea state conditions.
Description of load conditions (log entry should be for a trip conducted with normal loads of fuel, water, personnel, boom and recovery equipment on board).
Engine RPM during the test.
Calculated average speed.

If a plan holder/PRC has documentation of a United States Coast Guard approved alternative transit speed, it may be submitted to us for review and approval. If we are invited to, and present during any of the tests, our representative will record all the information for documentation (detailed above). The requester will no longer need to submit documentation. If approval of alternate travel time is granted by us, you will receive a letter detailing the equipment and the approved travel speeds.

Contact information

Sean Orr
Preparedness Planning Specialist
sean.orr@ecy.wa.gov
360-280-6073