Chronic Release of Oil from Pier Nine; San Juan, Puerto Rico

San Juan, Puerto Rico | 2024-May-02

Initial Notification: On May 2, 2023, the USCG contacted the NOAA SSC to discuss the ongoing response to a chronic release of oil from Pier Nine in San Juan near the cruise ship terminals. A history of sheens and oil releases has been documented over the years in this area with previous response actions in 2012 and earlier. It is thought the oil is coming from old inactive pipes or storage in the vicinity. The area has had construction and renovations that limit access to the suspect sources. USCG is conducting monitoring and collection at the site and working with local resources to try to identify historic oil pipeline locations and early photography that could help identify locations where the oil may be coming from. USCG has asked if NOAA NGS coastal mapping photography from the area might be obtainable from prior to 2012 to help with this assessment.