The Valdez Blockade was a 1993 protest by Cordova fishermen who blockaded the Valdez Narrows in an attempt to obtain funding for research and restoration efforts relating to decreasing yields of pink salmon and herring in Prince William Sound following the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill. The fishermen were dissatisfied with the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee's Council's refusal to fund research efforts into the spill's effects on the fish. The blockade lasted three days, from August 20 to August 22. The blockade ended when Secretary of the Interior, Bruce Babbitt, promised funding for salmon and herring research. Findings from these studies resulted in additional compensation from Exxon.
Background
The initial 1991 settlement would require Exxon to pay $1 billion in damages. $900 million was allocated to a trust fund concerning special environmental restoration and the other $100 million went directly to the state and federal governments. By 1993, the United States General Accounting Office released a report stating that of the $200 million spent at that point in time, most had gone to federal and state programs and little had been awarded through competitive bids. The majority of the settlement that had been paid by Exxon had been allocated towards recovering legal fees, administrative costs, and reimbursements to the state and Federal governments as well as cleanup companies in order to cover the costs of cleanup work.
Following the events of the Exxon oil spill, in 1991 a council dedicated to environmental restoration procession was established to guide future environmental disaster. The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee's Council have a mission statement that explicates their goal to maintain and improve the fish, game, and aquatic plant resources in the state of Alaska.
Reasoning for the Blockade
Four years after the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill, Alaska fishermen had been experiencing a significant decrease in the amount of fish they had been bringing in. Fishermen cited the 11 million gallons There had been damage to Bligh Reef in the past through the Alaska Steamship Company's Olympia that collided with the reef in 1910. The Trustee Council had taken no action to fund research efforts to support these claims to the frustration of the fishermen who relied on the pink salmon. The fishermen decided that they would need to take action to garner support for their goal.
The Blockade
The fishermen's plan was to build a blockade that would cut-off the primary trade route of Exxon ships and other commercial tankers. The location of the protest, the Prince William Sound, is a small body of water that has channels that engage with other rivers and streams to eventually connect with the Pacific Ocean. From August 20—22 [1993], sixty to one-hundred fishing boats blocked off the Valdez Narrows. The fishermen stated that the blockade would remain until Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt agreed to provide assistance in the research and recovery efforts for damage to the Prince William Sound's Bligh Reef and local ecosystem. The blockade resulted in the prevention of oil tankers from reaching the Trans-Alaska Pipeline terminal.
The protesters of the blockade were aware of the high stakes of their actions facing potential fines of up to $25,000 for violating a safe passage mandate for tankers heading towards the trans-Alaskan pipeline terminal. Banners displayed by protesters contained messages with direct contribution to pollution stating, “No More Lies, Exxon”. The studies found that lingering oil from the spill had a negative impact on wildlife in the area, impacting the populations of seabirds, sea otters, seals, eagles, killer whales, salmon, and herring. These studies gave cause to demand an additional $92 million from Exxon for the purposes of restoring the shorelines that had been impacted by the oil spill. The Trustee Council stated that the SEA Program's creation was directly linked to the blockade.