Greenpeace Protest to Greet Harbor-Bound Exxon Valdez

The battered Exxon Valdez is expected to dock today at a San Diego shipyard, where it will undergo nine months of repairs. It will be greeted by a coalition of environmental groups who said they will launch a peaceful protest in the bay.

On Saturday, Coast Guard spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Geoffrey Powers said the giant tanker will be towed from San Clemente Island beginning at midnight. The tanker is expected to enter state waters about 5 a.m. and dock about four hours later at the National Steel & Shipbuilding Co., where it will undergo repairs.

Before entering San Diego Bay, the Valdez will stop offshore and be inspected by Exxon officials, who will be supervised by Capt. Ed Silva, senior harbor pilot, and local Coast Guard Cmdr. Don Montoro, Powers said.

Coast Guard and San Diego Unified Port District officials want to make sure that the vessel is not discharging oil or dragging steel plates from the hull.

Powers said seven “major” plates that were peeled back while the ship was being towed from Alaska had to be removed while the Valdez was anchored off San Clemente Island.

Several environmental groups, led by Greenpeace, said they will protest on the water, using eight boats and inflatable rafts. Environmentalists also plan a shore protest at a park in Coronado, across from the Nassco shipyard.

The Coast Guard has established a “moving safety zone” around the Valdez while the ship is in transit. Seven cutters and Harbor Patrol vessels will prevent ships from getting any closer than 500 yards in front of the giant tanker and 300 yards along its sides and stern.