Personal blog about states
The city was named in 1790 after the Spanish Navy Minister Antonio Valdés y Fernández Bazán. A former Gold Rush town, it is located at the head of a fjord on the eastern side of Prince William Sound.
Though most well known as the southern terminus for the trans- Alaska oil pipeline, Valdez is also a prime destination for travelers. Valdez is located on a wedge of flat land on the north shore of Port Valdez , a deep-water fjord, and is a 305-mile road trip east of Anchorage and 364-mile drive south of Fairbanks.
The Exxon Valdez oil slick covered 1,300 miles of coastline and killed hundreds of thousands of seabirds, otters, seals and whales. After the spill , Exxon Valdez returned to service under a different name, operating for more than two decades as an oil tanker and ore carrier.
On March 24, 1989, while owned by the former Exxon Shipping Company, and captained by Joseph Hazelwood and First Mate James Kunkel bound for Long Beach, California, the vessel ran aground on the Bligh Reef resulting in the second largest oil spill in United States history.
A patronymic surname meaning son of Baldo (from the German bald, “brave”); Baldo is a shortened form of Baltazar, one of the three magi. One who came from Valdéz (tableland), translated literally as “from the valley.”
The Trans Alaska Pipeline System was designed and constructed to move oil from the North Slope of Alaska to the northern most ice-free port in Valdez, Alaska.
Valdez , Alaska has the distinction of being the snowiest town in Alaska . The annual average snowfall is 305.8 inches.
Valdés is a Spanish toponymic surname of Asturian origin. During the colonization of the Americas, the surname became established there, where many variations appeared, such as Valdez (by analogy with the Spanish patronymic -ez).
(val-deez) Our Alaska names tour brings us to Valdez , home to the Trans- Alaska Pipeline terminal, amazing fishing, and serene beauty.
Skimmers, which collect water and then remove oil from the surface, were deployed over 24 hours after the spill. The skimmers got clogged with oil and kelp, so this was ineffective. Dispersants, which are chemicals that breakdown oil, were released into the water.
the Deepwater Horizon
It contaminated 1,300 miles of coastline with 250,000 barrels or 11 million gallons of oil. Direct contact with the oil slick killed at least 140 bald eagles, 302 harbor seals, 2,800 sea otters, and 250,00 seabirds within a few days. Four people died as part of the clean-up efforts.
On March 24, 1989 , the tanker Exxon Valdez grounded on Bligh Reef in Alaska’s Prince William Sound, rupturing its hull and spilling nearly 11 million gallons of Prudhoe Bay crude oil into a remote, scenic, and biologically productive body of water.
Exxon Valdez oil spill costs exceeded $7 billion Cleanup alone cost in the region of US $2.5 billion and total costs (including fines, penalties and claims settlements) have, at times been estimated at as much as US $7 billion.”
As restitution for the injuries caused to the fish, wildlife, and lands of the spill region, Exxon agreed to pay $100 million. This money was divided evenly between the federal and state governments.