Alyeska Pipeline Service Company’s Ship Escort/Response Vessel System (SERVS) provides world-class escort services to the Trans Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) tankers that transit the waters of Prince William Sound. In addition to its prevention service, SERVS has developed comprehensive protection and oil spill recovery strategies to protect the waters of the Sound.
SERVS is at the forefront of prevention and response for U.S. marine crude oil transportation, providing a first line of defense for the waters of Prince William Sound and it maintains one of the world’s largest inventories of oil spill response equipment.
Created in July 1989, SERVS is considered one of the best oil spill prevention and response forces in the world. The SERVS mission is three fold: prevention, preparation, and response. Each laden tanker is escorted through Prince William Sound to the Gulf of Alaska by response vessels capable of assisting a distressed tanker. Oil spill response equipment has been pre-stationed throughout the Sound for rapid response.