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A fuel spill took place in Puget Sound on Tuesday night during an oil transfer operation, Seattle-based Olympic Tug & Barge, Inc. confirmed to Bunker Index today.

The Washington State Department of Ecology and the US Coast Guard have responded to the incident, which occurred near Eagle Harbor, on the northeast side of Bainbridge Island in Puget Sound.

According to Ecology spokesperson Barbara MacGregor, approximately 35 gallons of fuel spilled from a tug on Tuesday night as the product was being transferred from one tank to another.

MacGregor said that two skimmers from the Marine Spill Response Corporation are currently working on a sheen approximately half a mile long and 100 feet wide, which is roughly 300 feet from the shore.

The vessel, Catherine Quigg, is owned by Olympic Tug & Barge, Inc. (OTB), who confirmed to Bunker Index that they reported the spill to the authorities.

OTB forms part of the Harley Marine Services Inc. group of companies and currently operates a fleet of over twenty vessels. The company's primary focus is in bunkering and dirty petroleum transportation.

In addition to operations in the Puget Sound and Columbia River, OTB also offers coastwise tows from Alaska to Mexico.

Prior to Tuesday night's fuel spill incident, Harley Marine has been involved in a project to reduce greenhouse gas emission by converting existing harbor tugs to eco-tugs using ultra low emissions technology.

The company has worked together with the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to secure funding through their Technology Advancement Program, for the MV Maverick tug to undertake a "green" clean air retrofit.

The project involves the conversion of existing port and starboard engines from mechanical to electronic configuration. The electronic upgrade is aimed at achieving Tier II emission limits, which are limits imposed for new marine engines.