He further stated that the storm and the global pandemic may have added to the slow down at the docks for unloading, but it seems to be more just the time of year when arrivals of container ships come in regularly. As the docking space opens up, the vessels will move out.
The director also called me and responded with a bit more detail to questions.
1. All vessels are monitored and subject to thorough inspections by the Coast Guard, no matter where they are anchored. Vessels in Holmes Bay would also be accepted in Seattle /Tacoma.
2. All vessels perhaps waiting for dock access in Vancouver, Canada (or other ports) would only be allowed anchorage in Holmes Bay if they had visited a US port first – usually Seattle/Tacoma for us.
3. Federal regulations prohibit any bilge or sewage dumping within territorial waters.
4. The global pandemic has certainly affected some delay in arrival and docking space for container ships. This is a global issue - slow downs from one port, added to the next port, etc. In general, ships are unloaded / reloaded quickly to go back out to sea.
There is an AP where you can see where vessels are anchored and their names:
