An independent report into the Coast Guard’s response to a 3,000 litre bunker fuel spill in Vancouver’s English Bay in April found that the agency dragged its heels unnecessarily.

The report author says that a nearly two hour delay in initiating a response could have been easily avoided, and that local governments needed to be informed much earlier.

“There are a number of areas that the Coast Guard can improve upon in the future,” former assistant Coast Guard commissioner John Butler told reporters Friday.

The review found the owners of the grain carrier MV Marathassa initially denied their vessel was the source of the problem, which slowed reaction to the growing emergency.

Butler said miscommunication and confusion between Port Metro Vancouver and the Coast Guard also hampered containment efforts.

“It was not initially clear in who was initially managing the response,” he said.

Premier Christy Clark and Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson slammed Coast Guard after the spill over what was perceived to a delayed response to the incident, which coated some of the city’s most beautiful beaches – and wildlife -- with an oily sheen.

It took six hours for containment booms to be put in place after the spill was first spotted. Experts later confirmed the oil spread throughout Burrard Inlet.

The report makes 25 recommendations to improve efficiency in case of future spills in Vancouver waters, including initiating a response while the initial assessment is still underway.

Federal Fisheries Minister Gail Shea said she has directed all levels of government to "swiftly" act on all of the recommendations, and implementation is already underway on several.

Shea, who promises to report back to British Columbians once the recommendations are complete, says in the meantime she is urging closer cooperation between all environmental response agencies in Canada's major ports.

"I want to reassure British Columbians that the Government of Canada is strongly committed to ensuring the protection of our marine environments," she said in a statement.

"The polluter-pay principle means that the polluting vessel is responsible for the costs of cleaning up the mess they left in English Bay. Our government will aggressively pursue compensation."

The MV Marathassa, which is registered in Cypress, is on the hook for the cleanup bill. It’s unclear if that money has been recovered.

B.C. Environment Minister Mary Polak said she’s encouraged by the steps being taken by the federal government over tanker safety.

Our province remains committed to a world-class standard over marine-spill preparedness, Polak added.

"We are on the right path, but we also recognize there is still much more work to do towards achieving the sort of marine spill response capabilities we can be truly proud of," she said.