Regional Response Team 7

2005 Co–Chairs Meeting

Regional Response Team 7

CAPT Tim Close

&

Scott Hayes

RRT Co-Chairs


2004 Accomplishments/Lessons Learned

• Numerous mercury responses• Residential lead cleanups• Ruby Slipper radiation exercise • Blackleg exercise – Region 6 & 7• USCG deployed to Hurricane Ivan• EPA deployment to Francis• Kansas City COOP exercise • Kingman ammonia pipeline release


Challenges/Next Steps

• Fuel alcohol response concerns

• 2005 RRT exercise

• Agro-terrorism issues

• Potential involvement in

SONS ’07

• Assistance to local response communities for NIMS implementation


Best Practices

• EPA Incident Management Teams • Water security workshops• Area Maritime Security committees• Inland River Vessel Management• Sub-area “after hour” exercises • Contact with over 2,000 responders

via training, workshops, exercises


Regional Response Team III

Dennis Carney

RRT Co-Chair


2004 Accomplishments /Lessons Learned

• RRT III Training Program- Exercises and Training

• ATHOS 1 Incident - RRT III Participation

• Alternative Response Countermeasures Technologies- Guidance Documents

- ARTES


Challenges / Next Steps

• ATHOS I Incident Lessons Learned

• New Response Management System – NRP Implementation, Roll-Out, Training, and

NIMS ICS

• RRT Involvement in Natural Disasters

• Continued WMD Training


Best Practices

• RRT III Training Program– Conduct extensive training– Training process– Weigh the needs of workgroups– Feedback on training sessions– POC – Mr. Gary Ott, NOAA SSC

[email protected] or (757) 856-2755



Eric Mosher

EPA Co-Chair

CAPT Mark VanHaverbeke

USCG Co-Chair



• SMART-RAD – Completed/Exercised

• M/V CSAV RIO PUELO• Republican National Convention

– EPA joined CG Unified Command– EPA lead for landside NYC Enviro. Incidents

• M/V ATHOS I – Coordination with RRT3– Trustee Consultation– Test application/contact water approvals



• TOPOFF 3– Bio Response Issues

• Funding for Incidents of National Significance/ pre-deployments

• M/V ATHOS I – Lessons Learned Follow-up

• EPA/USCG AOR Boundary Revisions


Best Practices

• State/Co-Chair Sessions during RRT meeting

• M/V ATHOS I cross-regional concurrence/consultation process

• EPA emergency response personnel in ‘technical assistance” roles, not as “OSC’s”

• M/V CSAV RIO PUELO– Use of NOAA SSC as Env. Unit Leader in

Unified Command Post



CDR Natalie Valley

Doug Skie

RRT Co-Chairs



• Certification of Region VIII IMT• Expanded Response Capability:

– RRC SOP Development– Web EOC Implementation– Trained Response Support Corp– Enhanced communication capability

at COOP.

• New Mobile Command Post/Mobile EOC



• Exercise Demands – Develop Prioritization Procedures.– Align Sub-Area Contingency Planning

with Homeland Security Demands.

• Maintaining Focus on Responder vs. Organizational Readiness– Focus on OSC technical training.


Best Practices

• Very strong relationship with backup regions.– Conduct minimum of one full-scale

annual exercise or joint training.– Backup region workgroup formed.– Included contracting personnel in

developing SOPs and in multi-region exercises.


Regional Response Team I

Arthur Johnson

EPA Co-Chair

Captain Mark VanHaverbekeUSCG Co-Chair



• Democratic National Convention Boston, MA – July, 2004

– event-specific response jurisdiction agreement– valuable interagency training and coordination opportunity

Priority Action Items: – clarify EPA/USCG response authority under NCP– establish central command post– ICS training needed for support staff– evaluate shift scheduling

• B-120 Oil Spill– Endangered Species Act (ESA) consultations– Natural Resource Damage Assessments (NRDAs)

• EPA Inland Area PREP Exercise – “Big Drink”West Boylston, MA – October, 2004



• USCG Strike Teams’ role under NCP– identified as an issue during the DNC– EPA/USCG resource vs. DHS resource– need to clarify tasking and ordering authority

• TOPOFF 3

New London, CT – April 4-10, 2005

• CANUSLANT 2005

Bar Harbor, ME – June 13-16, 2005


Best Practices• DNC/RNC:

– successful pre-planning– interagency training and coordination – exercised inter-regional backup support

• Joint RRT/RISC Meetings Natick, MA – May, 2004

• “Big Drink” Exercise:– coordinated with state and local response partners to

identify and protect vulnerable resources– trained with state and local agencies on ICS

implementation



Captain Randy Helland, USCG District 9 RRT Co-Chair

Linda Nachowicz US EPA Region 5 RRT Co-Chair



• Net Environmental Benefit Analysis (NEBA) Workshops.

• Completion of the Inland Sensitivity Atlases

• Exercises – Marinette, WI ‘04 / Whiting, IN ’05



• Integrate Contingency Plans to align with NRP.

• Review and update RRT5 Strategic Planning Document and set the course for the next 5 years.

• Keep up with the changes in Local, State, tribal and Federal Gov’t.


Best Practices

• Continue to promote interagency training opportunities.

• Development of a Great Lakes specific “Special Teams Guidebook”.

• Continue to quickly turn-around exercise lessons-learned reports and quickly implement the lessons.


AlaskaRegional Response Team

CY 2004 Brief


Accomplishments/Lessons Learned

• Dispersant Information Needs

• PWS Area Exercise

• TAPS Exercise and L/L Follow through – Pipeline Emergency Source Control

• Statewide HazMat Working Group – Mass Decon Project


Lesson Learned resulted in unique rapid, safe, pipeline source control




• Update to Dispersant Guidelines

• Endangered Species Act MOA Implementation

• NRP Organization & Coordination with DHS on Preparedness & Response


Best Practices• Places of Refuge


Best Practices

• Alaska Tactics Manual