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"The mission of the Council is to represent the citizens of Cook Inlet in promoting environmentally safe marine transportation and oil facility operations in Cook Inlet" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Cook Inlet RCAC Prevention, Response, Operations and Safety |
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| Overview Section 5002 of the Oil Pollution of 1990 details the formation and mandates of a committee for oil spill prevention, safety and emergency response. CIRCAC subsequently formed the PROPS (Prevention, Response, Operations and Safety) Committee to address those mandates. The PROPS Committee focuses on projects and studies that provide a basis for recommendations aimed at minimizing oil spill risk in Cook Inlet. The committee also reviews and monitors spill response efforts and developments in best available technology. As an advisor to the Board of Directors, the Committee works with staff to formulate recommendations on salient issues and to facilitate communications among citizens, regulatory groups, special interest groups, and industry. CIRCAC programs in pollution prevention such as the geographic response strategies (GRS), leverage expertise among a variety of stakeholders. Similarly the Marine Firefighting and Salvage Plan workgroup pools expertise from CIRCAC, the US Coast Guard, Cook Inlet fire departments and the dock/facility fire teams to inventory regional capabilities, identify areas for improvement, develop a means to address identified shortfalls and, finally, develop a comprehensive plan for Cook Inlet. These and other programs benefit citizens as they improve the safe operations of oil facilities in the Cook Inlet region. Overall Program Goals 1. Provide necessary tools for oil spill response and planning. 2. Develop a marine vessel firefighting plan for Cook Inlet. 3. Proactively decrease response time through streamlining permitting procedures. 4. Work on a consensus team with industry, federal, state and local governments, oil spill co-ops, and communities to prioritize the sensitive areas for which Geographic Response Strategies will be developed. 5. Evaluate the adequacy of Unified, subarea and industry contingency plans through response drills. 6. Ensure the Citizens’ issues are addressed during an actual event. Projects Best Available Technology Community-Based Oil Spill Response Organizations Geographical Resource Information Network Geographic Response Strategies Marine Firefighting & Catastrophic Capabilities Native Alaskan Community Communication Oil Spill Drills Oil Spill Trajectory Permits, Forms & Application Ports of Safe Refuge ^ top |
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| Best Available Technology The Alaska Legislature has directed in statute 46.04.030(e) that the oil discharge prevention and contingency plans required for specific types of facilities or operations, "must provide for the use by the applicant of the best technology that was available at the time the contingency plan was submitted or renewed. The department [DEC] shall identify the prevention and response technologies that are subject to a best available technology determination. The department may find that any technology meeting the response planning standards in (k) of this section or a prevention performance standard established under 46.04.070 is the best available technology. The department may prepare findings and maintain a list of those technologies that are considered best available." To meet this requirement, at each contingency plan review or renewal, DEC makes a BAT determination on certain plan components, as described in 18 AAC 75.425(e)(4). In addition, in 1997 regulations were implemented for a more general BAT review. 18 AAC 75.447 requires the Department to review and appraise technologies that may be used to meet response planning standards, or performance standards by sponsoring a technology conference at least every five years. The BAT Conference is presented in cooperation with persons, organizations, and groups with interest and expertise in relevant technologies. The conference will provide interested parties with an opportunity to describe the status of existing technologies in use, as well as technologies that may be considered superior to those in use at that time. The Department may also evaluate technologies by engaging in studies, inquiries, surveys, or analyses that warrant consideration. Below are several documents generated for or by the work group which explains the planning process thus far, and also the proposed work to be completed by the contractor secured by DEC to complete the conference planning and facilitate the event. DRAFT Report on the BAT Conference held May 2004 (PDF - 2.1MB) Workplan (PDF - 546KB) CIRCAC staff participated at the ADEC-sponsored Best Available Technology conference held in Anchorage in 2004. Staff also attends demonstrations or testing of new oil spill response equipment whenever possible. CIRCAC worked on the BAT steering committee that developed the format and identified six categories to present at the conference: Leak Detection for Crude Oil Transmission Pipelines, Secondary Containment Liners for Oil Storage Tanks, Fast Water Booming, Viscous Oil Pumping Systems, Well Capping and Source Control Technologies. The event featured 18 presentations, 17 exhibits, and 212 attendees - many from ADEC - and focused on technologies which either meet a performance standard or a response planning standard.^ top |
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| Kodiak GRIN Prototype Completed Web Site Identifies Resources by Community - Easy to Navigate  Contractors working for Cook Inlet RCAC on the Geographic Resource Information Network or GRIN Project recently completed the prototype that will help guide development for other communities. GRIN takes existing information from a number of sources, supplements that information as needed, and compiles both electronic and paper documents that allow the user to easily locate and view logistical information relevant to oil spill response in coastal Alaska.Information in the GRIN is organized by community, so that incident personnel assigned to a specific community (or a number of communities within a larger geographic region) are able to access a broad range of community-specific information in one central location. Four major categories of information will be addressed - logistics, safety, public information, and liaison. In some ways, this project represents a first step toward developing an “online” or paperless version of the Subarea Contingency Plans. Much of the logistical, public information, and safety information in the Subarea plans will be incorporated into the GRIN; however, instead of relying on text-based descriptions in a printed plan, the GRIN will use maps and pictures to provide responders with a visual reference to accompany textual information. The project is also developed for use online - both web-available and transportable via CD or DVD. CIRCAC is very excited to watch the development of this project and looks forward to expanding it throughout Cook Inlet. ^ top |
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Geographic Response Strategies Geographic Response Strategies (GRS) are oil spill response plans tailored to protect a specific sensitive area from impacts following a spill. These response plans are map-based strategies that can save time during the critical first few hours of an oil spill response. They show responders where sensitive areas are located and where to place oil spill protection resources. Cook Inlet RCAC co-funded the Kodiak phases of GRS development in 2006 along with the Prince William Sound Response Planning Group, Prince William Sound RCAC and others. The workgroup weighed the advantages and disadvantages of each location and developed plans for 43 sites along Kodiak, Afognak, and the Alaska Peninsula across Shelikof Strait. Workgroup members collected site survey information using the U.S. Fish and Wildlife vessel URSA Major II. Sites are selected using several criteria including environmental sensitivity, exposure to risk of being oiled, and ability to succeed in protecting the area with the current response technology.Selected Site in 2006
Cook Inlet Geographic Response Strategies Web Site Links Northern Cook Inlet GRS Information This website describes the process used to develop Geographic Response Strategies (GRS) to protect sensitive coastal environments in the Northern Cook Inlet response zone. The Northern Cook Inlet Zone, which is part of the Cook Inlet Subarea, extends from the Chuitna River on the west side of the Inlet to Point Possession on the east and north to the Matanuska River. Central Cook Inlet GRS Information This website describes the process used to develop Geographic Response Strategies (GRS) to protect sensitive coastal environments in the Central Cook Inlet response zone. The Central Cook Inlet Zone, which is part of the Cook Inlet Subarea, extends from Anchor Point north to just north of Tyonek including both the east and west coastlines of the inlet. Southwestern Cook Inlet GRS Information This website describes the process used to develop Geographic Response Strategies (GRS) to protect sensitive coastal environments in the Southwestern Cook Inlet response zone. The Southwestern Cook Inlet Zone, which is part of the Cook Inlet Subarea, extends from Cape Douglas north to Sea Otter Point at the southern entrance to Chinitna Bay. Southeastern Cook Inlet GRS Information This website describes the process used to develop Geographic Response Strategies (GRS) to protect sensitive coastal environments in the Southeastern Cook Inlet response zone. The Southeastern Cook Inlet Zone, which is part of the Cook Inlet Subarea, extends from south of Point Bede northeast to Division Island at the northern entrance to Nuka Passage. Kachemak Bay GRS Information This website describes the process used to develop Geographic Response Strategies (GRS) to protect sensitive coastal environments in the Kachemak Bay response zone. The Kachemak Bay Zone, which is part of the Cook Inlet Subarea, extends from Point Bede, just south of Nanwalek, north to Anchor Point at the northern entrance to Kachemak Bay. Seward GRS Information This website describes the process used to develop Geographic Response Strategies (GRS) to protect sensitive coastal environments in the Seward Zone of Cook Inlet. The Seward Zone, which is part of the Cook Inlet Subarea, extends along the eastern coast of the Kenai Peninsula, from Cape Pudget to Nuka Point. ^ top |
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| Marine Firefighting Cook Inlet Marine Firefighting Project Information coming soon. Kodiak Marine Firefighting Project CIRCAC focused on Kodiak for the final round of this project building on the success of the Cook Inlet Mariner Firefighting project, which was recently approved by the Captain of the Port and recommended for inclusion into the Cook Inlet Subarea plan as Annex F. A workgroup again gathered inventory on regional capabilities, identified areas for improvement, developed a means to address gaps and, finally, developed a comprehensive Marine Fire Fighting Plan for Kodiak. The plan has since been included in the Kodiak Subarea Contingency Plan. The workgroup process was highly successful. Members from industry, agencies and the public met to develop this tool. You can view a copy of the Kodiak Marine Firefighting Manual using the link. Documents Cook Inlet Marine Firefighting Manual Kodiak Marine Firefighting Manual (PDF - 192 kb) Jurisdiction and Authority (PDF - 16 kb) Scenarios for Marine Firefighting (PDF - 28 kb) ^ top |
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| Native Alaskan Community Communication Three-quarters of the Alaskan population lives along the coastline, including the majority of Alaska Natives. Native populations are particularly vulnerable to oil spill impacts, especially in Alaskan coastal communities where subsistence lifestyles are predominant. Published research suggests that people who depend on subsistence resources perceive a higher economic, environmental, public health and lifestyle risk associated with the use of certain oil spill countermeasures. The devastating impacts from the Exxon Valdez event shaped the oil spill risk perception for many Alaska Natives. Impacts associated with economic, subsistence and recreational use have created a low level of trust towards spill response authorities that has been difficult to overcome. The Oil Spill Risk Communication Program for Alaska Natives will promote improved communications between tribal organizations and spill response authorities by providing both groups with information and communication tools for use before, during, and after an oil spill occurs. The oil spill risk communication program will have two targeted audiences: spill response authorities and Alaska Natives. The first group will include spill response managers, contingency planners, scientists, and other incident personnel. The Alaska Native group will include community leaders, subsistence user groups, native and tribal organizations, and individuals/families. The project will result in an outreach program that includes communication/educational tools for each group, with the overriding goal of facilitating two-way communication between these two broad categories of people during all phases of oil spill prevention, planning, response, and restoration. The project will build on existing studies of stakeholder perceptions and will include targeted information-gathering events to clarify the perceptions of native and subsistence groups. The resulting education and outreach program will improve Alaska Natives’ understanding of oil risks, impacts, recovery, trade-offs, ecology, and the technical limitations of spill response. It will likewise improve the ability of spill response authorities to communicate incident objectives and response priorities to subsistence users and other stakeholder groups. Once an open dialogue has been established, Alaska Natives will have a basis for trusting spill response authorities, because they will be able to verify response progress towards mutually acknowledged environmental goals. The goal of the Oil Spill Risk Communication Program for Alaska Natives project is to increase the level of trust and understanding between native groups/subsistence users and oil spill response authorities, including state and federal agency personnel, legislators, policymakers, and scientists. We will achieve that goal by developing a comprehensive risk communication program that includes a research report/synthesis document, outreach materials, job aids, training programs, and interactive learning models that can be easily accessed through the Internet and applied or adapted to meet risk communication needs for spill authorities and stakeholder groups in other areas of the United States and worldwide. We will measure the effectiveness of this program using targeted survey instruments that will be delivered to Alaska Natives before and after the outreach program is implemented. We will test the ability of Alaska Natives and oil spill authorities to apply the communication methods using a pre-planned oil spill exercise. The project objectives include the following: Identify the ecological, socioeconomic, and cultural resource protection priorities of Alaska Native groups and subsistence users, with a focus on the Cook Inlet and Kodiak Island regions.
The guiding principals that CIRCAC will apply in carrying out this project are: Successful risk communication requires an understanding of how individuals and organizations perceive risk. Risk perception involves both logic and emotion: risk communication programs must acknowledge and address both. An effective risk communication program should build on existing relationships by fostering a continuing dialogue between parties (in this case, spill authorities and Native groups) before an incident occurs. Alaska Natives and other tribal organizations and entities have a heightened vulnerability to the environmental, cultural, and socio-economic impacts of an oil spill, particularly when a spill threatens to impact subsistence resources. An effective risk communication program should focus on mitigating the potentially devastating cultural and psychological impacts of an oil spill by empowering tribal groups and subsistence users with risk mitigation strategies and educating them regarding response tradeoffs and restoration goals. The communication tools will allow stakeholder groups to replace their vulnerability and fear with information, knowledge, and an appropriate plan of action. Successful outreach requires tailoring information delivery methods to the unique needs and interests of a target audience. For Alaska Natives, workshops and video presentations are generally more successful than printed reports or web-based training tools in disseminating and collecting information. For response authorities, job aids and communication tools that fit into existing training programs, such as computer-based interactive learning tools, and concise printed materials with ICS-type checklists may be more effective than lengthy workshops that require a large time or travel commitment. The Oil Spill Risk Communication Program for Alaska Natives is innovative and solution-oriented. The project seeks to transform research results into standards of practice and demonstration projects by developing practical tools that will improve the ability to effectively communicate oil spill information to coastal communities, particularly native groups and subsistence users. The project will contribute to the body of knowledge regarding spill risk perception among native groups and subsistence users, and the reference information developed through this project may be applied to the benefit of coastal communities in other areas of the United States and worldwide. ^ top |
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| Oil Spill Drills Oil spill drills have not always been the active prevention tool that they are today in Cook Inlet. In the years following the Exxon Valdez oil spill, regulators were clarifying expectations and the response organizations were developing their own internal protocols. CIRCAC has as its goals to evaluate adequacy of Unified, subarea and industry Contingency plans; to identify all areas needing improvements; to drill all areas of the contingency plan improving ability to be ready for a real incident; to work with industry and agencies to assure that lessons learned and items needing improvements are exercised. To accomplish these goals, CIRCAC board and committee members, particularly those on the Protocol Committee responsible for reviewing C-Plans, are familiar with Unified, subarea, and industry plans. CIRCAC staff also participates in industry and agency led drills and works cooperatively with agencies and industry to identify and implement areas needing improvement. Background The first spill drill was to be performed in Anchorage by Tesoro, the purpose of which was to demonstrate the ability for a laden tanker to drop anchor to reduce and eventually stop movement by using her anchor as a braking system. As pressure to hold the drill diminished, discussions turned toward the scenario that would be used in the drill. In September of 1991, the U.S. Coast Guard called a drill on Arco. The scenario was an earthquake which ruptured a line between a platform and the Trading Bay facility releasing 100-200 barrels into the Inlet. CIRCAC observers at the drill deemed the booming and mechanical clean up effective from their perspective and participated in a workgroup tasked with compiling all information from spill drills and reporting back to the PROPS committee. The next month, Marathon Oil conducted a spill drill in Anchorage and again CIRCAC observers attended and later compiled information for use on the PROPS Committee. In 1992, Alyeska and Chevron conducted a joint operation in Prince William Sound. At this drill CIRCAC observers were impressed with the interaction between PWSRCAC and the Unified Command. Both CIRCAC and PWSRCAC spent the next few drills sussing out the role that they would play in training exercises. Observers continued to note opportunities for improvement in aspects like boom deployment and communication between response vessels. CISPRI incorporated some of CIRCAC's suggestions regarding the Incident Command (ICS). Over the next few years, the exercise schedule increased and CIRCAC attended drills for Alyeska, Tesoro, Phillips, Shell and others. CIRCAC's role continues to evolve but remains aimed at improving ICS and the interaction with various stakeholder groups and affected citizens. ^ top |
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| Oil Spill Trajectory CIRCAC Takes a Closer Look at Platforms in Inlet Report Provides Insight into Dismantlement, Removal, and Restoration (DR&R) NEW! CLICK TO SEE THE INTERACTIVE FACILITY MAP  Declining production and lack of information in Cook Inlet led CIRCAC to develop a white paper concerning the Dismantlement, Removal and Restoration (DR&R) of platforms and facilities located within Cook Inlet At its May meeting, the Board of Directors approved the final draft for publication. The final report includes a map of all facilities and associated pipeline infrastructure, a dossier on each offshore facility in Cook Inlet describing its site topography and geography, age, production status, lease stipulations, ownership history, and DR&R status CIRCAC also summarized relevant Alaska attorney general opinions regarding liability as part of the report.The project manifest from concerns that no single source of information existed to assist CIRCAC and its constituent groups in understanding the complexities of DR&R The white paper reviewed current state and federal regulations and suggested a course of action; reviewed current lease stipulations and regulations to establish jurisdictional authority for DR&R; and identified the permitting process for removal and summary of potential significant impacts of infrastructure dismantlement, removal and restoration. CLICK HERE for Part 1 of the report (Pages 1-23, 413 KB) Part 1 contains the narrative and recommendations found in the report. CLICK HERE for Part 2 of the report (Pages 24-80, 5.11 MB - large file) Part 2 contains supporting documents including lease agreements, maps, and specifications ^ top Permits, Forms and Applications Alaska Oil Spill Permits Tool Completed CIRCAC Expects to Speed Spill Responses  After months of collaboration and review, the Alaska Oil Spill Permits Tool is complete and available on the Internet. CIRCAC and other members of the Alaska Oil Spill Permit Workgroup are pleased to share what we believe is one of the most useful response tools to be created in Alaska's oil industry history. The tool is designed to increase the efficiency of filing the correct permits during a response and thereby decrease the time necessary to deploy human and equipment resources.Alaska's current statewide oil spill response system involves a complex assortment of permits, forms, and applications that must be prepared and filed during various phases of the response. The new tool provides streamlined access to over 40 important documents. The permit tool allows the user to locate the appropriate form by sorting the permits either by the agency that requires the form or by the type of oil spill response activity that would necessitate the permit. The Alaska Oil Spill Response Permit Tool was developed to facilitate the process of identifying, filling out, and filing with the appropriate agency the forms and permits required to carry out an effective spill response. The tool was developed through a cooperative work group process, including representatives of those state and federal agencies whose permit forms are included in the tool, as well as representatives from the oil industry and oil spill response organizations. The tool includes approximately 40 permits, forms, and applications. This set of forms represents the documents most commonly required during oil spill response operations in Alaska. The permit forms themselves were reviewed by the appropriate state or federal agency before they were included in this tool. The tool also allows the user to input incident-specific data, which is then exported to a data set that is available for import into the specific permits, forms, and incident response planning documents that are included in the permit tool. Once individual permit forms are filled out, they may be saved as Portable Document Format or PDF files to be printed, e-mailed, or faxed to the appropriate agency or organization. The application for viewing PDF's, Acrobat Reader, works across different operating system platforms and is widely available for free download. Much of the text in the permit tool is hyperlinked, which means that the user can click on a word or phrase in order to navigate throughout the tool. Hyperlinked text will cause the cursor to display a pointed finger, as opposed to an arrow. ^ top Ports of Safe Refuge Kodiak Potential Places of Refuge  Leaking or disabled vessels may require a sheltered location with adequate water depth to repair or lighter the vessel in order to minimize the amount of spilled product. If disabled vessels are not repaired, oil or other hazardous substances released from the vessel can impact downstream environmental resources and shoreline. Vessels should be anchored or moored in protected waters to safely undergo repairs and minimize polluting the environment. In 2006, Cook Inlet RCAC partnered with agency, industry, and community stakeholders to develop the Kodiak Potential Places of Refuge project to identify places where a stricken vessel may best find shelter. Once identified, suitable emergency mooring locations are included in the Kodiak Subarea Contingency Plan. Kodiak has some of the most environmentally sensitive coastal areas in Alaska. In addition to sensitive shoreline habitats such as marshes, sheltered tidal flats, and exposed tidal flats, Kodiak supports a number of sensitive biological resources including birds, fish and shellfish, and marine mammals. The area contains national refuges, national parks, state critical habitat areas, state parks, native and other private lands, and is managed for a variety of uses. Kodiak is also widely used for marine commerce and has significant traffic passing nearby en route to other ports. As international trade and development of Alaska’s natural resources increases, this traffic will likely increase. Identifying places of refuge for vessels is corollary to such development. Community-Based Oil Spill Response Information coming soon. |
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| Copyright © 2007 Cook Inlet Regional Citizens Advisory Council. All Rights Reserved | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
