Okaloosa County BOCC — January 18, 2013 — Oil Spill Commission Report Exec Summary and Recommendations — reading text

Executive Summary The Florida Commission on Oil Spill Response Coordination (Commission) was convened in the latter half of 2012 to review past and current spill response practices, assess shortcomings, and recommend improvements. The Commission found that state and local agencies responding to the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) event of 2010 were able to adjust to the unprecedented scale and scope of the required actions over time. The recommendations in this report are based upon the lessons regarding pre-spill planning and post-event coastal protection and cleanup operations. A review of offshore drilling oversight and monitoring activities found that existing Florida state laws and regulations appear to be adequate and do not require any changes. However, inclusion of the entire state in one U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) district and/or standardizing spill planning and response policies and protocols is needed to achieve consistency in oil spill preparedness and response activities. Most of the recommendations address the need to improve spill preparedness and response through better planning and more effective execution. Because USCG Regional and Area Contingency Plans drive initial and long-term response actions, the Commission supports a more robust, comprehensive planning effort that focuses on developing and deploying scientific, technical, communication, and policy tools; improving command-level and local-scale incident management; and ensuring that future spill responses are effective in protecting sensitive resources, cleaning up affected areas, and addressing economic and environmental impacts. Specifically, the Commission supports active participation by state and local officials and emergency management personnel in spill planning and preparedness, and better use of the planning process to organize Oil Spill Removal Organizations (OSROs) and Vessels of Opportunity (VOO). Improvements to initial spill response activities and contingency plan implementation are also needed, along with upgraded coastal mapping and oil spill monitoring and modeling capabilities. In terms of incident management, recommendations in this report include improving multistate coordination, placing USCG and responsible party (RP) representatives in local emergency operations centers, consolidating public health and scientific research at the incident command level, incorporating local branches into the command structure, and improving data and information sharing. Incident commanders should be able to authorize reimbursement for resource protection and restoration activities included in spill contingency plans, and federal laws and regulations should ensure adequate support for the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund (OSLTF). State agencies should provide clear protocols and notification on the use, if any, of dispersants in state waters. Finally, the recommendations in this report support practical, equitable, transparent, and timely processes for the benefit of all of the individuals, businesses, and governmental entities that could be damaged by a large oil spill. Recommendations for Improving Oil Spill Planning and Response Capabilities in Florida 29 7. Complete List of Recommendations 1. Several Florida agencies currently monitor oil drilling and well production activities from different perspectives and have mechanisms in place to alert state and local officials if a spill occurs. Current Florida laws, regulations, and agency practices regarding oversight and monitoring of offshore drilling appear to be adequate and do not require any changes at this time. (Section 2.1, page 11) 2. The Commission strongly recommends that Florida reside within a single USCG district. At a minimum, USCG Districts 7 and 8 should (a) achieve consistency in their general oil spill preparations and their SONS policies, procedures, and protocols regarding Florida oil spill contingency plans, preparedness activities (e.g., drills and exercises), Incident Command System deployment and operation, communication methods, and requirements for data collection, activity reporting, and response activity reimbursement and other forms; and (b) convene conferences on SONS planning, preparedness, and response for the Gulf Coast and Caribbean regions at least every three years. (Section 2.2, page 12) 3. State agencies and local agencies and their respective supervisory local elected officials with a role is preparing for, responding to, and recovering from a SONS should actively participate in USCG ACP development and biennial drills and exercises. (Section 2.2, page 14) 4. RCPs and ACPs should be amended to ensure better organization, deployment, and management protocols for the VOO program and relevant OSROs. These plans should emphasize the importance of airborne surveillance and monitoring, preference in hiring and contracting local resources, and the value of local knowledge and experience in assessing tidal impacts and flow patterns in predicting the movement of spilled oil. (Section 2.2, page 15) acquisition and placement, assembling and training cleanup personnel) should be improved through better area contingency planning, preapproved contracts, preparedness activities, and support for characterizing pre-impact baseline conditions. (Section 2.3, page 16) 6. USCG oil spill contingency plans, state spill plans, and other plans, should be amended to ensure support for and participation in coastal mapping and oil spill movement, monitoring, modeling, and interoperable spatial data analysis (e.g., The Florida Marine Spill Analysis System, Digital Area Contingency Plans, Geospatial Assessment Tool for Operations and Response [GATOR], and the Environmental Response Management Application [ERMA]). (Section 2.3, page 17) 7. USCG RCPs and ACPs and any incident or unified commands established to respond to SONS affecting Florida should be amended to include (a) placing a USCG representative and RP representative in Emergency Operations Centers at each level of government when Florida Commission on Oil Spill Response Coordination 30 Recommendations for Improving Oil Spill Planning and Response Capabilities in Florida a spill approaches state waters; (b) consolidating public health and scientific research/information services at the incident command level to reduce redundancy and overlap; (c) incorporating local branches under the Incident Command System to ensure appropriate local involvement and integration into spill response and cleanup actions; and (d) coordinating and sharing data and information. (Section 2.3, page 18) 8. Congress should amend OPA or other laws to ensure that: (a) local governments are provided an official capacity in the incident response framework under the law; (b) incident command authorizations provide for reimbursement for actions undertaken by state or local governments to protect their resources and restore damaged areas during SONS events if the actions are included in an ACP; and (c) the OSLTF is fully capable of addressing a SONS where there is no financially viable or legally accountable RP for whatever reason. (Section 2.3, page 19) 9. ACPs should improve identification, prioritization, and protection of environmentally sensitive areas/habitats through the use of state or region-specific information, best available technologies, tidal inlet protection strategies (TIPS), and application of sound science, engineering, and technical principles that consider water currents, tidal variations, and the effects of protective measures used in environmentally and economically sensitive areas. (Section 3.2, page 22) 10. Florida state agencies should provide clear protocols and notification on the use (if any) of dispersants in state waters. (Section 3.2, page 22) 11. In the event of a SONS affecting Florida, any civil and/or criminal settlement framework should provide full compensation for restoring the impacted ecological and economic conditions within the state. (Section 4.2, page 23) 12. Florida DEP should review the voluntary early restoration program to determine whether it can be streamlined. (Section 5.1, page 25) 13. Florida should advocate that future OPA claims processes operate under a practical, equitable, reasonable, fair, efficient, consistent, timely, and transparent framework that includes provisions for (a) proper staffing and office accessibility; (b) identifying errors in processing; (c) recommending claims processing improvements; and (d) providing free legal assistance for those who cannot afford it. (Section 5.4, page 25) 14. Florida and other Gulf states should establish a common mechanism for access to multistate resources through the EMAC regardless of whether the incident response is handled through the NCP or NRF processes. Such a mechanism should seek to integrate state environmental and wildlife agency resources into the arrangement and develop guidance for national and regional response teams, joint meeting and training materials, integrated drills and exercises, and improvements in communication and coordination. (Section 6.2, page 28) Acronyms and Abbreviations ACP Area Contingency Plan BP BP Exploration and Production Inc. BOEM Bureau of Ocean Energy Management BSEE Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement EPA Environmental Protection Agency ERMA Environmental Response Management Application FCPTF Florida Coastal Protection Trust Fund FPDPRA Florida Pollutant Discharge Prevention and Removal Act FWC Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission GRP Geographic Response Plan TIPS Tidal inlet protection strategies CFR Code of Federal Regulations DEM Division of Emergency Management DEP Department of Environmental Protection DWH Deepwater Horizon EMAC Emergency Management Assistance Compact FAR Florida Administrative Register FCOSRC Florida Commission on Oil Spill Response Coordination FEMA Federal Emergency Management Agency FOSC Federal On-Scene Coordinator GATOR Geospatial Assessment Tool for Operations and Response GCCF Gulf Coast Claims Facility ICS Incident Command System ISPR Incident Specific Performance Review MODU Mobile Offshore Drilling Unit NCP National Contingency Plan NOAA National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration NRDA Natural Resource Damage Assessment NRF National Response Framework NRT National Response Team OPA Oil Pollution Act of 1990 OSLTF Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund OSRO Oil Spill Response Organization RCP Regional Contingency Plan RP Responsible Party SONS Spill of National Significance USCG United States Coast Guard VOO Vessels of Opportunity