The key to success is predesignation of responsibilities so that specific 

 individuals, again from the Washington office down to the field levels, know 

 their respective geographic area and what they are expected to do. We cannot 

 wait until a spill occurs to assign these responsibilities. Also, practice 

 makes perfect. The more experience a person gains in dealing with oil spills, 

 the more effective his response will be during future incidents. Maintaining 

 continuity, rather than passing around the job during each spill incident, 

 is essential to developing a proper response. The basic assignments are 

 for Washington, regional, and field-level spill response coordinators and 

 their alternates. The responsibilities cannot be on an ad hoc basis--they 

 must be specific, planned and budgeted for, and written in position descriptions. 



Once duties have been assigned to specific individuals and their alter- 

 nates, further planning, inter- and intra-agency coordination, and prepara- 

 tions can be carried out. This means direct contact with chairmen of each 

 Regional Response Team and predesignated Coast Guard and Environmental 

 Protection Agency (EPA) On-Scene Coordinators (OSC). The Coast Guard supplies 

 the OSC for coastal waters, the Great Lakes, and ports and harbors, while 

 EPA supplies the OSC for all other inland waters. 



Other prespill actions include direct contact with state agencies, 

 particularly the appropriate fish and wildlife division, to develop a close 

 working relationship and a plan that can be implemented at the time of a 

 spill. It is essential that each agency and person know ahead of time exactly 

 what he is supposed to do during a spill. 



Prespill planning must also include contacts with volunteer and pro- 

 fessional groups that are interested in collection and treatment of oiled 

 birds. The CEQ National Contingency Plan specifically states our responsi- 

 bility in this area and directs us to identify such groups ahead of time. 

 These groups include local chapters of the National Audubon Society, Humane 

 Society of the United States, Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to 

 Animals, and others, which are willing and have available manpower and 

 knowledge to carry out an effective bird salvage and treatment operation. 

 One such professional group that has developed relatively successful tech- 

 niques for rehabilitating oiled birds is the International Bird Rescue 

 Research Center located in Berkeley, Calif. Another is the Wildlife 

 Rehabilitation Center in Massachusetts. Prespill identification and con- 

 tact with local and national groups interested and knowledgeable in treat- 

 ment of oiled birds will vastly improve our capability to utilize their 

 knowledge and assistance in a pollution emergency that involves signifi- 

 cant numbers of birds so we can carry out our responsibilities under the 

 National Contingency Plan. Another person to contact during prespill 

 planning is the current Department of Interior representative to the 

 Regional Response Team. In some cases, this may be a secretarial field 

 assistant; in others, it could be a member of the U.S. Geological Survey 

 (USGS), since that agency is the Department of Interior's primary repre- 

 sentative to the National Response Team. In any case, Fish and Wildlife 

 Service personnel must become closely associated with each RRT, as either 

 a primary or alternate member. 



Prespill preparedness also involves insuring that all the necessary 

 equipment is either on hand or readily available upon short notice. Equip- 

 ment for dispersing birds and for treating oiled birds is the primary need. 



