The States, by the way, are invited to join the Regional Response Team 

 and, in our district, are asked to participate in all decision-making. The 

 State representative is usually a member of the principal State environmental 

 agency, such as the Mew York Department of Environmental Conservation, and 

 as such is familiar with the Fish and Wildlife Service organization and personnel 



Another group with which some of you might be familiar is the Joint U.S.- 

 Canadian Response Team, which replaces the RRT when both Canadian and U.S. 

 waters are affected or threatened. Its functions and membership are much 

 like that of the RRT. Membership is, of course, from both sides of the border. 



Now, suppose we have a major oil spill in U.S. coastal waters. The OSC 

 is the predesignated Coast Guard official so named in the Regional Contingency 

 Plan. He is assisted by his own resources, such as Coast Guard units under 

 his command; the National Strike Force, a team of highly specialized Coast 

 Guardsmen skilled in pollution prevention, control and recovery; and his 

 parent command, which offers support in such matters as pollution fund monies, 

 logistical support, and availability of other Coast Guard resources. He will 

 also have in the immediate vicinity, as soon as members can arrive, the Regional 

 Response Team to provide advice and assistance. What, then, is the role of 

 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service? 



Although it is not always the case, participation of the Fish and Wild- 

 life Service is usually limited to those spills of large enough magnitude 

 to warrant activation of the Regional Response Team. It is through the formal 

 activation of the team that assistance is requested. The OSC may also request 

 assistance for small spills with unusual problems, and this would normally 

 be done at the field level. Other serious spills, however, for which a represent- 

 ative is not specifically requested, are brought to the attention of the Depart- 

 ment of Interior in Washington, D. C., by formal pollution reports submitted 

 by the OSC. Any Interior representative, Fish and Wildlife Service or other- 

 wise, is welcome to assist with or observe any spill. 



On a spill such as the Nepco 140 incident, the Fish and Wildlife Service 

 role is a dual one. First, a nearby field representative should be made avail- 

 able to the OSC to carry out locally oriented functions. Second, a regional 

 representative should join the Regional Response Team to participate in the 

 deliberations and decisionmaking of that group. The two representatives 

 should maintain close liaison with each other, and the field person usually 

 acts as the wildlife field adviser to both the OSC and RRT, the latter through 

 the wildlife member of the team. 



It is likely that the wildlife field representative will have local 

 knowledge of extreme importance to both the OSC and Regional Response Team in 

 developing answers to the following questions: Where are environmentally 

 sensitive areas that deserve a high priority for protection and cleanup, and 

 why? What type of wildlife inhabits these sensitive areas? Is the affected 

 area, or parts of it, subject to migration and if so, when can arrivals be 

 expected? Where are the locations of nesting and spawning areas? When are 

 the eggs laid and how far below the surface is the spawn deposited? What 

 about molting? What other local contacts, government and otherwise, can 

 provide assistance in setting up bird-cleaning stations, and who are the 

 people qualified to do the cleaning? During field trips, the OSC should 

 inventory mortalities for postspill studies and estimate indirect losses 

 based on direct mortalities. 



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