ACTES Environmental recently took part in WCMRC’s shoreline cleanup training program. The field portion of the training exercise was held at Stearman Beach in West Vancouver on Wednesday, March 19th, and at the Suncor Terminal in Burnaby on Thursday, March 20th.
The training, which includes shoreline booming, flushing and decontamination drills, prepares our contractors to execute the Shoreline Cleanup and Assessment Technique (SCAT). SCAT is a systematic method for surveying and cleaning up an affected shoreline. Along with protective and containment booming, SCAT is a regular part of spill response and SCAT surveys begin early in the response to assess initial shoreline conditions. Shoreline treatment operations will largely depend on the characteristics of the affected shoreline, the area sensitivities, degree of oiling, and character of stranded oil.
The SCAT process includes eight basic steps:
- Conduct reconnaissance survey(s)
- Segment the shoreline
- Assign teams and conduct SCAT surveys
- Develop cleanup guidelines and endpoints
- Submit survey reports and shoreline oiling sketches to the ICS Planning Section
- Monitor effectiveness of cleanup
- Conduct post-cleanup inspections
- Conduct final evaluation of cleanup activities
WCMRC’s training plans and outcomes are monitored by Transport Canada to ensure certification standards for our state of readiness are met. The government requires that sufficient equipment and personnel is available through WCMRC to treat at least 500 m of shoreline per day. Our current capacity has reached 1,500 m of shoreline per day.
The training exercise also provided an opportunity to test WCMRC’s geographical response plan for the area.