Inyo County Environmental Health Services
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InyoInyo CountyCounty EnvironmentalEnvironmental HealthHealth ServicesServices HazardousHazardous MaterialsMaterials AreaArea PlanPlan September 2008 Prepared By: Risk Management Professionals, Inc. County of Inyo Environmental Health Services Hazardous Materials Area Plan CHAPTER 1.0: OVERVIEW Chapter 1.0: Overview ........................................................................................1 1.1 PURPOSE.........................................................................................................3 1.2 OBJECTIVES....................................................................................................5 1.3 JURISDICTION .................................................................................................6 1.4 ADMINISTRATION OF AREA PLAN ...............................................................7 1.4.1 General Administration ................................................................................7 1.4.2 Certified Unified Program Agency and Participating Agency .....................7 1.4.3 Administering Agency Responsibilities .......................................................8 1.4.4 Hazardous Materials Emergency Planning.................................................9 1.5 PLANNING ASSUMPTIONS ..........................................................................10 1.6 AUTHORITIES AND REFERENCES..............................................................11 1.7 PHASES OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT ................................................13 1.7.1 Preparedness (Area Plan Part 2) ..............................................................13 1.7.2 Response (Area Plan Part 3).....................................................................13 1.7.3 Recovery (Area Plan Part 4)......................................................................14 1.7.4 Mitigation (Area Plan Part 5)......................................................................14 Rev 0, September 2008 1-1 County of Inyo Environmental Health Services Hazardous Materials Area Plan The use, storage and transportation of hazardous materials and the generation and transportation of hazardous wastes are issues of great importance to the protection of life, property, and the environment in the County of Inyo. Hazardous materials emergencies can occur on a highway, in a shipping or pipeline transportation accident, or can be related to a fire or spill at a business or oil and gas facility. The risk of hazardous materials emergencies results in responsibilities for businesses handling or generating hazardous materials and hazardous wastes, and the agencies that must respond to hazardous materials-related incidents. The State Legislature, in recognizing the risks that hazardous materials and hazardous wastes pose to emergency responders and the community, created a hazardous materials emergency response program under Chapter 6.95, Section 25500 et seq. of the Health and Safety Code. This program requires the Administering Agency to develop a Hazardous Materials Area Plan (Area Plan) detailing the responsibilities of governmental and other response agencies in a hazardous materials incident. The Area Plan includes hazardous materials emergency response information for agencies involved in response to a hazardous materials incident within the County of Inyo. This program also requires that handlers of hazardous materials and hazardous wastes develop Business Emergency Plans (BEP) and submit them to the Administering Agency. The intent of the BEP is to provide first responders site specific emergency response information such as chemical inventory and facility site maps indicating physical state, location and quantities of hazardous materials and wastes. Included in the BEP are emergency response procedures for hazardous materials emergencies, employee training and documentation and contingency planning. BEP information may be utilized by various response agencies for countywide emergency planning. By developing hazardous materials emergency response plans, both businesses and government agencies are better prepared to respond to these incidents, thus minimizing potential risks to life, property and the environment. The USA Act of 2001 (H.R. 2975, Section 815) also known as the “Patriot Act” provides protections for governmental disclosures of records to prevent access to certain information by terrorist groups, organizations or individuals. The Inyo County Area Plan does not provide certain types of information that may compromise the safety of Business Emergency Plan program participants or first responder organizations. Individuals seeking specific information regarding Business Emergency Plan program participants may contact the County of Inyo Environmental Health Services or the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services. Rev 0, September 2008 1-2 County of Inyo Environmental Health Services Hazardous Materials Area Plan 1.1 PURPOSE The purpose of this Area Plan is threefold. First, it serves the County of Inyo Environmental Health Services Department (EHSD) as a planning guide outlining actions required by the County to protect its citizens, their property and the environment in the event of a release or threatened release of hazardous materials. The Area Plan describes the emergency organization, the assignment of tasks, specifies the policy and general procedures of the County of Inyo EHSD, and provides coordination of planning for all phases of emergency response to a hazardous materials incident or emergency. Secondly, the Area Plan provides a planning tool for other agencies and businesses in developing their hazardous materials pre-emergency planning activities and emergency response roles. The Area Plan functions as a response planning and guidance resource for businesses in Inyo County by delineating the organization and responsibilities of the EHSD. It is hoped that businesses in Inyo County will use this Area Plan to assist them in establishing their level of response for any size of release their business can safely handle. Finally, the Area Plan serves one aspect of the SARA Title III “Community Right-to- Know” law that allows the community the right to know about chemical hazards in their community and how the County plans for such emergencies. This document will provide information about facilities that pose a threat or potential hazard to the health and safety of the community. This Area Plan encompasses the County's response procedures and protocols, pre- emergency planning, notification and coordination with outside agencies, public information policies and training outlined in order to allow more accurate development and updating of these procedures. The level of community exposure to hazardous materials was determined from analysis of information collected through Federal and State mandated Risk Management Plans, Business Emergency Plans, and chemical inventory surveys of all Businesses in Inyo County. Other modes of potential chemical releases, such as through transportation of hazardous materials through the community, will also be addressed. Other factors that may affect the level of exposure by any hazardous materials release such as geography, local weather and population demographics are also addressed. In addition, protocols for responding to pesticide drift Rev 0, September 2008 1-3 County of Inyo Environmental Health Services Hazardous Materials Area Plan incidents have been included the specific provisions required by SB 391 (Florez). Rev 0, September 2008 1-4 County of Inyo Environmental Health Services Hazardous Materials Area Plan 1.2 OBJECTIVES The objectives of this Plan are: • To save lives, reduce injuries, and minimize property/environmental damage in the event of an incident involving hazardous materials. • To describe pre-emergency preparations, concept of operations, organization, Scene Management System, protective actions and supporting systems required to implement this plan. • To promote a coordinated and integrated response to hazardous materials incidents. • To define roles and responsibilities of participating departments and agencies. • To identify lines of authority and coordination when this plan is activated. • To confine the effects of an immediate hazardous materials incident by guarding against its extension or the occurrence of secondary incidents. Rev 0, September 2008 1-5 County of Inyo Environmental Health Services Hazardous Materials Area Plan 1.3 JURISDICTION The County of Inyo Environmental Health Services Department was designated as "Administering Agency" for the Business Emergency Plan under Chapter 6.95 of the California Health and Safety Code. The role of the County is to take the necessary actions to prevent and mitigate undue risks to the population and environment brought about by hazardous materials releases. As the Administering Agency, the County of Inyo Environmental Health Services Department is responsible for collecting and retaining files on businesses that use hazardous materials above certain threshold amounts. The data includes a chemical inventory from each business which must be updated on a yearly basis. The inventories are kept in files at the Environmental Health Services Department and hard copies are distributed to the applicable fire departments, as necessary. When a hazardous materials incident occurs within the Inyo County, the Fire Departments along with the County Sheriff Department are the responsible parties for the County. However, the Inyo County does not have a full HazMat Team and utilizes