JANUARY 8, 2016--The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum (ARF) Workshop of Oil Spill Emergency Response Management and Disposal Cooperation was held December 17-18, 2015, in Kunming, China.

17 nations and over 80 delegates were in attendance; China fielded the largest delegation with 50 members present. The U.S. team consisted of Rona Rathrod, Department of State ; Mark Dix, NOAA OR&R; Sarah Oh, U.S. Embassy Beijing; and Wenming Shi, US Embassy Beijing . Co-chaired by Brunei Darussalam, China, Thailand, and the United States of America, the agenda featured three main areas: technology related to prevention, preparedness, response and restoration of oil spills; oil spill case studies and best practices; and, regional oil spill management mechanisms and international cooperation. NOAA presented the Texas City "Y" spill of 2014 as a case study in how the responsible party and the Federal government cooperate on spill response. The presentations were meant to stimulate discussion on the second day to achieve China's goal of establishing a regional network of oil spill emergency experts; China emphasized that the ASEAN general assembly gave a mandate to establish a network and that the State Oceanic Administration would offer to compile the list. Thailand indicated that a week was necessary to complete the expert registry forms that China sought. China also proposed that pre-spill training and exchanges take place in order to build knowledge as well as the establishment of a forum for information exchange. It was agreed among the delegations that the registry should be the first step towards greater cooperation.

For more information contact Mark.Dix@noaa.gov.

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