Back to top

Responding to Submerged Oils

On March 4, 2014, the Maine and New Hampshire Area Committee held its 17th annual “Oil Spill Response Seminar.” This year’s topic was “Responding to Submerged Oils.” OR&R’s Emergency Response Division has been a key participant and contributor to these seminars both as a member of the Design Team and as a presenter.

The Maine and New Hampshire Area Committee, formed in accordance with the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, is comprised of federal, state, and local officials whose responsibility is to prepare the Area Contingency Plan for a response to a discharge of oil or hazardous materials, and mitigation or prevention of a substantial threat of discharge from a vessel, offshore facility, or onshore facility.

This year, in addition to design, NOAA presented on characteristics of submerged oil, behavior and modeling and prediction of non-floating oils, and
operational considerations.

Other speakers included the Vice President of Operations for T & T Marine Salvage, U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development, Environmental Research Consulting, Friends of Casco Bay, and representatives from the states of Maine and New Hampshire. They covered a variety of topics including tracking and detecting submerged oil, recovery techniques, and ecological and commercial impacts.

About 100 members of the response and stakeholder community attended the day-long seminar, representing local, state and federal interests.

For further information, contact the NOAA Scientific Coordinator from the region, Steve.Lehmann@noaa.gov.

Go back to OR&R Weekly Report.

Last updated Tuesday, November 8, 2022 1:50pm PST