Canadian Spill Response Organization

CSRO SERVICES

WILDLIFE EMERGENCY PLANNING AND RESPONSE

What is Wildlife Planning?
Wildlife planning and preparedness training are strategies to mitigate the effects of an oil spill. Contingency plans address steps to be taken in the immediate aftermath of an incident including deterrence plans keep wildlife away from potential impact areas. Wildlife planning consists of basic and advanced contingency plans, site assessments, operations drills and response trainings.

What is Oiled Wildlife Response?
Wildlife response is a broad term used to encompass the many components involved in the rehabilitation of oiled wildlife.

Effective response: An effective response is an integrated part of the overall oil spill response. It relies on the rapid coordination of skilled personnel to assess the immediate and projected impact on wildlife and determine the resources, facilities and personnel required.
Coordinated response: A well coordinated response involves clear communication through the use of the Incident Command System (ICS), working with regulatory agencies to follow international standards for the best achievable care for oiled wildlife, building relationships with media to ensure accurate reporting, and training the local wildlife community, as response partners, to assist with the care of oiled wildlife.
Efficient response: An efficient response assesses the impact on wildlife, mobilizes response personnel and establishes a temporary wildlife care facility immediately after being notified of an incident.

How Does Oiled Wildlife Response Begin?
When oil, or another contaminant, is accidentally released into the environment the result is either a contained or uncontained spill. If addressed immediately, contained spills are often cleaned without impacting wildlife.

When a spill is uncontained, Focus Wildlife is notified. Immediate notification gives Focus Wildlife the opportunity to ask a series of questions designed to help determine the nature of the spill and the potential impact on wildlife. Based on the answers to those questions, Focus Wildlife will recommend the most appropriate response level. Response levels are:

1. Response consultation: Response consultation allows clients to notify Focus Wildlife of a spill, place Focus Wildlife on “alert” status, providing a level of preparedness for potential wildlife impact.
2. Reconnaissance: Focus Wildlife provides on-site services to assess the actual and potential impact to wildlife. Reconnaissance does not include hands-on response services—it is the process of determining what level of response may be required. If wildlife will not be affected, the response team will suspend activity until further notice. If wildlife is affected, or is projected to be in the immediate future, activities will move directly into a response engagement.
3. Response Engagement: Response engagement is the active collection, cleaning and rehabilitation of oiled wildlife. A response engagement may also be initiated to deter or haze wildlife from affected areas.

What is the Sequence of a Response?

Response efforts are often described in terms of "tiered" response levels. This terminology allows for greater clarity regarding the required infrastructure and the capacity of the response based on the number of animals affected.
The phasing and infrastructure of a response effort is similar, regardless of whether the incident affects 25 birds, 250 birds or 1,000 birds. However, successful rehabilitation and the associated costs change based on the number of animals (both oiled and un-oiled) as well as numerous other variables, including: the species involved, the care and husbandry requirements, the time of year, the type of contaminant affecting wildlife, and the extent and duration of contamination.

The sequence of a spill response is:

1. Contract agreement (pre-incident recommended).
2. Focus Wildlife notified of a product release.
3. Activation for response consultation (on alert status) to provide guidance as to the potential impact of the spill.
4. On-site reconnaissance including impact assessment, hazing considerations and/or deterrence recommendations.
5. Establishment of a wildlife hotline and designation of a wildlife specialist as a public relations liaison to assist the client with media.
6. Formalized communications by working within the Wildlife Branch and Environmental Unit of the Incident Command System. Focus Wildlife staff have specific training and experience in providing wildlife branch management services to enable clear communication between the client, contractors and regulatory agencies.
7. Mobilization including the set up and activation of the field stabilization unit and/or primary care facility, all necessary equipment and personnel for search and collection, finance and logistics, volunteer management, and primary care rehabilitation. 8. Search and collection including the recovery of impacted wildlife, both dead and alive, followed by field stabilization of oiled animals in preparation for safe transport to the primary care facility.
9. Wildlife rehabilitation including processing data from dead and live animals, physical examination, stabilization, medical and nutritional support, cleaning, and conditioning to restore waterproofing.
10. Release of all healthy animals to an appropriate environment.
11. Domobilization plans are developed and implemented throughout the wildlife response, until full demobilization.