Oil Spill Response Planning: Federal, State, and Local Roles

Introduction

In order to effectively respond to any oil that might arrive on Florida's beaches as a result of a spill in the Gulf, one must take into account the different regulations governing crisis response at the local, state, and federal level. As the city currently does not have an oil spill response plan, it is helpful to examine the state and federal levels first, in order to determine the most effective role for local authorities to play within the context of these larger efforts. Examining the existing plans and regulations will answer questions regarding who is responsible for the cleanup, as well as any additional costs related to the effects of the spill — such as lost business revenue. Furthermore, this study will reveal the best ways in which the city can implement different policies, procedures, and legal options to ensure that its residents and businesses suffer as little as possible from any potential oil that may come ashore.

Before addressing the specifics of this scenario, it is helpful to discuss the existing regulations and response plans for oil spills at both the state and federal level, given that the city's response will ideally be part of a much larger effort requiring cooperation and understanding at every level of interaction. The scope of the disaster is simply too large for any one city or state to deal with effectively, but with proper planning and an understanding of existing plans and regulations, the city will be able to ensure that it is using its resources to most effectively protect its residents, businesses, and beaches. As the overall response is being handled at the federal level, it is best to begin with the federal regulations that dictate who is responsible — both materially and financially — for cleanup and for the negative effects a spill might have on the local economy.

Federal Regulatory Framework for Oil Spill Response

At the federal level, the response to any oil spill is headed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) via the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan. More commonly called the National Contingency Plan (NCP), it is "the federal government's blueprint for responding to both oil spills and hazardous substance releases" and comes into effect through the National Response Team, which is responsible for "planning and coordinating responses to major discharges of oil or hazardous waste, providing guidance to Regional Response Teams, coordinating a national program of preparedness planning and response, and facilitating research to improve response activities" (EPA, "National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan Overview," 2011).

The National Response Team is headed by the EPA and consists of all federal agencies participating in the spill response. It represents the top of the overall response structure of which the city itself will be a part, because the National Contingency Plan authorizes the creation of Regional Response Teams. These teams are made up of "representatives of each federal agency that is a member of the NRT, as well as state and local government representatives, and also an incident-specific team made up of members of the standing team that is activated for a response," and are responsible for "coordinating preparedness, planning, and response at the regional level" (EPA, "National Oil and Hazardous Substances," 2011).

Finally, the NCP also consists of federal On-Scene Coordinators, who are authorized "to direct all federal, state, and private response activities at the site of a discharge" — or, in this case, cleanup. While an On-Scene Coordinator would likely be the portion of the federal response that the city works most closely with, it is worth understanding that anything the city undertakes will be happening as part of this larger effort.

Corporate and State-Level Responsibilities

In addition to the federal response plan, the EPA has preexisting regulations requiring private facilities "to develop and implement Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) Plans [and] procedures, methods, and equipment requirements" capable of effectively handling "a worst-case discharge of oil" (EPA, "Oil Pollution Prevention Regulation Overview," 2011). The EPA reviews these response plans to ensure their viability, and whatever the private response, it should fall under the authority of the National Response Team and any On-Site Coordinators. In the case of the current spill, of the various companies ultimately responsible for the explosion and spill in the Gulf, BP has taken the largest share of responsibility — both in publicly acknowledging the crisis and in funding much of the response effort, consistent with the broader regulatory requirement that companies maintain their own response plans.

Following earlier disasters, legislators and regulators ensured that the brunt of financial costs would be carried by the private entities responsible. BP is therefore legally required both to fund cleanup efforts and to reimburse those whose livelihoods have been affected — although only up to a certain dollar amount, and the claims process is reportedly lengthy, error-prone, and inefficient (Wald, 2010). In addition to these financial requirements, which cap corporate liability at $75 million, "the federal government has a large rainy day fund on hand to help mitigate the expanding damage on the Gulf Coast, generated by a tax on oil for use in cases like the Deepwater Horizon spill" (Wald, 2010). This fund is used not only to prepare for spills, but to pay for effects that exceed the mandated corporate liability limit — although BP has stated that it will continue to honor claims beyond the $75 million cap.

In addition to the federal and corporate response plans, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection is especially focused on hazardous waste mitigation, given the state's relatively high risk of hurricanes and oil spills. The Hazardous Waste Cleanup Section of the Department of Environmental Protection is responsible for the remediation of hazardous waste sites where enforcement has been unsuccessful or only partially successful, and for coordinating with the EPA and National Response Team in their efforts to collect oil.

Conclusion

After examining the federal and state agencies responsible for the oil spill response, as well as the corporate responsibilities mandated by law, it becomes clear that while the city should not have to bear the long-term costs associated with cleaning up the oil and sustaining the local tourism economy, it must in the short term focus its efforts on the speedy delivery of federal and corporate money and resources to those who need it. This requires simultaneous close cooperation with response authorities and the credible threat of legal action, alongside a concerted effort to ensure that local workers are given the opportunity to participate in cleanup operations. In this way, the city can ensure that it is not liable for damage caused by others, that its residents are able to maintain their livelihoods with minimal financial disruption, and that the community will be able to rebound quickly and strongly from this disaster.