Canadian Coast Guard Joint Contingency Plans EPPR November 2009

2 Joint Contingency Plans Various arrangements (agreements, understandings, and letters of intent) with: –US - contiguous waters on all coasts and the St. Lawrence River/Great Lakes –Denmark – waters between Canada and Greenland –Russia – ice-covered waters between Russia and Canada –France – waters surrounding islands of St.- Pierre-et-Miquelon

3 Joint Contingency Plans

4 The Canada/US and Canada/Denmark agreements are similar with respect to notification of pollution incidents and response operations Canada/US Plan calls for each Party to provide an OSC and command centre for operations in their respective state Canada/Denmark Plan calls for only one OSC and a Deputy OSC for response operations affecting contiguous waters Canada/US – each pay their own costs for response Canada/Denmark – the Party activating the Plan pays the response costs

5 Canada/US JCP –First promulgated in 1974 as a stand-alone plan –In September of 1983, four additional geographically oriented annexes were added to the plan –The plan was then revised in 1984 and again in 2003 to accommodate modifications required by accession to OPRC 90

6 Canada/US JCP Each Party will promptly report spills in the contiguous waters to the other Party The Geographic Annexes identify response resources available, provide for a joint exercise program, promote training for response personnel, share information and coordinate press releases, information sheets and other material to be made available to the public or to the media Each Party will fund its own operations for responding to incidents in the waters that fall under its jurisdiction unless otherwise agreed

7 Canada/Denmark JCP Canada/Denmark Agreement relating to the Marine Environment –First promulgated in 1983 –Amended in 1991 to include the Joint Marine Pollution Contingency Plan concerning incidents resulting from shipping activities –Modifications required following Canada’s accession to OPRC 90 –Amended Joint Plan remains in draft

8 Canada/Denmark JCP Parties will cooperate to respond expeditiously to a pollution incident that affects or threatens to affect both Parties One On-Scene Commander (OSC) appointed by the party in the area in which the incident occurs and the Deputy OSC is appointed by the other party The costs of a response operation shall be borne by the Party initiating the operation

9 Canada/Russia MOU Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation relating to the prevention and control of Arctic Marine Pollution, 1989 –Agreement considered null and void after the de-unification of the former USSR states –Information and experience sharing –Technology transfer –Response operations to pollution incidents –Policy and legislation