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REQUIREMENT FOR ACCREDITATION TO THE UK NATIONAL STANDARD FOR MARINE OIL SPILL RESPONSE ORGANISATIONS

 

You will be aware that, on 1st November 2018, a one-year ‘grace-period’ to enable UK Marine Oil Spill Response Organisations (OSROs)to become accredited to the UK National Standard for Marine Oil Spill Response Organisations (‘The Standard’) commenced.

 

We are shortly approaching the halfway point of this grace period and are aware that fewer OSROs than expected have applied for accreditation at this time.

 

This letter is to remind all OSROs that failure of any OSRO to gain accreditation to The Standard by the end of the ‘grace period’ (1stNovember 2019) will result in the OSRO not being recognised by the MCA and OPRED as fulfilling the requirement for Tier 2 service provision for UK ports, harbours, terminals and offshore installations.

 

It is worth noting that delaying the accreditation process to the latter end of the remaining period should be avoided as the designated Accreditors have a finite capacity, it would be unrealistic to expect them to be able to manage a tsunami of late requests in the time available.

 

There are currently two approved accreditation bodies for The Standard; the Nautical Institute, and ISAS.

ISAS: http://www.spillonline.org/osro-intro.html
Contact: Mr John Dawes
johnadawes@btinternet.com

NI: https://www.nautinst.org/
Contact: Mr Bernie Bennett
Bernie.bennett@nautinst.org

 

To view The Standard, and for more information, please visit the gov.uk website:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-national-standard-for-marine-oil-spill-response-organisations

 

Your action in this matter is appreciated. If you have any queries, please direct them to: Jayne Ede, Custodian of the UK National Standard for Marine Oil Spill Response Organisations
ukresponderstandard@mcga.gov.uk    Tel: 020 381 72277    Mob: 07970 143493

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UKSpill News

NOSCA SEMINAR 14-18 OCTOBER 2019 TRONDHEIM

"Dear NOSCA friend,
It is our pleasure to invite you to join us for the 24th International Oil Spill Technology Seminar from 14th to 18th October 2019. This year's seminar will take place on the beautiful Frøya island as well as in Trondheim, Norway.
The seminar has become a tradition after 25 years:
The success of the NOSCA seminar is based on the combination of two important points: The conference includes exchange of knowledge and practical demonstrations of oil spill technology. Knowing this, our main concern has always been to invite professionals from around the world to come together, to network, share best practice and engage in open communication.
This years conference will cover the following topics:
- Tomorrow's oil spill response solutions
- Integrated solutions for combating oil spill response
- Oil spill response strategies, scaling response from smaller spill to large spills and back
- Utilizing existing resources in a cost-efficient way
- Standardization in Oil Spill Response across boarders
Seminar schedule:
In the afternoon of Monday october 14th, your arrival day, a bus will bring you from Trondheim city / airport to the island of Frøya, where NOFO (The Norwegian Clean Seas Association for Operating Companies) will carry out their large-scale, one week, exercise “Frohavet”.
Tuesday, October 15th will start with our conference program, followed by a visit of NOFO’s in-field depot, where recourses from several depos are mobilized.
Wednesday, October 16th is the exercise day and you will get the opportunity to observe NOFO`s exercise “Frohavet” onboard from a high speed-passenger vessel.
NOFO will exercise all their barriers in an oil spill scenario where an exploration well has a blow out several nautical miles south of Frøya. The different barriers, with resources, will be expressed with focus on tactical response and correct use of the resources. The intermunicipal OSR teams will be a part of the exercise and will mobilize to respond the several locations to limit land spills and to clean up the “oil” that reachec the shoreline. After the exercise the vessel will bring all delegates back to Trondheim.
Thursday, October 17th will be our second conference day where the rest of the topics on the agenda will be presented and discussed.
On Friday, October 18th, there will be an opportunity to to experience the beautiful and wild nature in the vicinity of Trondheim. Further information on the event and excursions available on Friday will be posted in May. Please sign up for this extraordinary day when registering in for the seminar on www.nosca.no. The program with more details regarding the exercise will be published here and updated continuously.
The seminar fee of NOK 19 500,- will cover all expenses related to the seminar, including hotel accommodations, all meals and local transport.
If you have any questions please feel free to contact us. We look forward to seeing you in Norway in October."

Full Story >>

2019 ANNUAL MEMBERS MEETING MINUTES

Draft Minutes of the 2019, 15th ANNUAL MEMBERS MEETING of the UK Spill Association

19 March 2019

1. The 15th Annual General Meeting of the UK Spill Association was held at Watermen’s Hall, London, on Tuesday 26th February 2019.

2. The meeting opened at 1810hrs. The co chair M Orr welcomed 20 member companies, a total of 43 members and guests. No apologies. The minutes of the 2018 Annual Members Meeting were approved, proposed by A Crawford, and seconded by A Garside.

3. The chairman thanked members for attending, and announced that R Proctor was standing down as co chair. The Board had appointed L Barber as a replacement, and asked Members to approve, all were in favour. The Board had also proposed that the ongoing Board remain at 5 members, after the retirement of A Crawford, and P Rayner. This was approved by the members. The Chairman then extended his thanks on behalf of the members for both the services of R Proctor, and also A Crawford and P Rayner. The Chairman proposed that contract with the Executive Director should be extended to end 2019, which was approved by members.

4. The Accounts for 2018-19 will be circulated with the Minutes.

5. The Executive Director briefly reported on the Association’s activities in 2018-19, looking forward to 2020. The merger of the Accreditation Scheme with ISAA is underway and the new joint entity ISAS has been approved by the MCA. In 2019, UKSpill will again take a stand at Seawork in June, and Contamination Expo in September. In addition, the Association is planning a 2 day Inland Spill Conference at the Fire Service College later in the year..The Chairman then opened the Meeting for discussion by Members – No other issues were raised.
6. Any other business – RM noted that again OAMPS had kindly sponsored the Awards and the drinks reception after the Annual Meeting.
7. Meeting closed at 1840hrs.

RMM 180316

Full Story >>

MAY MEMBER NEWS UPDATE



To: Members of the UK Spill Association
21st May 2019
• BEST PRACTICE GUIDE FOR SPILL RESPONDERS

The newly formed ISAS group, combining the UK Spill Contractors Accreditation Scheme with the ISAA Scheme, plans to launch a Best Practice Guide for Spill Responders. The work preparing the Guide is being carried by ISAS Steering Group member, Shirley Miles. The Guide is expected to be in circulation by the Autumn, and aims to obtain approval from all the UK and Eire Environmental Agencies. The Guide will then be launched at the UKSpill19 Conference to be held at the Fire Service College in November (dates to be confirmed).

• NEW – RESPONDER TRAINING EVENT – CASTLE ARCHDALE, NORTHERN IRELAND
As part of the merger between the UK Scheme and ISAA to form ISAS, the annual training event at Castle Archdale, in Northern Ireland is open to members of the UK Scheme. The 2 day event, over 25-26 September will cover Ground water, Fresh Water, and Heating Oil spills with a training exercise included, see details in Events on the UKSpill Home Page. Contact info@spillaccreditation.org for bookings.

• UKSPILL19 CONFERENCE

The plan is for this new event to be held at the Fire Service College, to launch the new Strategy and a Best Practice Guide for the Spill Industry. The event will be open to both members and the public, a draft programme will be launched to members shortly. Contact info@ukspill.org for more information.

• INTERSPILL 2021 VENUE ANNOUNCED

Interspill is established as the leading European Spill Conference and Exhibition, and takes place every 3 years as part of a triennial series with Spillcon in Australia and IOSC in the United States. The Interspill Committee, which is chaired by Richard Proctor, a Director of the UK Spill Association, has decided to return to Amsterdam for 2021. The event will be held at the RAI, and dates will be announced shortly. For further details www.interspill.org

• UKSPILL AT SEAWORK 2019 OVER 11-13 JUNE
UKSpill is again hosting a stand (A77) at Seawork in Southampton, over 11-13 June, with Darcy Group and Lamor UK. The event is free to enter click on -https://www.seawork.com/visit-and-whats-on/why-visit?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI7uLnjeys4gIVxPZRCh1eAgPQEAAYASAAEgJeNPD_BwE

• UKSPILL AND ISAS AT CONTAMINATION EXPO, NEC 11-12 SEPTEMBER
The UKSpill stand at the Contamination Expo this year will feature our new development with ISAS. Free Tickets for the event can be obtained by clicking on http://www.contaminationexpo.com

Full Story >>

CASTLE ARCHDALE, NI TRAINING EVENT 25-26 SEPTEMBER

Provisional Agenda for Castle Archdale
25th – 26th September 2019

25th September

0830 – 0900 Registration at Castle Archdale
0900 – 0915 General Introduction

Morning Session devoted to Domestic Heating Oil Spills

0915 – 1100 Smell of oil in the house – actions and solutions
Site investigations. Air sampling
Keeping the customer informed. At what point do you stop.
Dealing with insurance companies, loss adjusters and assessors
Can the accreditation scheme Code of Practice help?
1100 – 1115 Tea/Coffee
1115 – 1200 Looking in detail at specific treatment methods –
Dig & dump, vacuum extraction, bioremediation, air sparging etc
1200 – 1230 Dealing with contaminated ground water
1230 – 1300 Taking both soil and liquid samples.
1300 – 1345 Lunch break

Afternoon Session devoted to Surface Water Spills

1345 – 1430 Types and use of oil absorbents
1430 – 1500 Oil retention booms – types, materials and use
1500 – 1530 Oil skimmers – types and use
1530 – 1545 Tea/Coffee
1545 – 1615 Ancillary equipment – emergency holding tanks, pumps,
oil/water separators
1615 – 1700 General discussion. New developments. Questions & answers

End of lectures for the day

1800 -1900 Accreditation meeting at Manor House Country Hotel
1915 (Optional) Assemble on “Lady of the Lake” for dinner with possible after dinner speaker



Accommodation is available in the area or accommodation can be booked at reduced rates at The Manor House Country Hotel, Enniskillen. This is a country house hotel which stands in its own grounds bordering Lough Erne. Partners would be welcome at the evening dinner on “Lady of the Lake” but places are limited so an early indication of places required would be necessary. As further background Castle Archdale is a very large country park with Tea Rooms also bordering Lough Erne. It is situated about 4 miles from the Hotel.






26th September
Day devoted to surface water spills – part in lecture room but majority practical “hands-on” use of equipment on site.

0900 – 0915 Meet in lecture room at Castle Archdale
0915 – 1000 Surface water clean-up techniques. What is the plan?
Health & Safety briefing and risk assessments.
1000 – 1500 Divide into teams – max. 10 people per team. During the day each team will: Exercise One on stream
Carry out site risk assessment
Develop a clean-up plan based on a given scenario
Build an in-stream dam/interceptor
Deploy small size oil retention boom
Deploy absorbents
Use a shallow water skimmer with pump
Set up recovered product holding tank
Exercise Two on Lough
Carry out site risk assessment. Develop a clean-up plan
Deploy oil retention boom around sunken vessel, this may involve deployment of anchors. Boat handler must have an appropriate ticket
Set up skimming operation
Pump recovered product into holding tank
Exercise Three on lough shore
Carry out site risk assessment. Develop a clean-up plan
Deploy shore (beach) seal boom and any other required boom
Set up an oil recovery operation
Use beach flushing equipment if available
Set up recovered product holding tank

NOTE: Each team will be required to fully “wrap-up” equipment after each exercise
Lunch is NOT provided but, depending on work progress, a lunch break may be taken during the day. The site Tea Rooms will be available for food if required.

1515 – 1600 Re-assemble in Lecture Room for debrief and comment.

END OF COURSE


Full Story >>

INTERSPILL 2021 VENUE ANNOUNCED



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
20th May 2019

The Interspill Committee have decided to hold the next event of this triennial series, Interspill 2021, at RAI, in Amsterdam, Netherlands, the dates will be confirmed shortly.

Richard Proctor, Chairman of Interspill, said that “the decision was unanimous and reflected the importance of locating the event at a European city, where the oil, marine and environment industries come together, adding that the success of the event held in Amsterdam in 2015 was significant factor in this decision.” The Committee plan to announce its preliminary Conference and Events programme in autumn 2019.

Spill Response Group Holland, (SRGH) have agreed to host the event, as members of the Interspill Committee. SRGH Chairman, Edwin Stolk, welcomed the decision and is delighted to host the event in Amsterdam again. Interspill is contracted with Reed Exhibitions to partner and organise the 2021 event.

Interspill is the leading European oil spill conference and exhibition, and will build on the success of Interspill 2018 in London, and previous events since its launch in 2000. Interspill will continue to act as a technical forum to review past and consider future spills, and support the networking that this group depends on. Interspill 2018 was co located with Oceanology International, at Excel in London, and attracted over 1200 delegates, visitors and exhibitors from over 70 countries, . Proceedings of the 2018 Conference, Workshops and Seminars are published on the Interspill website www.interspill.org

Interspill 2021 will reflect the strength and breadth of its Committee, which includes the European Spill industry trade organisations, NOSCA, SYCOPOL, UKSPILL and SRGH, together with the European Maritime Safety Agency, (EMSA), IPIECA, ITOPF. the International Maritime Organization, (IMO), the International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds, (IOPC Funds), France’s Centre of Documentation, Research and Experimentation on Accidental Water Pollution (CEDRE), and Oil Spill Response Ltd (OSRL).
For further information see www.interspill.org and contact Roger Mabbott, Director, Interspill Ltd at info@interspill.org” or on +443334441890
(For information on RAI Amsterdam - http://www.rai.nl/en/
(For information on SRGH – http://srgh.nl/
For information on Reed Exhibitions - http://www.reedexpo.com/
Full Story >>

ISAA - CASTLE ARCHDALE TRAINING COURSE 25-26 SEPTEMBER

Provisional Agenda for Castle Archdale
25th – 26th September 2019

25th September

0830 – 0900 Registration at Castle Archdale
0900 – 0915 General Introduction

Morning Session devoted to Domestic Heating Oil Spills

0915 – 1100 Smell of oil in the house – actions and solutions
Site investigations. Air sampling
Keeping the customer informed. At what point do you stop.
Dealing with insurance companies, loss adjusters and assessors
Can the accreditation scheme Code of Practice help?
1100 – 1115 Tea/Coffee
1115 – 1200 Looking in detail at specific treatment methods –
Dig & dump, vacuum extraction, bioremediation, air sparging etc
1200 – 1230 Dealing with contaminated ground water
1230 – 1300 Taking both soil and liquid samples.
1300 – 1345 Lunch break

Afternoon Session devoted to Surface Water Spills

1345 – 1430 Types and use of oil absorbents
1430 – 1500 Oil retention booms – types, materials and use
1500 – 1530 Oil skimmers – types and use
1530 – 1545 Tea/Coffee
1545 – 1615 Ancillary equipment – emergency holding tanks, pumps,
oil/water separators
1615 – 1700 General discussion. New developments. Questions & answers

End of lectures for the day

1800 -1900 Accreditation meeting at Manor House Country Hotel
1915 (Optional) Assemble on “Lady of the Lake” for dinner with possible after dinner speaker



Accommodation is available in the area or accommodation can be booked at reduced rates at The Manor House Country Hotel, Enniskillen. This is a country house hotel which stands in its own grounds bordering Lough Erne. Partners would be welcome at the evening dinner on “Lady of the Lake” but places are limited so an early indication of places required would be necessary. As further background Castle Archdale is a very large country park with Tea Rooms also bordering Lough Erne. It is situated about 4 miles from the Hotel.






26th September
Day devoted to surface water spills – part in lecture room but majority practical “hands-on” use of equipment on site.

0900 – 0915 Meet in lecture room at Castle Archdale
0915 – 1000 Surface water clean-up techniques. What is the plan?
Health & Safety briefing and risk assessments.
1000 – 1500 Divide into teams – max. 10 people per team. During the day each team will: Exercise One on stream
Carry out site risk assessment
Develop a clean-up plan based on a given scenario
Build an in-stream dam/interceptor
Deploy small size oil retention boom
Deploy absorbents
Use a shallow water skimmer with pump
Set up recovered product holding tank
Exercise Two on Lough
Carry out site risk assessment. Develop a clean-up plan
Deploy oil retention boom around sunken vessel, this may involve deployment of anchors. Boat handler must have an appropriate ticket
Set up skimming operation
Pump recovered product into holding tank
Exercise Three on lough shore
Carry out site risk assessment. Develop a clean-up plan
Deploy shore (beach) seal boom and any other required boom
Set up an oil recovery operation
Use beach flushing equipment if available
Set up recovered product holding tank

NOTE: Each team will be required to fully “wrap-up” equipment after each exercise
Lunch is NOT provided but, depending on work progress, a lunch break may be taken during the day. The site Tea Rooms will be available for food if required.

1515 – 1600 Re-assemble in Lecture Room for debrief and comment.

END OF COURSE

Full Story >>

2019 NOSCA SEMINAR 14-18 OCTOBER

"NOSCA Seminar 2019"
"Preliminary program"
"Monday, Oct 14th
Arrival at Trondheim airport
16.00 Bus to Frøya
19.00 Check in at Hotel Frøya
20.00 Welcome Evening: unformal dinner
Tuesday, Oct 15th
Conference Day at Hotel Frøya
09.00 Official opening of the NOSCA seminar Christian Testman, NOSCA chairman
09.10 Introduction of the seminar program and participants Trond Gulbrandsøy, seminar chairman
09.30 – 10.30 Tomorrow’s oil spill response solutions
10.30 – 11.00 Coffee break
11.00 – 11.45 Integrated solutions for combating oil spill response
11.45 – 12.30 Oil spill response strategies, scaling response from smaller spills to large spills and back
12.30 – 12.45 Summing up, Q & A
12.45 – 14.00 Lunch
14.00 Visit of NOFO`s in-field depot
19.00 Dinner at the hotel
Wednesday, Oct 16th
Exercise Day - on board «Trondheimsfjord 1»
08.00 Departure from Sistranda (hotel area)
(take your luggage with you as we will not return to the hotel)
Observation of NOFO exercise «Frohavet»"

"15.00 Return to Trondheim by boat
18.00 Check in at Hotel Augustin, Trondheim
19.00 Dinner at Hotel Augustin"
"Thursday, Oct 17th"
"Conference Day at Hotel Augustin
08.30 – 10.00 Utilizing existing resources in a cost-efficient way
10.00 – 10.30 Coffee break
10.30 – 12.00 Standardization in Oil Spill Response across the boarders
12.00 – 12.15 Summing up, Q & A
12.15 – 13.30 Lunch
14.00 – 16.00 Mini exhibition: visit NOSCA members at their stands Light snacks available
19.00 Farewell Dinner
(This is a formal dinner, please dress accordingly)
Friday, Oct 18th"
"Event Day"
"This day can be booked additionally at www.nosca.no."
Full Story >>

PRESS RELEASE FOR ISAS CONTRACT WITH THE MCA



INTERNATIONAL SPILL ACCREDITATION SCHEME (ISAS) approved by MCA for the new Marine Standard
For release, Monday 29 October 2018
The International Spill Accreditation Scheme (ISAS) a joint venture between the UK Spill Association and ISAA, has after approval of its Scheme by the UK Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA), now concluded a formal agreement with the MCA.
The agreement was signed on 16th October 2018 and represents the beginning of a cooperation between the UK Spill Association, through its UK Spill Contractor’s Accreditation Scheme, and ISAA, the International Spill Accreditation Association Scheme. This brings together over 60 Oil Spill Responder Organisations (OSRO’s) in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
The new UK National Standard for Marine OSRO’s comes into force on the 1st of November 2018, marking the beginning of a one-year grace period for providers of Tier 2 response services and their recipients, during which time previous marine accreditations will continue to be recognised. Under the MCA's OPRC Guidelines for Ports and OPRED's Guidance Notes for Preparing Oil Pollution Emergency Plans, from the 1st November 2019 OSRO’s delivering or intending to deliver Tier 2 response services to ports, harbours, marine terminals and offshore installations will be required to be in compliance with the new Standard . This standard replaces Marine Accreditations previously in place. For details of the standard go to: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/715009/UK_National_Standard_for_Marine_Oil_Spill_Response_Organisations.pdf
Mark Orr, co chair of the UK Spill Association said “The ISAS partnership brings the UK Spill Accreditation and ISAA Schemes together under one banner. Henceforth, apart from Accreditation to the new Marine Standard, ISAS will offer Accreditation of Inland Spill Response based on high standards that have successfully been operated for over a decade by both UKSpill and ISAA Schemes. With the increasing need to protect our environment from the harm that oil spillages can cause, basic spill response procedures audited by an experienced accreditation body provide assurance of standards, competence and capability.”
Further information can be obtained from the Scheme Manager, John Dawes - email johnadawes@btinternet.com or info@ukspill.org
For further information the UK Spill Association see www.ukspill.org contact info@ukspill.org or on +443334441890

Full Story >>

2019 Annual members meeeting, dinner & awards

UK SPILL ASSOCIATION – 2019 ANNUAL MEMBERS MEETING

NOTICE TO MEMBERS

To be held on Wednesday 26th February 2019 at the Watermen’s Hall, London

The Annual Meeting commences at 1800hrs, Drinks Reception at 1830hrs, followed by the Dinner at 1900hrs
BOOK AT £95 PP - info@ukspill.org

SPONSORED BY OAMPS HAZARDOUS INDUSTRIES
Full Story >>

2018 ANNUAL MEMBERS MEETING MINUTES

Minutes of the 2018, 14th ANNUAL MEMBERS MEETING of the UK Spill Association

16 March 2018

The 14th Annual General Meeting of the UK Spill Association was held at Excel, London Docklands, London, on Wednesday, 14th March 2018.

1. The meeting opened at 1630hrs. The co chair R Proctor welcomed 7 member companies, a total of 19 members and guests. Apologies were received from M Orr of LCM. The minutes of the 2017 Annual Members Meeting were approved, proposed by A Crawford, and seconded by I Peach.
2. The chairman thanked members for voting for the election of a new Director, and announced that L Barber, of Braemar Response had been duly elected with 50% of eligible members voting. The other candidate, N Ashworth of RAW Group, was appointed to the Technical Committee on the recommendation of co chair The Chairman proposed that contract with the Executive Director should be extended to 2019, which was approved by members.
3. The Accounts for 2016-17 will be circulated with the Minutes.
6. The Executive Director reported on the Association’s activities in 2017-18, looking forward to 2019. The changes to company structure reported in 2017 are being implemented. In August 2017, a move was made to merge the Accreditation Scheme with ISAA, which has been agreed by the Board, and an agreement signed, this is expected to complete by the end of 2018. Membership is stable, and a review is being undertaken to understand members needs. In 2018, UKSpill will again take a stand at Seawork in June, supported by 4 companies. Interspill early results show a reduction in exhibition by 30%, but with the same number of companies, and plans will start for the 2021 event in the summer. An Annual Dinner will be held in the summer, dates to follow, as will an Inland Spill Seminar at the Fire Service College in November.

7. The Chairman then opened the Meeting for discussion by Members – S Connolly queried the absence of TAP funding for the industry, RM replied, noting that the scale of our groups was below the level considered economic for the government to support. No other issues were raised.
8. Any other business – RM noted that again OAMPS had kindly sponsored the drinks reception after the Annual; Meeting. none was raised.
9. Meeting closed at 1650hrs.



Full Story >>

Spill Industry Seminars at InterSpill 2018

With just over three weeks to go, UKspill is host again for the Interspill Conference & Exhibition to be held at Excel, in London’s Dockland over 13 to 15 March 2018.
Full Story >>

More news >>

Upcoming Events

NOSCA SEMINAR 14-18 OCTOBER 2019 TRONDHEIM

"Dear NOSCA friend,
It is our pleasure to invite you to join us for the 24th International Oil Spill Technology Seminar from 14th to 18th October 2019. This year's seminar will take place on the beautiful Frøya island as well as in Trondheim, Norway.
The seminar has become a tradition after 25 years:
The success of the NOSCA seminar is based on the combination of two important points: The conference includes exchange of knowledge and practical demonstrations of oil spill technology. Knowing this, our main concern has always been to invite professionals from around the world to come together, to network, share best practice and engage in open communication.
This years conference will cover the following topics:
- Tomorrow's oil spill response solutions
- Integrated solutions for combating oil spill response
- Oil spill response strategies, scaling response from smaller spill to large spills and back
- Utilizing existing resources in a cost-efficient way
- Standardization in Oil Spill Response across boarders
Seminar schedule:
In the afternoon of Monday october 14th, your arrival day, a bus will bring you from Trondheim city / airport to the island of Frøya, where NOFO (The Norwegian Clean Seas Association for Operating Companies) will carry out their large-scale, one week, exercise “Frohavet”.
Tuesday, October 15th will start with our conference program, followed by a visit of NOFO’s in-field depot, where recourses from several depos are mobilized.
Wednesday, October 16th is the exercise day and you will get the opportunity to observe NOFO`s exercise “Frohavet” onboard from a high speed-passenger vessel.
NOFO will exercise all their barriers in an oil spill scenario where an exploration well has a blow out several nautical miles south of Frøya. The different barriers, with resources, will be expressed with focus on tactical response and correct use of the resources. The intermunicipal OSR teams will be a part of the exercise and will mobilize to respond the several locations to limit land spills and to clean up the “oil” that reachec the shoreline. After the exercise the vessel will bring all delegates back to Trondheim.
Thursday, October 17th will be our second conference day where the rest of the topics on the agenda will be presented and discussed.
On Friday, October 18th, there will be an opportunity to to experience the beautiful and wild nature in the vicinity of Trondheim. Further information on the event and excursions available on Friday will be posted in May. Please sign up for this extraordinary day when registering in for the seminar on www.nosca.no. The program with more details regarding the exercise will be published here and updated continuously.
The seminar fee of NOK 19 500,- will cover all expenses related to the seminar, including hotel accommodations, all meals and local transport.
If you have any questions please feel free to contact us. We look forward to seeing you in Norway in October."

Full Story >>

2019 ANNUAL MEMBERS MEETING MINUTES

Draft Minutes of the 2019, 15th ANNUAL MEMBERS MEETING of the UK Spill Association

19 March 2019

1. The 15th Annual General Meeting of the UK Spill Association was held at Watermen’s Hall, London, on Tuesday 26th February 2019.

2. The meeting opened at 1810hrs. The co chair M Orr welcomed 20 member companies, a total of 43 members and guests. No apologies. The minutes of the 2018 Annual Members Meeting were approved, proposed by A Crawford, and seconded by A Garside.

3. The chairman thanked members for attending, and announced that R Proctor was standing down as co chair. The Board had appointed L Barber as a replacement, and asked Members to approve, all were in favour. The Board had also proposed that the ongoing Board remain at 5 members, after the retirement of A Crawford, and P Rayner. This was approved by the members. The Chairman then extended his thanks on behalf of the members for both the services of R Proctor, and also A Crawford and P Rayner. The Chairman proposed that contract with the Executive Director should be extended to end 2019, which was approved by members.

4. The Accounts for 2018-19 will be circulated with the Minutes.

5. The Executive Director briefly reported on the Association’s activities in 2018-19, looking forward to 2020. The merger of the Accreditation Scheme with ISAA is underway and the new joint entity ISAS has been approved by the MCA. In 2019, UKSpill will again take a stand at Seawork in June, and Contamination Expo in September. In addition, the Association is planning a 2 day Inland Spill Conference at the Fire Service College later in the year..The Chairman then opened the Meeting for discussion by Members – No other issues were raised.
6. Any other business – RM noted that again OAMPS had kindly sponsored the Awards and the drinks reception after the Annual Meeting.
7. Meeting closed at 1840hrs.

RMM 180316

Full Story >>

MAY MEMBER NEWS UPDATE



To: Members of the UK Spill Association
21st May 2019
• BEST PRACTICE GUIDE FOR SPILL RESPONDERS

The newly formed ISAS group, combining the UK Spill Contractors Accreditation Scheme with the ISAA Scheme, plans to launch a Best Practice Guide for Spill Responders. The work preparing the Guide is being carried by ISAS Steering Group member, Shirley Miles. The Guide is expected to be in circulation by the Autumn, and aims to obtain approval from all the UK and Eire Environmental Agencies. The Guide will then be launched at the UKSpill19 Conference to be held at the Fire Service College in November (dates to be confirmed).

• NEW – RESPONDER TRAINING EVENT – CASTLE ARCHDALE, NORTHERN IRELAND
As part of the merger between the UK Scheme and ISAA to form ISAS, the annual training event at Castle Archdale, in Northern Ireland is open to members of the UK Scheme. The 2 day event, over 25-26 September will cover Ground water, Fresh Water, and Heating Oil spills with a training exercise included, see details in Events on the UKSpill Home Page. Contact info@spillaccreditation.org for bookings.

• UKSPILL19 CONFERENCE

The plan is for this new event to be held at the Fire Service College, to launch the new Strategy and a Best Practice Guide for the Spill Industry. The event will be open to both members and the public, a draft programme will be launched to members shortly. Contact info@ukspill.org for more information.

• INTERSPILL 2021 VENUE ANNOUNCED

Interspill is established as the leading European Spill Conference and Exhibition, and takes place every 3 years as part of a triennial series with Spillcon in Australia and IOSC in the United States. The Interspill Committee, which is chaired by Richard Proctor, a Director of the UK Spill Association, has decided to return to Amsterdam for 2021. The event will be held at the RAI, and dates will be announced shortly. For further details www.interspill.org

• UKSPILL AT SEAWORK 2019 OVER 11-13 JUNE
UKSpill is again hosting a stand (A77) at Seawork in Southampton, over 11-13 June, with Darcy Group and Lamor UK. The event is free to enter click on -https://www.seawork.com/visit-and-whats-on/why-visit?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI7uLnjeys4gIVxPZRCh1eAgPQEAAYASAAEgJeNPD_BwE

• UKSPILL AND ISAS AT CONTAMINATION EXPO, NEC 11-12 SEPTEMBER
The UKSpill stand at the Contamination Expo this year will feature our new development with ISAS. Free Tickets for the event can be obtained by clicking on http://www.contaminationexpo.com

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CASTLE ARCHDALE, NI TRAINING EVENT 25-26 SEPTEMBER

Provisional Agenda for Castle Archdale
25th – 26th September 2019

25th September

0830 – 0900 Registration at Castle Archdale
0900 – 0915 General Introduction

Morning Session devoted to Domestic Heating Oil Spills

0915 – 1100 Smell of oil in the house – actions and solutions
Site investigations. Air sampling
Keeping the customer informed. At what point do you stop.
Dealing with insurance companies, loss adjusters and assessors
Can the accreditation scheme Code of Practice help?
1100 – 1115 Tea/Coffee
1115 – 1200 Looking in detail at specific treatment methods –
Dig & dump, vacuum extraction, bioremediation, air sparging etc
1200 – 1230 Dealing with contaminated ground water
1230 – 1300 Taking both soil and liquid samples.
1300 – 1345 Lunch break

Afternoon Session devoted to Surface Water Spills

1345 – 1430 Types and use of oil absorbents
1430 – 1500 Oil retention booms – types, materials and use
1500 – 1530 Oil skimmers – types and use
1530 – 1545 Tea/Coffee
1545 – 1615 Ancillary equipment – emergency holding tanks, pumps,
oil/water separators
1615 – 1700 General discussion. New developments. Questions & answers

End of lectures for the day

1800 -1900 Accreditation meeting at Manor House Country Hotel
1915 (Optional) Assemble on “Lady of the Lake” for dinner with possible after dinner speaker



Accommodation is available in the area or accommodation can be booked at reduced rates at The Manor House Country Hotel, Enniskillen. This is a country house hotel which stands in its own grounds bordering Lough Erne. Partners would be welcome at the evening dinner on “Lady of the Lake” but places are limited so an early indication of places required would be necessary. As further background Castle Archdale is a very large country park with Tea Rooms also bordering Lough Erne. It is situated about 4 miles from the Hotel.






26th September
Day devoted to surface water spills – part in lecture room but majority practical “hands-on” use of equipment on site.

0900 – 0915 Meet in lecture room at Castle Archdale
0915 – 1000 Surface water clean-up techniques. What is the plan?
Health & Safety briefing and risk assessments.
1000 – 1500 Divide into teams – max. 10 people per team. During the day each team will: Exercise One on stream
Carry out site risk assessment
Develop a clean-up plan based on a given scenario
Build an in-stream dam/interceptor
Deploy small size oil retention boom
Deploy absorbents
Use a shallow water skimmer with pump
Set up recovered product holding tank
Exercise Two on Lough
Carry out site risk assessment. Develop a clean-up plan
Deploy oil retention boom around sunken vessel, this may involve deployment of anchors. Boat handler must have an appropriate ticket
Set up skimming operation
Pump recovered product into holding tank
Exercise Three on lough shore
Carry out site risk assessment. Develop a clean-up plan
Deploy shore (beach) seal boom and any other required boom
Set up an oil recovery operation
Use beach flushing equipment if available
Set up recovered product holding tank

NOTE: Each team will be required to fully “wrap-up” equipment after each exercise
Lunch is NOT provided but, depending on work progress, a lunch break may be taken during the day. The site Tea Rooms will be available for food if required.

1515 – 1600 Re-assemble in Lecture Room for debrief and comment.

END OF COURSE


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INTERSPILL 2021 VENUE ANNOUNCED



FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
20th May 2019

The Interspill Committee have decided to hold the next event of this triennial series, Interspill 2021, at RAI, in Amsterdam, Netherlands, the dates will be confirmed shortly.

Richard Proctor, Chairman of Interspill, said that “the decision was unanimous and reflected the importance of locating the event at a European city, where the oil, marine and environment industries come together, adding that the success of the event held in Amsterdam in 2015 was significant factor in this decision.” The Committee plan to announce its preliminary Conference and Events programme in autumn 2019.

Spill Response Group Holland, (SRGH) have agreed to host the event, as members of the Interspill Committee. SRGH Chairman, Edwin Stolk, welcomed the decision and is delighted to host the event in Amsterdam again. Interspill is contracted with Reed Exhibitions to partner and organise the 2021 event.

Interspill is the leading European oil spill conference and exhibition, and will build on the success of Interspill 2018 in London, and previous events since its launch in 2000. Interspill will continue to act as a technical forum to review past and consider future spills, and support the networking that this group depends on. Interspill 2018 was co located with Oceanology International, at Excel in London, and attracted over 1200 delegates, visitors and exhibitors from over 70 countries, . Proceedings of the 2018 Conference, Workshops and Seminars are published on the Interspill website www.interspill.org

Interspill 2021 will reflect the strength and breadth of its Committee, which includes the European Spill industry trade organisations, NOSCA, SYCOPOL, UKSPILL and SRGH, together with the European Maritime Safety Agency, (EMSA), IPIECA, ITOPF. the International Maritime Organization, (IMO), the International Oil Pollution Compensation Funds, (IOPC Funds), France’s Centre of Documentation, Research and Experimentation on Accidental Water Pollution (CEDRE), and Oil Spill Response Ltd (OSRL).
For further information see www.interspill.org and contact Roger Mabbott, Director, Interspill Ltd at info@interspill.org” or on +443334441890
(For information on RAI Amsterdam - http://www.rai.nl/en/
(For information on SRGH – http://srgh.nl/
For information on Reed Exhibitions - http://www.reedexpo.com/
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ISAA - CASTLE ARCHDALE TRAINING COURSE 25-26 SEPTEMBER

Provisional Agenda for Castle Archdale
25th – 26th September 2019

25th September

0830 – 0900 Registration at Castle Archdale
0900 – 0915 General Introduction

Morning Session devoted to Domestic Heating Oil Spills

0915 – 1100 Smell of oil in the house – actions and solutions
Site investigations. Air sampling
Keeping the customer informed. At what point do you stop.
Dealing with insurance companies, loss adjusters and assessors
Can the accreditation scheme Code of Practice help?
1100 – 1115 Tea/Coffee
1115 – 1200 Looking in detail at specific treatment methods –
Dig & dump, vacuum extraction, bioremediation, air sparging etc
1200 – 1230 Dealing with contaminated ground water
1230 – 1300 Taking both soil and liquid samples.
1300 – 1345 Lunch break

Afternoon Session devoted to Surface Water Spills

1345 – 1430 Types and use of oil absorbents
1430 – 1500 Oil retention booms – types, materials and use
1500 – 1530 Oil skimmers – types and use
1530 – 1545 Tea/Coffee
1545 – 1615 Ancillary equipment – emergency holding tanks, pumps,
oil/water separators
1615 – 1700 General discussion. New developments. Questions & answers

End of lectures for the day

1800 -1900 Accreditation meeting at Manor House Country Hotel
1915 (Optional) Assemble on “Lady of the Lake” for dinner with possible after dinner speaker



Accommodation is available in the area or accommodation can be booked at reduced rates at The Manor House Country Hotel, Enniskillen. This is a country house hotel which stands in its own grounds bordering Lough Erne. Partners would be welcome at the evening dinner on “Lady of the Lake” but places are limited so an early indication of places required would be necessary. As further background Castle Archdale is a very large country park with Tea Rooms also bordering Lough Erne. It is situated about 4 miles from the Hotel.






26th September
Day devoted to surface water spills – part in lecture room but majority practical “hands-on” use of equipment on site.

0900 – 0915 Meet in lecture room at Castle Archdale
0915 – 1000 Surface water clean-up techniques. What is the plan?
Health & Safety briefing and risk assessments.
1000 – 1500 Divide into teams – max. 10 people per team. During the day each team will: Exercise One on stream
Carry out site risk assessment
Develop a clean-up plan based on a given scenario
Build an in-stream dam/interceptor
Deploy small size oil retention boom
Deploy absorbents
Use a shallow water skimmer with pump
Set up recovered product holding tank
Exercise Two on Lough
Carry out site risk assessment. Develop a clean-up plan
Deploy oil retention boom around sunken vessel, this may involve deployment of anchors. Boat handler must have an appropriate ticket
Set up skimming operation
Pump recovered product into holding tank
Exercise Three on lough shore
Carry out site risk assessment. Develop a clean-up plan
Deploy shore (beach) seal boom and any other required boom
Set up an oil recovery operation
Use beach flushing equipment if available
Set up recovered product holding tank

NOTE: Each team will be required to fully “wrap-up” equipment after each exercise
Lunch is NOT provided but, depending on work progress, a lunch break may be taken during the day. The site Tea Rooms will be available for food if required.

1515 – 1600 Re-assemble in Lecture Room for debrief and comment.

END OF COURSE

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2019 NOSCA SEMINAR 14-18 OCTOBER

"NOSCA Seminar 2019"
"Preliminary program"
"Monday, Oct 14th
Arrival at Trondheim airport
16.00 Bus to Frøya
19.00 Check in at Hotel Frøya
20.00 Welcome Evening: unformal dinner
Tuesday, Oct 15th
Conference Day at Hotel Frøya
09.00 Official opening of the NOSCA seminar Christian Testman, NOSCA chairman
09.10 Introduction of the seminar program and participants Trond Gulbrandsøy, seminar chairman
09.30 – 10.30 Tomorrow’s oil spill response solutions
10.30 – 11.00 Coffee break
11.00 – 11.45 Integrated solutions for combating oil spill response
11.45 – 12.30 Oil spill response strategies, scaling response from smaller spills to large spills and back
12.30 – 12.45 Summing up, Q & A
12.45 – 14.00 Lunch
14.00 Visit of NOFO`s in-field depot
19.00 Dinner at the hotel
Wednesday, Oct 16th
Exercise Day - on board «Trondheimsfjord 1»
08.00 Departure from Sistranda (hotel area)
(take your luggage with you as we will not return to the hotel)
Observation of NOFO exercise «Frohavet»"

"15.00 Return to Trondheim by boat
18.00 Check in at Hotel Augustin, Trondheim
19.00 Dinner at Hotel Augustin"
"Thursday, Oct 17th"
"Conference Day at Hotel Augustin
08.30 – 10.00 Utilizing existing resources in a cost-efficient way
10.00 – 10.30 Coffee break
10.30 – 12.00 Standardization in Oil Spill Response across the boarders
12.00 – 12.15 Summing up, Q & A
12.15 – 13.30 Lunch
14.00 – 16.00 Mini exhibition: visit NOSCA members at their stands Light snacks available
19.00 Farewell Dinner
(This is a formal dinner, please dress accordingly)
Friday, Oct 18th"
"Event Day"
"This day can be booked additionally at www.nosca.no."
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PRESS RELEASE FOR ISAS CONTRACT WITH THE MCA



INTERNATIONAL SPILL ACCREDITATION SCHEME (ISAS) approved by MCA for the new Marine Standard
For release, Monday 29 October 2018
The International Spill Accreditation Scheme (ISAS) a joint venture between the UK Spill Association and ISAA, has after approval of its Scheme by the UK Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA), now concluded a formal agreement with the MCA.
The agreement was signed on 16th October 2018 and represents the beginning of a cooperation between the UK Spill Association, through its UK Spill Contractor’s Accreditation Scheme, and ISAA, the International Spill Accreditation Association Scheme. This brings together over 60 Oil Spill Responder Organisations (OSRO’s) in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
The new UK National Standard for Marine OSRO’s comes into force on the 1st of November 2018, marking the beginning of a one-year grace period for providers of Tier 2 response services and their recipients, during which time previous marine accreditations will continue to be recognised. Under the MCA's OPRC Guidelines for Ports and OPRED's Guidance Notes for Preparing Oil Pollution Emergency Plans, from the 1st November 2019 OSRO’s delivering or intending to deliver Tier 2 response services to ports, harbours, marine terminals and offshore installations will be required to be in compliance with the new Standard . This standard replaces Marine Accreditations previously in place. For details of the standard go to: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/715009/UK_National_Standard_for_Marine_Oil_Spill_Response_Organisations.pdf
Mark Orr, co chair of the UK Spill Association said “The ISAS partnership brings the UK Spill Accreditation and ISAA Schemes together under one banner. Henceforth, apart from Accreditation to the new Marine Standard, ISAS will offer Accreditation of Inland Spill Response based on high standards that have successfully been operated for over a decade by both UKSpill and ISAA Schemes. With the increasing need to protect our environment from the harm that oil spillages can cause, basic spill response procedures audited by an experienced accreditation body provide assurance of standards, competence and capability.”
Further information can be obtained from the Scheme Manager, John Dawes - email johnadawes@btinternet.com or info@ukspill.org
For further information the UK Spill Association see www.ukspill.org contact info@ukspill.org or on +443334441890

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2019 Annual members meeeting, dinner & awards

UK SPILL ASSOCIATION – 2019 ANNUAL MEMBERS MEETING

NOTICE TO MEMBERS

To be held on Wednesday 26th February 2019 at the Watermen’s Hall, London

The Annual Meeting commences at 1800hrs, Drinks Reception at 1830hrs, followed by the Dinner at 1900hrs
BOOK AT £95 PP - info@ukspill.org

SPONSORED BY OAMPS HAZARDOUS INDUSTRIES
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2018 ANNUAL MEMBERS MEETING MINUTES

Minutes of the 2018, 14th ANNUAL MEMBERS MEETING of the UK Spill Association

16 March 2018

The 14th Annual General Meeting of the UK Spill Association was held at Excel, London Docklands, London, on Wednesday, 14th March 2018.

1. The meeting opened at 1630hrs. The co chair R Proctor welcomed 7 member companies, a total of 19 members and guests. Apologies were received from M Orr of LCM. The minutes of the 2017 Annual Members Meeting were approved, proposed by A Crawford, and seconded by I Peach.
2. The chairman thanked members for voting for the election of a new Director, and announced that L Barber, of Braemar Response had been duly elected with 50% of eligible members voting. The other candidate, N Ashworth of RAW Group, was appointed to the Technical Committee on the recommendation of co chair The Chairman proposed that contract with the Executive Director should be extended to 2019, which was approved by members.
3. The Accounts for 2016-17 will be circulated with the Minutes.
6. The Executive Director reported on the Association’s activities in 2017-18, looking forward to 2019. The changes to company structure reported in 2017 are being implemented. In August 2017, a move was made to merge the Accreditation Scheme with ISAA, which has been agreed by the Board, and an agreement signed, this is expected to complete by the end of 2018. Membership is stable, and a review is being undertaken to understand members needs. In 2018, UKSpill will again take a stand at Seawork in June, supported by 4 companies. Interspill early results show a reduction in exhibition by 30%, but with the same number of companies, and plans will start for the 2021 event in the summer. An Annual Dinner will be held in the summer, dates to follow, as will an Inland Spill Seminar at the Fire Service College in November.

7. The Chairman then opened the Meeting for discussion by Members – S Connolly queried the absence of TAP funding for the industry, RM replied, noting that the scale of our groups was below the level considered economic for the government to support. No other issues were raised.
8. Any other business – RM noted that again OAMPS had kindly sponsored the drinks reception after the Annual; Meeting. none was raised.
9. Meeting closed at 1650hrs.



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Spill Industry Seminars at InterSpill 2018

With just over three weeks to go, UKspill is host again for the Interspill Conference & Exhibition to be held at Excel, in London’s Dockland over 13 to 15 March 2018.
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