The Alaska Oil Spill Technology Symposium, to be held March 6-7, will provide the latest in oil spill technology and research, as well as offer a place for professionals to collaborate.
The symposium will be held at the Birch Hill Country Ski Center, 101 Wilderness Drive and was organized by UAF’s Vice Chancellor of Research office, the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and the Oil Spill Recovery Institute.
Organizations such as UAF, ADEC, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, United States Coast Guard, Environmental Protection Agency, oil spill response organizations and industry will participate in this two-day event. Bringing these entities together will enhance information sharing and collaboration to help prevent oil spills and mitigate environmental damage when they occur.
Primary goals will be to gain a better understanding of roles, responsibilities, expectations, and emerging technologies to be used during a large response event. The symposium will inform state and federal on-scene coordinators and responders about the newest tools and research available, so they can better manage oil spills. Both OSCs and responders will learn about the capabilities and limitations of these emerging resources to streamline response decisions. Presentation topics will include: an overview of the incident command system; current and projected research programs; technological capabilities and limitations; challenges during typical response events, and future research needs.
The symposium has the added benefit of closing the gap between agencies and academia while enhancing resource protection. The university benefits by learning about existing agency programs and current knowledge gaps, which facilitates focused grant proposals that address current and future needs. Industry and agencies both benefit from the information exchange and connections that will be made and from promoting research that addresses their needs, while supporting graduate students who will be prepared to tackle the challenges of oil spill preparedness and response in Alaska after graduation.
The Alaska Oil Spill Technology Symposium will be a two-day event featuring presentations from graduate students and research faculty on March 6 and presentations from agencies, oil spill response organizations, and industry on March 7. A poster presentation session is planned for the afternoon of March 7.
Visit https://dec.alaska.gov/spar/perp/AOSTS.htm for more information, or contact Ashley Adamczak at (907) 451-2124 or Ashley.Adamczak@alaska.gov or Jessica Garron at (907) 474-7598 or jigarron@alaska.edu with questions.
