This project aimed to setup southern environmental incidents specialist teams with one team each in Kaohsiung area and Tainan area. Each team has 16 staffs with 3 staffs on duty at any time to provide round-clock on-scene emergency response actions, monitoring, analysis and recovery following the commands from Emergency Information Center for Toxic Substances. A total of 12 incidents responded in the jurisdiction area including air pollution incidents. Among these incidents, 6 incidents occurred in Kaohsiung City, 4 incidents occurred in Pingtung County and 2 incidents in Tainan City. This project completed the information communication, chemicals monitoring and detection, assisted the response actions for operating companies, and integration, coordination, confirmation, reporting, and materials sourcing for emergency response center. The work done on the monitoring and analysis for environmental incidents included analyses of air pollutants and toxic chemicals, sampling, monitoring, weather information collecting, and thermal hazard monitoring by infrared camera images. In addition, 8 simulated drills of air pollution incidents were done to meet contract requirement. The simulated drills aimed at using new air pollution monitoring equipment and following the environmental monitoring protocols. On the toxic incidents preparedness, 80 on-site visiting to operating facilities; 40 unannounced testing; 5 drills with local environmental bureaus; 32 EPA assigned drills on civilian mobilization, anti-terrorism, and environmental incidents; 254 reviews of toxic incidents hazard prevention and preparedness plans, and regular inspection and maintenance of EPA allocated equipment were completed. Also 8 workshops on toxic incidents code compliance, 4 workshops on mobilization and joint response team trainings, 3 workshops on national and international experience exchange of environmental incidents response technology, and 1 specialist meeting on incident case study were held. A report on the analysis of hazard potential and evacuation area for southern Taiwan was completed and handed to local environmental bureaus for updating the county/city government toxic incidents disaster prevention and response action plans. Finally, two supporting teams for environmental incident response were set up and participated in 10 incidents, drills, or trainings in supporting of other operating facilities with insufficient capabilities.

Environmental incidents specialist team, emergency response, exercise for emergency response of toxic substances