PAJ OIL SPILL SYMPOSIUM '96.
International and Regional Cooperation and Problems
associated with Movement of Resources.
byChew Joo Kim
Manager, Technical Services
East Asia Response Private Limited (EARL)

Introduction
I would like to begin this paper by citing a well known quote which is "Time and Tide
Waits For No Man". As oil spill responders, we would certainly be ruled by theinevitability of time and tide moving on regardless whether we are ready to respond orotherwise. And if we are not able to manage them, how much less would we be able todeal with the situation when a third element comes into play, which is when oil spills
cross over national boundaries. So for any would-be oil spill responders, I would saythat for us, the quotation should really read "Time and Tide Waits For No Man, and Oil
Spills Knows No Boundaries."
When oil is spilt on the water, it spreads. When it spreads, its characteristics changes
over time and this is termed 'weathering'. During all of the time that it is weathering, it
is also affected by wind and tide and will drift. This drifting of the oil slick if unchecked,
will cross over waterways to neighbouring countries, and this action will require theco-operation of the affected countries to jointly manage the oil spill clean-up.
This paper will stress the importance of regional and international co-operation and the
problems associated with the movement of resources to deal with the oil spill incident.

OPRC Convention 1990
When you talk about international and regional co-operation, you cannot help but talkabout OPRC Convention 1990.

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Why?
Because the OPRC Convention 1990 is probably the most significant step made on a
global scale towards international and regional co-operation in pollution response. Two
articles of that convention, 6 and 7, clearly lay out the framework for achieving suchco-operation.
Article 6 of the OPRC Convention calls for the establishment of a national system for
responding promptly and effectively to oil pollution incidents. It calls for:othe identification of a national authority which has the responsibility for
preparing for a national response,ocontact points for the receipt and transmission of oil pollution reports,othe identification of an authority which has the power to act on behalf of thestate to mobilise and deploy resources,othe establishment of a national contingency plan.

In addition it seeks co-operation between industry and governments, and between
governments in a particular region to establish:oa minimum level of pre-positioned oil spill equipment,oa programme of training and exercises,odetailed plans and communication capabilities for responding to an oil spill,oa mechanism to co-ordinate the response with the capabilities to mobiise
resources.

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It also seeks to ensure that each Party provides the International Maritime
Organisation (IMO) with its national contingency plan, communication channels, andinformation concerning equipment and expertise relating to oil pollution response,
which will be available to others upon request.
Article 7 calls for international co-operation in pollution response, which includes
providing advisory services, technical support and equipment, as necessary, for the
purpose of responding to an oil spill incident.
It calls for measures to be in place to facilitate the arrival and movement of men andequipment into, through, and out of each party's territory.
OPRC is unique in that it is probably the first time a convention demands co-operation
between industry and government. Obviously, industry encourages ratification of theConvention.

Regional Plans.
Most, if not all of you, are familiar with the Tiered Response concept of contingency
planning, where a Tier 1 Plan provides cover for small local spills within the confines ofa terminal, where a Tier 2 Plan provides cover for oil spill incidents at a company
facility which has limited control over events and the size of the spill is beyond thescope of their Tier 1 response capability, and where a Tier 3 Plan provides cover for oil
spills of catastrophic proportions.

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Expanding from the basic Tier 1 concept of having a small stockpile of oil spill response
equipment for individual terminals, it seems logical and cost effective that companies
would get together and pool their resources to cover Tier 2 spills.
Co-operation of this nature is best exemplified by citing two mutual aid groups existing
today. They are i) the Gulf Area Oil Companies Mutual Aid Organisation (GAOCMAO),
and ii) the Petroleum Industry of Malaysia Mutual Aid Group (PIMMAG). When
activated, the member companies operating in the Gulf area (or Malaysian waters for
PIMMAG members) will donate their own Tier 1 oil spill equipment in a co-ordinatedresponse to a major incident.
GAOCMAO was formed as early as 1972 and was the first mutual aid organisation ofits kind, and its effort was seen as a pioneering approach to collective response
capability.
Malaysia was, and still is, equally active in its recognition of the need for regional andinternational co-operation and since the early 1970s made its own arrangements tomeet the threat of large scale oil pollution, arrangements such as the Straits of Malacca
Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS), the Straits of Malacca and Singapore Oil Spill
Revolving Fund, and various contingency plans for the region.

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The Straits of Malacca Traffic Separation Scheme was developed to ensure strict
routeing of deep drafted vessels using the straits with the aim of avoiding a collision. It
was endorsed in 1977 by the International Maritime Organisation and adopted by thethree littoral states of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore.
The Straits of Malacca and Singapore Oil Spill Revolving Fund was signed as a
Memorandum of Understanding in 1 98 1 between the governments of Indonesia,
Malaysia and Singapore with the Japanese Associations (non-governmental) toestablish a revolving fund of 400 million yen for the three littoral states to use incombating oil spills.
The Lombok - Macassar Plan developed in mid 1980s between Indonesia, Philippines
and Malaysia, and the Bay of Brunei Plan in 1994 between Brunei Darussalam andMalaysia, are regional plans developed for the purposes of fighting oil spills in thoseareas.
On a bigger scale, the ASEAN Oil Spill Response Action Plan (ASEAN-OSRAP) was
put in place during 1993 amongst the six ASEAN countries, namely, Brunei
Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Singapore, to co-operateregionally and enhance the ability of a member- country to respond to a spill which may
be beyond that country's ability to cope with the situation alone. ASEAN is the acronym
for the Association of South East Asian Nations.
In addition, the ASEAN Council on Petroleum (ASCOPE) which is made up of nationaloil companies of ASEAN countries, is considering a plan to provide equipment andmanpower to member-countries to supplement the ASEAN-OSRAP Plan in a major
spill. The Plan is known as the ASCOPE Plan for the Control and Mitigation of Marine
Pollution_(APCMMP).
Yet another regional plan to enhance the oil spill response capability in the ASEAN
region is the Oil Spill Preparedness and Response (OSPAR) project, which was
implemented in 1993 among the six ASEAN countries, Japan and IMO. The Plan had
Japan financing 1 billion yen's worth of oil spill equipment at 11 stockpile bases spreadamong the ASEAN countries.

5International Co-operation.
Although in geographical terms, the above described contingency plans may seem to bestrictly regional plans, there were strong international involvement with IMO andJapan in the development of some of those plans, as can be seen in the Straits ofMalacca and Singapore Traffic Separation Scheme, the Straits of Malacca andSingapore Revolving Fund, and the OSPAR project . Without such commitment and cooperation on an international level the plans may not be as what they are today.

Movement of Resources.
As important as contingency plans and regional / international arrangements /agreements are, they would be totally ineffective if practical problems associated withthe movement of men and equipment across national boundaries are not overcome.
The major difficulty in moving resources across national frontiers is twofold, namely,
national integrity and bureaucracy. Most countries put a great value on their national
integrity and subsequently enforce strict control over their frontiers. It is extremely
difficult to bypass these controls even in the event of an emergency. In some cases
nationalistic governments may even tighten controls over the import of emergency
response resources if they feel that they must be seen to be controlling the emergency
themselves.
Even if there are inter-government agreements to allow free movement of equipment
across their mutual border, their border control authorities are so bureaucratic that thewishes of one government authority may not be carried out by another.
Let us look at the deployment activity chain pictured here. The diagram is one which
we in EARL use to illustrate a point, but the problem is similar for any party which has
to move men and equipment around quickly.

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The chain represents the logistics activity required to ensure a problem free
deployment from activation to operating in the field. Each of the links represents a
critical activity and should one of those links fail then the chain fails.
One of the most critical links in the chain holds together the activities which are theresponsibility of EARL and those responsibilities of the spiller. Let me explain.
If you look at the upper half of the diagram, at the chain link which lies horizontal andshaded darker than the rest, you will see all those activities which EARL can achieve
and is responsible for upon activation ie. we have a full-time dedicated staff which we
can mobilise, we have an aircraft (C130 Hercules transport plane) chartered andstanding-by for our use all the year around, we have pre- arrangements made with atransport company for the supply of 40ft flat-bed trailers to truck the equipment to the
airport and upon completion of loading, can be flown to an agreed destination
nominated by the spiller.

7However, once having arrived at the destination, we would look upon the spiller to fulfil
their end of the responsibility as depicted in the chain link diagram and have already inplace, arrangements to assist in the unloading of the aircraft, clearing of customs andarrival formalities, immigration, transporting of men and equipment to the spill site, astorage yard to assemble the equipment, boats and vessels as necessary and a labour
force to handle all the required tasks.
Unless all of the above requirements are in place and successfully managed, theresponse will fail.

Problems Associated with Movement of Resources.
There are 3 ways by which the resources can be moved.
1.By Land.
Men and equipment can be trucked overland across national boundaries in this manner.
Trucks and trailers are commonly available in many countries and often at short notice.
Their cost is relatively cheaper than the other two options and they can be directed togo just about anyplace where there is good road access with minimal cranage andforklift capabilities for unloading purposes.

However, this option is severely restricted as it can be used only in countries which arelinked to each other by land, and if trucking is required over long distances, this option
will take too long a time to respond effectively. Furthermore, it has the added
disadvantage in that the more national boundaries the equipment has to cross, themore delays it may face in coming across different procedures applied by different
border customs and immigration. Also, a customs bond for the equipment may be
imposed each time at the different border checkpoint. The bond will vary from anything
up to 100% of the value of the equipment, and as we know very well how expensive oilspill equipment can be, it will be necessary to pre-arrange a Bank Guarantee to meetthe large amount of cash required for the bond.

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2. By Sea.
As in the first option, one would consider this option only if the distance to cover is not
too great, as otherwise it may take days and even weeks for the vessel to arrive at thenominated destination. Unlike trucking, it has the advantage to cross over water todifferent continents and depending on the size of the vessel employed, is generally able
to carry a large amount of oil spill equipment on board. It has the added advantage thatthe vessel may be used as an additional oil spill response tool at sea.
The disadvantage is that vessels are not as easily available as trailers, and besides
being restricted in certain waterways for depth of water or other reasons, will needdeveloped jetties or terminals to discharge the cargo, after which the oil spill equipment
may still require to be transported by trucks and trailers to the spill site.

3.By Air.
The biggest attraction for this option is its speed in response. It can move men andequipment over great distance in the shortest time possible. Its other prime role is theability to perform aerial dispersant application as needed (only on selected aircraft likethe Hercules C130 or the Transall C160) and although not ideal, it can also be used as areconnaissance plane for surveying purposes.
Obviously this option has some major drawbacks, first of which is that it is not readily
available for charter. It is the very reason why EARL has contracted a C130 on 24
hours, 365 days a year on charter to service our member shareholders if the need arises,
to speedily respond to an oil spill of their own making, around the region. If we did nothave the capability of the C130 and it takes 2 days on an average to source a suitable
aircraft out, we would have lost one of our greatest advantages, which is the speed of
response.

9Depending on the distance to fly to, the Hercules C130 can carry oil spill equipment of
about 20 tonnes in weight, while the smaller Transall C160 can carry a payload of about
10 tonnes. These planes have the advantage over other types of aircraft in that they canload bulkier equipment via a large rear ramp while others are side loading and havesmaller doors. Also, the C130s are chosen for their ability to land on relatively shortrunways, requiring about 4500ft paved runway at sea level as against about 6500ft of
runway required by other aircraft with equivalent payloads.
If it were required to fly to any airfield with runway length less than 4500 ft, a Transall
C160 could be used instead.
If you were to choose the option of using the C130 for aerial dispersant spraying insteadof as a cargo transport, you would come across a different set of problems associatedwith it. When calling for the use of Airborne Dispersant Delivery System (ADDS pack),
and depending once again on how far the plane has to fly to its destination, which willaffect its payload, the ADDS pack tank may or may not be able to carry its maximum
quantity of 5500 US gallons of dispersant concentrate. Whichever the case, thedispersant may all be used up in a single sortie within about 30 minutes of flying andspraying around. The problem then is to find a steady supply of approved bulk
dispersant concentrate to replenish the ADDS pack for its next sortie and so on. If it
can be sourced locally, then it is well and good but if not, the dispersants will have to betrucked, shipped or flown in by back-up cargo planes. Each back-up C130 plane would
be able to load a maximum of about 100 drums of dispersant ,which would fill the ADDS
pack tank for just one more sortie. And depending on the distance and payload
available, the aircraft may even carry less than 100 drums each time.
Aerial spraying brings with it another set of problems. By recommendation, the aircraftis required to fly at 140 knots and at a height of about 100 ft when spraying. At that low
height and speed, it is particularly difficult for the pilot to spot oil on the sea surface
when he has to give full concentration to the task of low level flying. Therefore, in orderto achieve the best results, aerial spraying on the C130 must be under the guidance ofanother smaller aircraft (known as a spotter plane) such as a helicopter or asurveillance aircraft. Not to do so would mean inefficient use of the system, a waste of
costly dispersants, and result in ineffective treatment of the spilled oil.

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Fuel.
In transporting oil spill equipment on board an aircraft, the operator has to ensure fullcompliance when carrying any equipment which falls into any one of the nineclassifications of dangerous or hazardous substances as defined by the International
Air Transport Association (I.A.T.A) Dangerous Goods Regulations. He has to ensurethat correct packing and documentation procedures are followed.
For example, the internal combustion engines of power packs, etc, are considered Class
9 Dangerous Goods and if carried on board an aircraft, their fuel systems would have tobe drained and petrol caps securely fitted. An entry has to be made on all
documentation to identify the engine(s) carried on board.
Naturally, at the end of the destination the supply of the necessary fuel to operate theengine(s) has/have to be considered.

Documentation.
To ensure a smooth and uninterrupted flow when transporting oil spill equipment outof the country, into and across national boundaries, it is imperative that the
documentation is accurate to the smallest detail. Being just 'good' is not good enough it has to be perfect. Any detail which is inconsistent with the equipment presented willcause delays which may be unnacceptable.
Regional and/or international agreements notwithstanding, the average customs officer
at the border crossing may well be the cause for delays. He or she may or may not haveheard of such agreements made and will quite likely delay clearance processes due touncertainties on his/her part simply because it falls outside the normal routine of their
daily chores. It then becomes imperative that in drawing up contingency plans that you
should have discussed these issues with the highest custom official possible and come tosome arrangement to pre-empt the envisaged delays.

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As there are various documents for various modes of transportation, which can be
confusing, it is recommended that such matters are best Left in the capable hands ofthe professional freight forwarders who will also put up a Banker's Guarantee on yourbehalf if required, or apply for the services of ATA Carnets, whichever is convenient.

ATA Carnets are internationally accepted Customs documents, issued by an authorised
Chamber of Commerce to allow the temporary admission of goods, without the need for
raising bonds, duty and customs formalities in foreign countries. So long as theconditions for the use of a Carnet are observed, its use permits temporary importation
without payment of duty and with the minimum of restrictions. As long as theconditions are observed - therein lies the problem.

The rules governing the use of a Carnet are so inflexible that much as it is attractive for
us to use it we are unable to do so, at least for the moment. Let me explain.

At EARL, we have a stockpile of USD 9 million worth of oil spill equipment whichcomes in all sizes and shapes. They are kept in our warehouse in groups according to
the type of equipment they belong to, and stacked in a manner for ease of retrieval or
maintenance. When activated, we would be able to select the type and number of
equipment as required by the client and freight them accordingly.

As every oil spill may be totally different from the other, no two clients in all probability
will request for exactly the same type and number of equipment to deal with thesituation. Let us take for example an off- shore package we wish to apply for a Carnet.
The Carnet requires every item in that package to be identified at the time of
application. When a spill occurs, and the package is offerred to a spiller, we mustensure that every item match the Garnet document both in description and serial
number. It does not matter that the spiller may not wish to accept all the equipment
offerred. We cannot change any item to offer an off-shore package to meet the needs ofthe spiller. The Carnet system does not permit it and therefore we cannot use it as it
stands.

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We have requested that all our equipment in the warehouse be accepted as a whole in
the Carnet system and we be allowed to select and despatch them in accordance withour client's request, but this was not agreed to by the Singapore International Chamberof Commerce which issues the Carnet.

When ATA Carnets are applied on the spot, ie. as and when the client needs them, adelay of about 72 hours is not unusual.

Communications equipment.
Communications equipment can be somewhat difficult to import into a foreign country,
even on a temporary basis. Try to bring it into a foreign country, even for an oil spill
exercise, and unless the exercise is co-ordinated by the authority of the land, you may
run into a brick wall. Even with the assistance of professional freight forwarders withagencies in the country the equipment is required to be brought into, you may
nevertheless still end up without a permit. The reason for such difficulties is simply
because the authorities wish to ensure that your radio frequencies do not clash with
their own domestic frequencies. If it does, the application will be rejected. It is by far
simpler and more expeditious to obtain such equipment locally from the spiller or theircontacts

Visas.
Visas are necessary for many countries. Because visas cannot be obtained on demand, itwould be prudent for contingency planners to consider and explore beforehand with
their immigration authorities, a way to expedite entry of personnel into the country
during an incident requiring rapid response. If rules cannot be waived, considerationmust be given to have oil spill responders obtain visas beforehand and ensure theirvalidity remains current all the time.

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In general and on a normal basis , visas would require about two weeks to obtain, but intimes of emergency and with the assistance of the spiller, visas have been known to beobtained at short notice. The important point here is that the spiller must make therepresentation on our behalf to the immigration authorities, stating the reasons for theunusual request. Please refer to our diagram of the deployment activity chain where itshows under the arrival formalities, the responsibility of the spiller for assistance inobtaining visas.

Conclusion.
Obviously, the time to address all or some of the problems mentioned above is during
the contingency planning process. But how does one go about it?
The first action must surely be to recognise that the problems do exist. You would be
surprised at the number of well-placed personnel in the industry, even those ingovernment, who simply believe that problems do not exist. In their many years ofdealing with oil spills, they have not come across such problems and therefore would
not expect anything to be different at the next oil spill.
Others again create their own false confidence in the mistaken belief that because theirsystem has been working for so many years that there is therefore nothing to feelinadequate about. These people may not be aware that their experience may becompletely inadequate as their country may have been fortunate enough to be sparedmajor oil spill incidents thus far.
They may very well suffer from the ostrich syndrome - where the head is buried in thesand, and if a problem cannot be seen, the problem therefore does not exist.
Next, the industry must test their system, assuming it is already in place, and review
and amend it against shortcomings detected during the test. The problems encountered
must be examined and government authorities should be involved in the reviews on
relevant issues concerning them. Only then will they become aware of problems they
have not encountered before.

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Governments should conduct exercises between governments and on a more frequent
and regular basis. And unless the plans are tested to extremes, the report will always
show that problems do not exist.
ATA Carnets while appearing to be a perfect solution for temporary admission of goods
without the payment of customs duties, are too rigid under the conditions in which they
currently apply, and there are presently insufficient number of countries accepting thesystem to become internationally useful. Their conditions for use should be reviewed
and the number of countries accepting it increased.
OPRC 90 has been a major step in getting countries to acknowledge the need for cooperation. The challenge is to effectively implement the convention and sustain its
objectives.

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