TREATIES AND OTHER INTERNATIONAL ACTS SERIES 02-401

________________________________________________________________________

ENVIRONMENT

Agreement Between the

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

and PANAMA

Agreement signed at Panama City April 1, 2002
 NOTE BY THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE

 Pursuant to Public Law 89—497, approved July 8, 1966

(80 Stat. 271; 1 U.S.C. 113)—

“. . .the Treaties and Other International Acts Series issued

under the authority of the Secretary of State shall be competent

evidence . . . of the treaties, international agreements other than

treaties, and proclamations by the President of such treaties and

international agreements other than treaties, as the case may be, 

therein contained, in all the courts of law and equity and of maritime

jurisdiction, and in all the tribunals and public offices of the

United States, and of the several States, without any further proof

or authentication thereof.”
PANAMA

Environment

Agreement signed at Panama City April 1, 2002;

 Entered into force April 1, 2002.
Agreement Between the

United States Department of State, the United States Environmental

Protection Agency, the United States Coast Guard, and the

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (Panama Canal Authority)

Regarding Assistance with Respect to Certain

Environmental Pollution Incidents in the Panama Canal Area

The Department of State of the United States of America, the U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency (EPA), and the U.S. Coast Guard, on the one hand, and the

Autoridad del Canal de Panama (Panama Canal Authority) (hereafter also, "ACP") of

the Republic of Panama, on the other (hereinafter collectively the Parties")

CONSCIOUS of the importance of the Panama Canal to international trade and

commerce;

MINDFUL of the interest of the Parties in ensuring safe unencumbered

operation of the Panama Canal;

DESIRING that any significant pollution incident in the waters of the Panama

Canal that may threaten to hinder such operation be combated in a safe and expeditious

manner;

RECOGNIZING the existing capability of the Autoridad del Canal de Panama

(ACP) for responding to environmental emergencies in the area of the Panama Canal;

CONVINCED of the importance of developing procedures and practices to

facilitate timely and appropriate supplemental assistance from agencies of the

Government of the United States of America when requested by the Autoridad del

Canal de Panama in the event of an especially significant pollution incident;

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CONSIDERING the experience of the 16 federal agencies of the Government of

the United States of America that participate in the coordinating mechanism known as

the National Response Team (NRT) and that have responsibilities, interests, and

expertise in various aspects of emergency response to pollution incidents, in

coordinating technical assistance during environmental emergencies in numerous

countries throughout the world;

AWARE that the EPA is the Chair of the NRT, that the U.S. Coast Guard is the

Vice-Chair of the NRT, and that the Department of State is a member agency of the

NRT, and that the first two of those agencies of the Government of the United States of

America will coordinate with the other NRT members in connection with the

implementation of this Agreement;

REAFFIRMING the spirit of cooperation expressed by the Administrator of the

ACP in his letter of March 15, 1999 to the Chairman of the NRT requesting that the

NRT provide supplemental U.S. federal agency assistance in the event of an oil,

hazardous material, or radiological spill in the Panama Canal Area;

Have agreed as follows:

I. Purpose

The purpose of this Agreement is to facilitate the provision of assistance by certain

agencies of the Government of the United States of America at the request of the

Autoridad del Canal de Panama in connection with significant pollution incidents that

may affect the Canal Area, as defined herein. It is intended that assistance which may

be provided by U.S. agencies will supplement activities undertaken by the ACP or by

private sector response capability in support of the ACP.

Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed as requiring the ACP to utilize the

services of agencies of the Government of the United States or requiring agencies of the

Government of the United States to provide services to the ACP except as may be

provided for in incident specific agreements, executed at the time of an incident.

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II. Definitions

For the purposes of this Agreement:

Hazardous Material. A hazardous material is any chemical designated as a harmful

material or dangerous chemical under the Protocol of 1978 relating to the International

Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships with annexes and protocols, as

amended.

Pollution Incident. A pollution incident is an oil spill or release of hazardous or

radiological material that may affect the Canal Area, as defined herein.

Incident Command System. The Incident Command System (ICS) is a system to

organize activities of a response to facilitate interaction among response personnel. For

purposes of the relevant agencies of the Government of the United States, ICS shall

refer to the National Interagency Incident Management System (NIIMS) or its

substantial equivalent. For purposes of the Autoridad del Canal de Panama, ICS shall

refer to the ICS established in the ACP Contingency Plan, which is the plan created to

organize responses to pollution incidents in the Panama Canal.

Incident Commander. The Incident Commander is the ACP employee who is assigned

responsibility for all on-scene decisions related to an oil spill or a release of hazardous

or radiological material in the Canal Area (as defined herein) in accordance with the

ACP's Contingency Plan.

Incident Specific Agreement. An incident specific agreement is a document, executed

at the time of an incident under the terms of this Agreement, between an agency of the

Government of the United States and the ACP, detailing assistance to be provided and

other information that may be necessary to facilitate assistance and payment for

assistance.

United States National Response Center. The National Response Center is the United

States national communications center for receiving reports of pollution incidents.

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United States National Response Team. The United States National Response Team

(NRT) is a grouping of agencies of the United States Government, established by the

U.S. National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), with

responsibility for coordinating U.S. activities during environmental emergencies. The

U.S. agencies of the NRT develop procedures to ensure coordination of U.S.

governmental and private response to oil discharges and releases of hazardous

materials. The current participants in the NRT are 16 federal agencies of the U.S.

Government, chaired by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, and vicechaired by the U.S. Coast Guard.

Canal Area. The Canal Area (CA) is the continuous area following the course of the

Panama Canal and the land areas under the jurisdiction of the ACP.

Autoridad del Canal de Panama. The Autoridad del Canal de Panama (ACP) is an

agency of the Government of the Republic of Panama, responsible for the operation,

maintenance, and management of the Panama Canal.

Private Sector Response Capability. Private sector response capability means

equipment and personnel resources provided by contractors paid for by the ACP to

respond to oil spills and releases of hazardous or radiological materials.

Technical Assistance Team. A Technical Assistance Team (TAT) is any group of

experts provided by a U.S. agency or agencies to assist the ACP during an oil spill or

release of hazardous or radiological materials.

III. Notifications

Upon the evaluation by the Incident Commander that a significant pollution incident has

occurred, the ACP will notify the National Response Center. The ACP will also notify

the United States Embassy in Panama.

Upon receipt of notification from the Incident Commander of a significant pollution

incident, the National Response Center will immediately notify the Chair of the NRT,

who will activate the NRT in accordance with established U.S. procedures.

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The NRT will convene upon activation at a time and place agreed for the purpose of

assessing assistance requested by the ACP and advising the Incident Specific Chair on

the best means to respond to such request. The EPA, the U.S. Coast Guard, and any

other participating U.S. agency will remain fully empowered to decide the level of its

assistance, if any.

If the NRT determines that the deployment of U.S. agency personnel to the Canal Area

is necessary and appropriate, a TAT comprising representatives of the appropriate U.S.

agencies participating in the NRT will be organized under the direction of a TAT

Leader, who will be a representative of the U.S. agency providing the Incident Specific

Chair. The composition of the TAT will be determined by the type of incident, and by

the expertise and availability of personnel and equipment from U.S. agencies

participating in the NRT mechanism, as appropriate.

If it is determined by the agencies of the Government of the United States of America

participating in the NRT mechanism that the deployment of personnel to the Canal Area

is not necessary or appropriate, the EPA or U.S. Coast Guard will notify the Autoridad

del Canal de Panama of this decision. U.S. agencies participating in the NRT will

continue to monitor the incident through communications provided by the ACP and will

provide advisory services to the Incident Commander as requested.

IV. Operations

Specific operating procedures between the Parties to this Agreement, including any

required reports, will be addressed at the time of the ACP notification and request based

on the nature of the incident, the type and degree of assistance requested, and the U.S.

agencies involved. The coordination of and scope of work pertaining to the requested

assistance will be outlined in the Incident Specific Agreement. For incidents involving

deployment of a TAT, the TAT Leader will report to the Incident Commander upon the

TAT' s arrival in the Canal Area. The TAT Leader and the Incident Commander will

determine the most appropriate function for each team member in relation to the ACP

ICS. Assignments for TAT members will only be made by the TAT Leader. Roles and

responsibilities for a TAT member will be consistent with the mission and legal

authorities of the U.S. agency providing the TAT member.

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The Incident Commander will remain in charge of the incident in accordance with the

ACP' s Contingency Plan and the ACP ICS will be maintained throughout the incident

in accordance with the ACP' s Contingency Plan.

The TAT will remain in the Canal Area until relieved by another TAT assigned from a

U.S. agency or U.S. agencies, or when it is determined by the TAT Leader, in

consultation with the Incident Commander, that the assistance of the TAT is no longer

required. Individual TAT members will be released by the TAT Leader when requested

by the providing U.S. agency or when determined by the TAT Leader that the skills and

expertise of the team member are no longer required.

V. Logistics

All personnel and equipment provided by an agency of the Government of the United

States in response to a request for assistance under the terms of this Agreement will

remain under the control of the U.S. agency providing the personnel or equipment. The

ACP will facilitate the expeditious release of U.S. agency personnel and equipment

from the Canal Area upon the request of the U.S. agency providing the personnel or

equipment or upon the request of the TAT Leader.

Logistical arrangements, as necessary, for receiving the TAT, including, but not limited

to, personnel, equipment and reference materials, and for housing, subsistence, and

local travel for TAT will be the responsibility of the ACP.

The ACP will assist in the expeditious customs and immigration handling of TATs and

of equipment for entry to and departure from Panama under the terms established in the

exchange of diplomatic notes between the Government of the United States of America

and the Government of the Republic of Panama dated December 19, 2001 and

December 26, 2001.

VI. Funding

Payment for all activities under this Agreement associated with an incident in the Canal

Area, including all expenses associated with the provision of assistance by the TAT or

any U.S. agency, will be the responsibility of the ACP on an advance of funds basis.

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At the time of a pollution incident, the EPA or the U.S. Coast Guard, and any other U.S.

agency that intends to provide assistance to the ACP consistent with this Agreement,

shall execute an Incident Specific Agreement with the ACP. The ACP shall advance

funds, in accordance with the terms set forth in the Incident Specific Agreement, to the

pertinent U.S. agency for the assistance requested and in an amount specified in the

Incident Specific Agreement. Such U.S. agency shall provide that assistance under the

terms of the Incident Specific Agreement.

Reconciliation of the actual costs of assistance provided by a U.S. agency with funds

advanced by the ACP will be in accordance with the terms of the relevant Incident

Specific Agreement.

VII. Training, Exercises, and Planning

An annual tabletop exercise will be conducted by the Parties to ensure continuity of

communications, planning, and operations. In the event of an incident in the Canal

Area requiring the activation of the NRT, the annual tabletop exercise for that year may

be foregone.

The annual tabletop exercise may consist of a tabletop seminar format or the application

of a scenario to be developed jointly by relevant U.S. agencies (through the NRT

mechanism) and the ACP. The annual tabletop exercise will be held in the Canal Area

or elsewhere as deemed necessary and appropriate. Funding for exercise expenses,

exclusive of U.S. federal government salaries, will be provided by the ACP on an

advance of funds basis. The ACP and the relevant U.S. agencies involved in providing

the planning, training, and exercise outlined in this section will utilize an Incident

Specific Agreement or similar mechanism to identify the scope of the exercise, type of

training provided, and the associated costs.

The EPA or the U.S. Coast Guard will, in coordination with the NRT, advise the ACP

of training programs available from agencies of the U.S. Government in planning for

and response to oil spills or releases of hazardous and/or radiological materials, and will

assist in making available such programs to the ACP on a cost reimbursable basis.

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VIII. Privileges and Immunities

In accordance with the exchange of diplomatic notes between the Government of the

United States of America and the Government of the Republic of Panama dated

December 19, 2001 and December 26, 2001, employees of the Government of the

United States of America present in the territory of the Republic of Panama for

activities related to this Agreement shall be granted privileges and immunities by the

Government of Panama.

IX. Dispute Resolution

Any disagreements or disputes concerning the interpretation or implementation of this

agreement shall be resolved solely through consultation between the Parties, and shall

not be referred to any court, international tribunal or third party for settlement.

X. Implementation

The Parties may, by mutual written agreement, establish procedures and forms to

implement this Agreement, and revise such procedures and forms as necessary.

Further, the Parties may agree to the participation of additional U.S. agencies in this

Agreement. Such participation would be effected by listing each such agency in an

annex to the Agreement, at which time that agency would be deemed a "participating

agency" under the Agreement.

However, nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to affect the ability of an agency

of the Government of the United States to provide authorized assistance outside the

framework of this Agreement, as appropriate, to the ACP or any other Panamanian

agency or entity.

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For the Aut ad del Canal de

Panama:

rto Al

Administrator

u le a

XI. Entry into Force and Termination

This Agreement will enter into force upon signature by the U.S. EPA, the U.S. Coast

Guard, the U.S. Department of State and the ACP. The Agreement will remain in force

until terminated either by either Party upon written notification to the other Party.

Any of the U.S. participating agencies may terminate their participation in this

Agreement by means of written notification to the other participating agencies and to

the ACP. Such termination will take effect three months from the date of notification.

Any assistance already in progress at the time of termination in response to a pollution

incident shall continue to apply until such assistance is completed.

Done at Panama City, this 1 st day of April, 2002, in quadruplicate in the English

language.

For the United States Department of State 

and the United States Environmental

Protection Agency: 

/Lt._

Frederick A. Becker

Chargé d'Affaires, a.i.

For the United States Coast Guard:

Rear Admiral Paul J. Pluta

Assistant Commandant for Marine Safety,

Security, and Environment Protection

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