|  | Emergency response preparedness
Imperial works hard to ensure that any accident such as a spill, leak, fire or explosion involving its facilities or operations is met with an immediate and comprehensive response to protect people, property and the environment.
This involves having trained personnel and emergency response equipment at operating sites, with adequate regional and national back-up. It also involves close cooperation with outside response organizations such as firefighters, police, coast guards, etc. Finally, it involves regular simulations of emergencies to ensure that response plans can and will be executed in a real emergency situation.
Imperial's emergency response capability
Imperial operating facilities have their own trained personnel and equipment to respond immediately to any accident, minor or major.
The local operating unit assumes initial responsibility to respond, either on their own or in cooperation with local authorities. If necessary, they can call on regional and national response teams that can be mobilized at a moment's notice.
Imperial's national emergency response team includes specialists in crisis management and communications, industrial hygiene and health, response techniques such as containment and clean-up, environmental effects, and tracking and surveillance.
In addition, all levels of Imperial management, including senior executives, can be mobilized immediately to ensure that in any emergency, safety and environmental protection are given the highest priority.
Cooperation with outside response organizations and resources
In addition to its own capabilities, Imperial maintains close liaison and mutual-aid cooperation with outside emergency response organizations and authorities to ensure a comprehensive response to any incident.
At the local level, this includes mutual training and liaison with fire departments, police and other authorities. Regionally and nationally, it includes working with the Canadian Coast Guard and certified marine response organizations on the east and west coasts and the Great Lakes, and many others.
Mutual-aid arrangements are also in place with international organizations to ensure a full response to any trans-border incident.
Emergency simulations
To ensure a constant state of readiness and emergency response capability, Imperial conducts hundreds of simulated emergencies each year. They range from fire drills and equipment and personnel tests at local operating sites, to computer-simulation exercises, to full-scale, "catastrophic" simulations involving all available resources for as long as two to three days.
Major simulations are held every year. They simulate every aspect of a real emergency, testing not only the ability to mobilize response teams, assemble real equipment and resources, set up communication lines, etc., but also the ability to manage a response on a real-time basis.
|
|
| |
