Confederated Tribes of Coos Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians (2018)

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Confederated Tribes of Coos Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians

Tribal Estuary Response Plan

Table of Contents

Section

Table of Contents

Record of Changes

List of Acronyms and Abbreviations

Page

1. Background

2. Purpose and Scope

3. Tribal Area of Interest

Figure 1: CTCLUSI Area of Interest

3.1

Physical Features

3.1.1 Currents and Tides

3.1.2 Winds

3.1.3 Temperatures

3.1.4 Major Estuaries

3.1.5 Other Tribal Waters

Table 3.1.5. Other Waters within CTCLUSI Area of Interest

4. Tribal Uses and Activities related to Cultural Heritage

4.1

Sensitive Sites and Resources at Risk

4.1.1 Habitats

4.1.2 Fish

4.1.3 Wildlife

Table 4.1. Traditional Coos Shellfish, Crustaceans,

and Other Foodstuffs in Coos Bay

Table 4.2. Traditional Coos Shellfish, Crustaceans,

and Other Foodstuffs in Umpqua Estuary

Table 4.3. Traditional Coos Shellfish, Crustaceans,

and Other Foodstuffs in Siuslaw Estuary

4.1.4 Culturally Important Sites

5. Risk Assessment

5.1

Vessels

5.2

Pipelines

5.3

Bridges

5.4

Railways

5.5

Industrial Shoreline Facilities

5.6

Upland Disposal Sites

5.7

Existing Data, Analysis, and Gaps

Table 5.7. Existing Data Sources

6. Outreach and Education / Stakeholder Engagement

7. Applicable Policies and Legal Authorities

Table 7.1. Applicable Tribal Laws and Policies

Table 7.2. Applicable State of Oregon Laws and Policies

Table 7.3. Applicable Federal Laws and Policies

8. Mitigation

9. Regulatory Development Opportunities

9.1

Tribal Code

9.2

Other Local Code Advocacy

9.3

Review of Facility Spill Response Plans

10. Funding

11. Plan for Compensation Schedule

12. Training and Tools

13. Spill Response Plan

Preface

Required Notifications by Spiller

First Responder Guidelines

Initial Assessment and Information Check List

I. Contact Lists

Table I.A: Primary Federal Agency Response Partners:

Roles and Contacts

Table I.B: Primary State Agency Response Partners:

Roles and Contacts

Table I.C: Local, Tribal, and Nonprofit Partners:

Roles and Contacts

II. Coordination Strategies

Flowchart: Coordination Opportunities

III. Notification Strategies for Incident Outreach

IV. Safety Protocols

IV.1 Training

IV.2 Pre-entry Briefing

IV.3 Preliminary Evaluation

IV.4 Hazard Identification

IV.5 Information Required

IV.6 Personal Protective Equipment

IV.7 Contaminant and/or Hazard Monitoring

IV.8 Risk Identification

IV.9 Notification

IV.10 Site Control

V. Assessing Damage

VI. Major Protection Techniques and Cleanup Strategies

VI.1 Shoreline Protection Strategies

VI.1.1 Booming

VI.1.2 Skimming

VI.1.3 Barriers/Berms

VI.1.4 Physical Herding

VI.1.5 Sorbents

VI.2 Shoreline Cleanup Strategies

VI.2.1 No Action / Natural Recovery

VI.2.2 Manual Removal

VI.2.3 Passive Collection (Sorbents)

VI.2.4 Debris Removal

VI.2.5 Trenching

VI.2.6 Sediment Removal

VI.2.7 Ambient-Water Flooding (Deluge)

VI.2.8 Ambient-Water/Low-Pressure & Ambient-Water/

High Pressure Washing

VI.2.9 Warm-water/Moderate-to-High Pressure Washing

VI.2.10 Hot-Water/High-Pressure Washing

VI.2.11 Slurry Sand Blasting

VI.2.12 Vacuum

VI.2.13 Sediment Reworking

VI.2.14 Sediment Removal, Cleansing, and Replacement

VI.2.15 Cutting Vegetation

VII. Cleanup Strategies for Specific Locations

VIII. Complying with the National Historic Preservation Act

During Emergency Response

IX. Notice to Response Personnel: Required Actions After

Discovery of Cultural Resources

iii

RECORD OF CHANGES

CTCLUSI

TRIBAL ESTUARY RESPONSE PLAN

Change #

Date of Change

Substance of Change

Entered By

LIST OF ACRONYMS AND ABBREVIATIONS

°F

ATSDR

BIA

CAMEO

CERCLA

degrees Fahrenheit

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

United States Bureau of Indian Affairs

Computer-Aided Management of Emergency Operations

Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and

Liability Act

CFR

Code of Federal Regulations

CIS

Oregon State Legislature Commission on Indian Services

CTCLUSI

Confederated Tribes of Coos Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians

CTSI

Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians

COTP

Captain of the Port

CSZ

Cascadia Subduction Zone

CWA

Clean Water Act

CZMA

Coastal Zone Management Act

DEQ

Oregon Department of Environmental Quality

DOGAMI

Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries

DOT

United States Department of Transportation

DOI

United States Department of Interior

DSL

Oregon Department of State Lands

ECSI

Oregon Environmental Cleanup Site Information

EPA

United States Environmental Protection Agency

EPCRA

Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act

ERMA

Environmental Response Management Application

ESA

Endangered Species Act

ESI

Environmental Sensitivity Index

FEMA

Federal Emergency Management Agency

FOSC

Federal On-Scene Coordinator

FWPCA

Federal Water Pollution Control Act

GIS

geographic information system

GPS

global positioning system

GRP

Geographic Response Plan

HHS

United States Department of Health and Human Services

HazMat

hazardous material

HAZWOPER Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response

IC/UC

Incident Commander/Unified Command

ICS

Incident Command System

IDLH

immediately dangerous to life or health

IMT

Incident Management Team

Information Officer

IOOS

Integrated Ocean Observing System

JIC

Joint Information Center

NANOOS

NCP

NHPA

NIMS

NMFS

NOAA

NPFC

NPMS

NRC

NRDA

NRHP

NWAC

NWACP

OAR

ODOT

OEM

OERS

OHA

OPA

OPAC

ORS

OSC

OSHA

OSLTF

PHMSA

PIO

PPE

RCP

RCRA

PRFA

PRP

Reserve

RRT 10

RRT

SARA

SCAT

SHPO

SIR

SOSC

SWMP

Northwest Association of Networked Ocean Observing Systems

National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency

Plan

National Historic Preservation Act

National Incident Management System

National Marine Fisheries Service

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

National Pollution Fund Center

National Pipeline Mapping System

National Response Center

Natural Resource Damage Assessment

National Register of Historic Places

Northwest Area Committee

Northwest Area Contingency Plan

Oregon Administrative Rules

Oregon Department of Transportation

Oregon Office of Emergency Management

Oregon Emergency Response System

Oregon Health Authority

Oil Pollution Act of 1990

Oregon Ocean Planning Advisory Council

Oregon Revised Statutes

On-Scene Coordinator

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration

Public Information Officer

personal protective equipment

Regional Contingency Plan

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act

Pollution Removal Funding Authorization

Potentially Responsible Party

South Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve

river mile

Responsible Party

Region 10 Regional Response Team

Regional Response Team

Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act

Shoreline Cleanup Assessment Technique

State Historic Preservation Office

Shoreline Inspection Report

State On-scene Coordinator

System-Wide Monitoring Program

TCP

TERC

THPO

TRI

T/V

U&A

USACE

U.S.C.

USCG

USFWS

USGS

WQS

Traditional Cultural Property

Tribal Emergency Response Commission

Tribal Historic Preservation Office

Toxics Release Inventory

tanker vessel

Usual and Accustomed Area

United States Army Corps of Engineers

United States Code

United States Coast Guard

United States Fish and Wildlife Service

United States Geological Survey

water quality standards

vii

Tribal Estuary Response Plan

Background

The Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians (CTCLUSI or

the Tribe) are comprised of constituent bands called the Hanis Coos, Miluk Coos, Lower

Umpqua, and Siuslaw. Our ancestors are the original inhabitants of 1.6 million acres of

the Oregon coast, referred to as the Ancestral Territory. In 1855, we negotiated a treaty

in good faith with the United States government. The United States government neither

ratified nor honored that treaty. Instead, we were stripped of our Ancestral Territory

and marched at gunpoint to from one prison camp to another. Finally, after nineteen

years, we refused to be moved again. We returned to our villages and camps only to

find that during the years of our captivity, our villages had become town sites and our

camps had been farmed and logged. Our land base and our culture were shattered

through the loss of our homeland and the forced assimilation resulting from the loss of

our economic base.

Nevertheless, we maintained our identity as Native People. In 1917, we officially

banded together as the CTCLUSI and established a formal elected government that we

have maintained ever since. In 1941, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) took a small

parcel into trust for the CTCLUSI in the city of Coos Bay. On this small reservation, the

BIA also erected a Tribal Hall that included an assembly hall, kitchen, offices, and

medical clinic. Despite our continued existence, the U.S. government terminated our

federal recognition in 1954. We refused to accept the termination of our existence as a

Tribe. In 1984, after three decades of hard work, our federal recognition was restored.

At the time of restoration, the CTCLUSI held only our tribal hall on six acres and three

other slivers of land totaling less than eight acres, a far cry from our original 1.6 million

acres. Since restoration, we have continued the work of reconstructing our fragmented

land base and culture.

Part of reconstructing our culture is protecting those resources that we depend on for

our physical, mental, and spiritual health. The waters of our Ancestral Territory are

perhaps the most precious of such resources. The Tribe seeks to perpetuate our identity

through the sense of place by continuing the traditions of protecting, preserving, and

enhancing our ancestral coastal waters and inlets where we once gathered and continue

to gather and harvest. Our very title as a collective people is a reference to the various

waterbodies that we have lived alongside and depended on since time immemorial. As

such, the Tribe has endeavored to take an active role in developing a plan for response

in the event of a spill or other hazardous release that may affect our estuaries or waters

that flow into our estuaries.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

Purpose and Scope

This Tribal Estuary Response Plan (Plan) establishes the policies and procedures under

which the Tribe will operate in the event of a hazardous materials incident, oil spill, or

other release impacting or potentially impacting our estuaries. This Plan is designed to

prepare the Tribe for incident response and to minimize the exposure to or damage

from materials that could adversely impact human health and safety or tribal resources.

Sections 1-12 of the Plan outline the Tribe’s interests and resources at risk, existing

information and relevant authorities, and funding and training opportunities. Section

13 of the Plan is the Spill Response Plan, which outlines the roles, responsibilities,

procedures and organizational relationships of government agencies and private

entities when responding to and recovering from an oil spill or hazardous materials

event impacting or potentially affecting the Waters of the United States and Tribal

Waters within the Tribe’s Ancestral Territory or broader areas of interest (collectively,

the Area of Interest).

This Plan is designed to address both oil spills and hazardous materials releases. There

are numerous opportunities for spills or releases that impact the waters within the

Tribe’s Area of Interest. Although there are many types of spills that can occur, the basic

structure of the response remains the same whether the response is to an oil spill or

hazardous substance release. And while there are a number of factors that are unique to

hazardous substance releases, this Plan serves as a general guide for coordination and

response during any type of oil or hazardous substances incident.

Pursuant to federal laws including the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA), 33 U.S.C. § 2701

et seq., the U.S. National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan

(NCP), 40 CFR Part 300, and the Comprehensive Emergency Response Compensation

and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA), 42 U.S.C. § 9601 et seq., the Tribe is to be notified in

the event of a release of hazardous material within the Tribe’s area of interest.1 This

Plan clarifies the notification and decision points in responding to a release, and

highlights the cultural values of estuaries within the Tribe’s ancestral territory and area

of interest.

This Plan is developed by the Tribe, and is linked to the Northwest Area Contingency

Plan and Geographic Response Plans prepared through the efforts of the Oregon

Department of Environmental Quality, U.S. Coast Guard, and U.S. Environmental

Protection Agency.

1 See Section 7 for further discussion and listing of applicable laws and regulations. In

order to expedite notice and confirm that the National Response Center (NRC) will

notify the Tribe, the Tribe will apply for an NRC agreement.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

Tribal Area of Interest

The Tribe’s Area of Interest includes its Ancestral Territory, as well as additional areas

that contain the headwaters of rivers or tributaries that flow through the Ancestral

Territory and tribally owned lands to the north and south of the Ancestral Territory.

The Tribe’s Ancestral Territory extends from the mouth of Tenmile Creek (Lane

County) in the north, south to Fivemile Point halfway between the mouths of Whiskey

Run Creek and Cut Creek (coinciding with the border between Sections 30 and 31,

Township 27 South, Range 14 West, Coos County), thence east to the crest of the Coast

Range (to Weatherly Creek on the Umpqua River). The area includes the extensive

estuaries of the Siuslaw, Umpqua, and Coos rivers, numerous smaller waterways, as

well as rugged cliffs and open beaches, bordered by shifting sand dunes and steep,

heavily vegetated mountainsides. The CTCLUSI are the original inhabitants of this area.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

Figure 1: CTCLUSI Area of Interest

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

The Tribe’s Area of Interest includes the entire Ancestral Territory, as well as additional

areas to the north and south, and includes the outer beaches and marine waters of the

Pacific Coast adjacent to these lands. See Figure 1. Areas of interest include, but are not

limited to, the five-county service area: Lincoln, Coos, Curry, Douglas, and Lane

counties; waters within the Tribe’s Ancestral Territory including Tribally owned and

non-Tribally owned lands; and lands that contain headwaters of rivers or tributaries

that flow through the Ancestral Territory and/or Tribally owned lands.

All of the various tribes along this stretch of the southern Oregon coast present a similar

native culture regardless of the differences in their languages and geographic

environments. The tribes of this region all intermarried extensively and had trade

relations with one another, suggesting to many tribal members that the tribes were of

one genetic and cultural family situated within numerous autonomous tribal nations.

The people lived in permanent villages with many temporary seasonal and year-round

resource encampments for fish, shellfish, and hunting resources. Because of the nature

of the estuaries, with their many sloughs, and their many varying degrees of fresh and

saltwater environments, there were an immense variety of resources. The people lived

in cedar longhouses. Men hunted and fished; women collected berries, roots, and nuts.

Their rich diet consisted of seafood, game, sea bird eggs, and other delicacies. Deer and

elk skins were fashioned into garments and blankets. Baskets were woven using a

variety of materials, from conifers to grasses.

This great number of environments offered resources year-round. Beach encampments

offered seasonal fishing and shellfish gathering opportunities in the bay, and berry

gathering and hunting opportunities on the land. Other seasonal camps higher in the

watersheds would be used for gathering berries or hunting. Kinship and trade

relationships extended well beyond the Ancestral Territory.

The Tribe is spiritually and culturally invested in our Ancestral Territory. Many of our

values, meanings, and identities are closely linked with features of this landscape and

our interaction with the landscape; wild foods like camas, deer, birds, fish, berries, and

seafood provide sustenance for Tribal members. In addition, the landscape and these

foods provide cultural connection through language, storytelling, harvesting, crafting,

and sharing food. Thus, impacts to and/or the loss of these landscapes and wild foods

means more than just a loss of subsistence, it also threatens the Tribe’s culture and

identity.

3.1 Physical Features

The Tribe’s understanding of its Ancestral Territory comes from collective Traditional

Knowledge. This understanding both guides and results from the Tribal community

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

members’ close relationships with and responsibilities toward the land, water, plants,

and animals that are central to the Tribe’s culture. These ways of knowing have accrued

over thousands of years of experience. This Plan incorporates both Traditional

Knowledge and Western Science to explain the significance of the estuaries to the Tribe

and identifies response mechanisms to protect those areas in the event of an oil spill or

hazardous material release.

3.1.1 Currents and Tides: Along the coast of Tribe’s Area of Interest, the nearshore

current is predominantly a northern flow in the winter months and a southern flow in

the summer months. Beaches are subject to large wave action and highly dynamic and

energetic environments. Tides are mixed semidiurnal, with paired highs and lows of

unequal duration and amplitude.

3.1.2 Winds: Winds can be very strong at times. Predominant wind direction is from

the north to northwest in the summer and the southeast to east in the winter.

3.1.3 Temperatures: The area is generally dominated by a maritime climate with cool

summers (average temperature range 60-65°F) and mild winters (average temperature

range 40-50°F). Estuary and coastal water temperatures remain relatively constant

between 50-55°F.

3.1.4 Major Estuaries: The Tribe’s Area of Interest includes three major river estuaries:

Coos, Umpqua, and Siuslaw.

Coos

Coos Bay is the extensive estuary of the Coos River. Occupying approximately 20

square miles, the bay is the second largest drowned river valley on the Oregon

Coast. Tidelands cover approximately 4,569 acres including 2,738 acres of tidal marsh

and 1,400 acres of eelgrass beds. Its primary features include the main, expansive bay,

an extensive arch of water around a peninsula, and major arms—South Slough, near the

entrance of the bay, Jordan Cove, at the heart of the bay, and Haynes Inlet, which

extends northeasterly from the main body of the bay. Smaller coves and inlets include

Pony Slough, Larson Inlet, Willanch Slough, Coalbank Slough, Isthmus Slough, and

Catching Slough on the south side of the bay, and North Slough on the north side of the

bay.

The natural environment of the Coos estuary supports a diversity of plants and animals

of importance to the Tribe. The extensive shallow tidal flats provide habitat for shellfish

as well as feeding and spawning habitat for many native fish. Coos Bay is part of the

traditional homelands of the Hanis Coos and Miluk Coos people, who had different

linguistic dialects or languages.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

For other tribes in the region seasonal encampments were “owned” by a tribe or a band

of a tribe, but this does not seem to have been the case at Coos Bay. The Coos Bay tribes

had a principal chief of the whole bay, of all the villages, and people were free to visit

any resources they needed. There was some specialization of resources gathering, as

oral histories from families suggest that they would remain in the bay and take fish and

shellfish and would not venture upriver or leave the bay while some individuals may

leave for salmon or eel fisheries, or to fish in the Pacific Ocean. Other oral histories

suggest that they would leave the bay for visits to Tenmile Lake or the Coquille River

for salmon and acorns.

Several ancient sites exist in the North Slough area and seem to confirm native stories

that this was the main part of the bay at one time. Advancing sand dunes and filling in

of the upper bay caused them to be abandoned long ago. The northern parts of the Coos

estuary, along the Coos River and as far north as Tenmile Creek were inhabited by the

Hanis Coos.

The remains of several villages, wooden fish weirs, and middens still exist along Coos

estuary shorelines, but many have been buried or substantially disturbed by more

recent human development. The bedrock shoreline of parts of the upper Coos River

allowed Coos ancestors to build wooden platform structures to spear salmon and other

fish with great efficiency. Use of basket traps and bone hooks for fish was prevalent

along the river. Gathering sites, or remote gardens, of a wide variety of berries, shoots,

roots, tubers, bulbs and nuts were maintained by use of selective harvesting, fire and

other means to ensure sustainable harvest for generations to come.

The South Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve (the Reserve) is a 5,900-acre area

of tidal marshes and tide flats in a sheltered arm that forms the southern end of the

Coos estuary. Congress established the Reserve in 1972 as part of the Coastal Zone

Management Act (CZMA). It was designated in 1974 as the first unit of the National

Estuarine Research Reserve System that is protected and managed for the purpose of

long-term research, education, and coastal stewardship. The Miluk Coos people

occupied small villages and seasonal camps here, with nearly autonomous gatherings of

around 100 people. Middens found along the shores of South Slough provide evidence

that the estuary was a productive place to collect crabs and other shellfish. Culturally

sensitive sites are known throughout the Reserve. Culturally significant resources also

include plant roots, barks, and fibers traditionally used by the Tribe. The Reserve works

with the Tribe to protect these resources and make them available for cultural uses.

A Traditional Cultural Property (TCP) is a property that is eligible for inclusion in the

National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) based on its associations with the cultural

practices, traditions, beliefs, lifeways, arts, crafts, or social institutions of a living

community. TCPs are rooted in a traditional community’s history and are important in

maintaining the continuing cultural identity of the community. Coos Bay has received a

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

TCP nomination because the beliefs, customs, and practices associated with Coos Bay

have been passed down through generations and help define the traditions of the

community.

Umpqua

The Umpqua River estuary is Oregon’s third largest bay. Head of tide extends to river

mile (RM) 27.5. The jetty channel is subject to strong tidal conditions, and breaking

waves can be encountered on the bay at any time. The Umpqua River is Oregon’s

second longest coastal river and is dominated for much of the year by freshwater runoff

from seasonal rains and snowmelt originating in the Cascades. The Smith River is a

large coastal river that flows into the Umpqua River estuary 11.5 miles above the jetty.

This is the longest stretch of river on the West Coast without a dam.

Native fish in the lower Umpqua include: Fall Chinook salmon, Spring Chinook

salmon, Coho salmon, Winter steelhead, Coastal Cutthroat trout, Pacific lamprey,

Western Brook lamprey, and Umpqua Chub. Chinook Salmon return to the Umpqua in

the spring and fall, and to the Smith River in the fall. Umpqua Bay is known for the

largest softshell clams of any of Oregon’s bays. The most productive clam beds are

located on Bolon Island.

Siuslaw

The Siuslaw River estuary is narrow and crooked with the main tributary to this estuary

being the Siuslaw River. Between 30-40% of the surface area at high tide is dominated

by tidal flats, more extensive upstream in the estuary. Head of tide extends to RM 25.

The North Fork Siuslaw watershed contains over 100 miles of anadromous fish habitat

and historically provided habitat for fall Chinook salmon, Coho salmon, winter

steelhead, and sea run cutthroat trout.

Historically, the Siuslaw Tribe’s main camp was located along the lower North Fork

and main river estuaries. Members harvested clams, mussels, seals, shellfish, ducks,

geese, and other abundant saltwater and freshwater foods. Most Siuslaw passed the

winter season along the lower river, moving upriver during peak salmon fishing times

or for lamprey fishing, hunting and trapping, and berry picking. The Siuslaw used

fibrous plants and western red cedar in making baskets, traps, and weirs. The cedar was

also important in making houses and canoes.

3.1.5 Other Tribal Waters: In addition to the major estuaries, there are numerous

smaller waterways that drain to the Pacific Ocean within the Tribe’s Area of Interest.

Many of these waterways are significant to the Tribe’s history, culture, and subsistence.

The following list identifies notable waters that drain either directly to the Pacific Ocean

or into one of the larger estuaries on the coast, and are therefore covered by this Plan.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

Table 3.1.5. Other Waters within CTCLUSI Area of Interest

Coos County

Saunders Creek

Tenmile Creek

Big Creek

First Creek

Second Creek

Cave Creek

Munsel Creek

Fivemile Creek

Threemile Creek

Whiskey Run

Cut Creek

Douglas County

Siltcoos River

Tahkenitch Creek

Threemile Creek

Lane County

Tenmile Creek

Mill Creek

Tokatee Creek

Nancy Creek

Rock Creek

Big Creek

China Creek

Blowout Creek

Cape Creek

Horse Creek

Berry Creek

Sutton Creek

Curry County

Sixes River

Finally, the Tribe’s Area of Interest extends west twelve miles past the continental shelf

out into the Pacific Ocean (beyond which are international waters). Oil spills and

releases of hazardous materials in offshore areas have the potential to impact estuaries,

habitats, and tribal resources of significance to the Tribe.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

Tribal Uses and Activities related to Cultural Heritage

For the Tribe, environmental resources are cultural resources. For example, when

people gather food or materials in a place for thousands of years, that place connects the

people through stories, language, and shared experience. Nearly everything was treated

as having a spirit, and spirits could exert a positive influence on people’s lives. This

Plan emphasizes the Tribe’s cultural resources and cultural connections to the estuarine

environment, tribal economic self-sufficiency, and protection of biodiversity.

Since time immemorial, tribal members have used the estuaries and waters within the

Ancestral Territory for shelter, ceremony, sustenance, and spirituality. Although the

condition of the land and the waters has been modified and degraded over the past

hundred years, it is of critical importance to the Tribe to protect these resources in order

to continue the Tribe’s traditions and way of life. Healthy estuaries are necessary to

continue customary fishing and gathering both from shore and offshore; customary

hunting; tribal activities and resources related to ceremony, training, song, and story. In

addition, actions taken along the shores of Tribal waters can impact historical

residences, village sites, burial grounds, and other archeological resources. These

resources are irreplaceable in the values they provide to the Tribe’s culture and

heritage, its members and way of life.

4.1 Sensitive Sites and Resources at Risk

As important as the Tribe’s use of the estuaries, are the many sensitive sites within the

Tribe’s Area of Interest. These areas are particularly vulnerable to contamination from

oil or other hazardous materials. Sensitive sites can be categorized generally by habitat

types, archeological features, and cultural values, and include:

a. Subsistence harvest sites

b. Archeological sites

c. Culturally important sites

d. Submerged aquatic vegetation: all types of subtidal grass beds

e. Marine Mammals: haul-out and pupping areas

f. Endangered species: habitat areas

g. Waterfowl: nesting and wintering concentration areas

h. Seabirds: rookeries and wintering concentration areas

i. Wading birds: rookeries, important foraging areas

j. Gulls/terns: nesting sites

k. Raptors: Nest sites, important forage areas

l. Salmon/trout: spawning streams

m. Nearshore fish species: nursery areas, unique concentration areas

n. Shellfish: seed beds, abundant beds

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

o. Shrimp: nursery areas

p. Crabs: nursery areas, high concentration sites

q. Marine sanctuaries

A multitude of sensitive fish and wildlife resources can be found year-round or

seasonally within the Tribe’s Area of Interest. Resources of concern to the Tribe include:

4.1.1 Habitats



Intertidal and Shallow Subtidal Mud or Sand Flats: These habitats are rich in

benthic organisms and are important foraging areas for salmon, crabs, fish, and

shorebirds.

Eelgrass: Eelgrass beds serve as important nursery and foraging areas for

salmon, crabs, fish, and waterfowl.

Oyster Beds: Oyster beds and surface deposits of shell fragments support high

densities of crabs, invertebrates, and fishes.

Salt Marshes: Salt marshes support a wide variety of insect, bird, fish, plant, and

wildlife species.

Tributaries: Smaller rivers and tributary streams flowing into the estuaries serve

as important salmon migration routes and provide important spawning and

rearing habitats.

Nearshore Waters: Nearshore waters are rich in nutrients and support the food

web including fish, birds, and mammals.

Offshore Waters: Deeper waters are important to migrating and resident

seabirds, marine fish, and mammals.

Outer Sand Beaches: Beaches provide important shorebird habitat.

Stream Mouths on Outer Beaches: A variety of wildlife congregate at stream

mouths.

4.1.2 Fish



Juvenile Salmonids: Estuaries provide important nursery and foraging areas for

juvenile salmonids including coastal cutthroat trout, steelhead, Chinook and

Coho salmon.

Herring: Herring spawn in eelgrass beds within the estuaries.

Marine Fish: Estuaries provide habitat for marine fish including white and green

sturgeon, starry flounder, and eulachon.

Lamprey: The estuaries provide habitat for Pacific lamprey.

Crabs: Estuaries provide nursery areas for juvenile stages of Dungeness crab

populations.

Oysters: There are several areas of commercial oyster culture in the estuaries.

Both commercial and natural oyster beds provide habitat benefits to native fish

and shellfish.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018



Clams: Several species of clams and cockles are found throughout the estuaries.

4.1.3 Wildlife



Waterfowl: Waterfowl concentrate in Tribal waters from fall through spring.

Seabirds: The estuaries provide regular feeding, roosting, and resting areas for

migrating and resident seabirds.

Eagles: Bald Eagles nest throughout the region and forage in and around the

estuaries and other Tribal waters.

Seals: There are many harbor seal foraging, pupping, and haulout areas located

in and around the estuaries.

For fish and wildlife resources, the Tribe will emphasize the need to protect habitats

where:

 Large numbers of animals are concentrated in small areas;

 Animals come ashore for birthing, resting, or molting;

 Early life stages are present in restricted areas or shallow water (anadromous fish

streams);

 Habitats are very important to specific life stages or migration patterns;

 Specific areas are known to be vital sources for seed or propagation;

 The area is an important subsistence harvest site; and/or

 A significant percentage of the population is likely to be exposed to

contaminants.

Traditional food sources harvested from the waters within the Tribe’s Ancestral

Territory have been relied upon for thousands of years. Some of those traditional foods,

and the names used today and by the CTCLUSI, are set forth in the following tables.

Table 4.1. Traditional Coos Shellfish, Crustaceans, and Other Foodstuffs in Coos

Bay

Common Name

Acorn Barnacle

Butter Clam

Chinook Salmon

Chiton

Clam (any kind)

Cockle

Coho Salmon

Dungeness Crab

Eulachon

Eel grass

Gaper Clam

CTCLUSI Language Name

K’a’ax

Ku’me

Domsiiwaq

Qwhlaichat

Tluush

Mayawa

Atlaq

Tlka

Hlqalqas

Ki’nak’

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

Scientific Name

Balanus spp.

Saxidomus gigantea

Oncorhynchus tshawytscha

Chitonidae

Bivalvia

Clinocardium nuttallii

Oncorhynchus kisutch

Metacarcinus magister

Thaleichthys pacificus

Zostera marina

Tresus capax

Green Sturgeon

Herring

Kelp

Lamprey

Little Neck Clam

Mussel

Native Oyster

Octopus

Pacific Lamprey

Razor Clam

Red Rock Crab

Sea Lettuce

Shrimp

Starry Flounder

White Sturgeon

Mitsnat

K’wek’w

Qalqas

Acipenser medirostris

Clupea pallasii

Nereocystis luetkeana

Petromyzontiformes

K’enhl

Kwiluxson

Tlauxkai

Leukoma staminea (formerly Protothaca)

Sinkwot

Shilish

Kalawa

Tl’kiinix

Wayaq’

Sitlik’

Maq’axa

Mytilus edulis

Ostrea lurida

Octopus spp.

Entosphenus tridentatus

Siliqua patula

Cancer productus

Ulva spp.

Pandalus spp.

Platichthys stellatus

Acipenser transmontanus

Table 4.2. Traditional Lower Umpqua Shellfish, Crustaceans, and Other

Foodstuffs in Umpqua Estuary

Common Name

Butter Clam

Chiton

Chinook Salmon

Cockle

Coho Salmon

Dungeness Crab

Eel grass

Eulachon

Gaper Clam

Green Sturgeon

Herring

Kelp

Lamprey

Little Neck Clam

Mussel

Native Oyster

Octopus

Pacific Lamprey

Razor Clam

Red Rock Crab

CTCLUSI Language Name

Kuum

QIya’yaq

Hluu’pchI

Na’waq

Hiims

Mam3wai

Hlaquwa’

Pahu

Hakwii

Q!aii’niku

Łkaasi

Ka’wit’ax

Kwatl

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

Scientific Name

Saxidomus gigantea

Chitonidae

Oncorhynchus tshawytscha

Clinocardium nuttallii

Oncorhynchus kisutch

Metacarcinus magister

Zostera marina

Thaleichthys pacificus

Tresus capax

Acipenser medirostris

Clupea pallasii

Nereocystis luetkeana

Petromyzontiformes

Leukoma staminea

Mytilus edulis

Ostrea lurida

Octopus spp.

Entosphenus tridentatus

Siliqua patula

Cancer productus

Sea Lettuce

Shrimp

Spring Chinook Salmon

Starry Flounder

White Sturgeon

L!mI’kshuu

Tłii’t

Ulva spp.

Pandalus spp.

Oncorhynchus tshawytscha

Platichthys stellatus

Acipenser transmontanus

Table 4.3. Traditional Siuslaw Shellfish, Crustaceans, and Other Foodstuffs in

Siuslaw Estuary

Common Name

Butter Clam

Chinook Salmon

Chiton

Cockle

Coho Salmon

Gaper Clam

Dungeness Crab

Eel grass

Eulachon

Green Sturgeon

Herring

Kelp

Lamprey

Little Neck Clam

Mussel

Native Oyster

Octopus

Pacific Lamprey

Razor Clam

Red Rock Crab

Sea Lettuce

Shrimp

Starry Flounder

White Sturgeon

CTCLUSI Language Name

Kuum

QIya’yaq

Hluu’pchI

Hiims

Na’waq

Mam3wai

Hlaquwa’

Pahu

Hakwii

Q!aii’niku

Mətkiimis

Ka’wit’ax

Kwatl

L!mI’kshuu

Tłii’t

Scientific Name

Saxidomus gigantea

Oncorhynchus tshawytscha

Chitonidae

Clinocardium nuttallii

Oncorhynchus kisutch

Tresus capax

Metacarcinus magister

Zostera marina

Thaleichthys pacificus

Acipenser medirostris

Clupea pallasii

Nereocystis luetkeana

Petromzontiformes

Leukoma staminea

Mytilus edulis

Ostrea lurida

Octopus spp.

Entosphenus tridentatus

Siliqua patula

Cancer productus

Ulva spp.

Pandalus spp

Platichthys stellatus

Acipenser transmontanus

4.1.4 Culturally Important Sites

Culturally sensitive sites are present within the Tribe’s Area of Interest. Due to the

nature of this information, details regarding the location and type of cultural resources

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

present are not included in this Plan. To ensure spill response strategies do not

inadvertently harm historical and culturally important sites, the Tribe should be

consulted before disturbing any soil or sediment during a response action. The Tribe

maintains information on the location of culturally sensitive sites and may provide

information on cultural resources at risk during response actions.

Cultural historical and archeological resources may include, but are not limited to, any

of the following items:

 Human remains, burial sites, or burial-related materials;

 Bone (burned, modified, or in association with other bone, artifacts, or features);

 Shell or shell fragments;

 Lithic debitage (stone chips and other tool-making byproducts);

 Flaked or ground stone tools;

 Exotic rock or minerals;

 Concentrations of organically stained sediments, charcoal, or ash;

 Fire-modified rock;

 Rock alignments or rock structures;

 Petroglyphs and pictographs;

 Fish weirs and traps;

 Culturally modified trees; or

 Physical locations or features (traditional cultural properties).

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

5. Risk Assessment

To increase the effectiveness of response measures, it is important to understand and

identify potential sources of spills and contamination in advance. A spill is any

uncontrolled release of oil or hazardous material. Vessels, railways, roads (bridges), and

even gas stations present spill risks. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality

(DEQ) has identified potential spill sources along Oregon’s coastline.

In addition to human-caused spills, there are several natural hazard considerations

present in this area. Most significant is the Cascadia Subduction Zone (CSZ), a 600-mile

fault that lies offshore of the Tribe’s Area of Interest and presents risk of catastrophic

earthquake and tsunami. The CSZ has produced magnitude 9.0 or greater earthquakes

in the past, and will undoubtedly do so again in the future. The last known CSZ

earthquake in the Pacific Northwest was in January of 1700, just over 300 years ago.

Geologic evidence shows that these great earthquakes have occurred every 400 to 600

years over the last 3,500 years. Oregon has the potential for a 9.0+ magnitude

earthquake and a resulting tsunami of up to 100 feet in height that will impact the

coastal area. In addition, climate change will cause sea levels to rise and increasingly

extreme weather events. Changes in storm surge heights will result as the occurrence of

strong winds and storms increases. These events are likely to cause increased shoreline

erosion and related risks to shore-based facilities that may increase risk of spill or

release.

The Tribe will consider the potential natural risks to the siting and operation of facilities

that handle, produce, or otherwise are potential sources of oil spills or hazardous

material releases. The following sub-sections set out examples of spill risks from human

development within the Tribe’s Area of Interest.

5.1 Vessels

Vessel collisions and groundings are a potential source of contamination and spills. For

example, in a 1991 event, the fish processor vessel Tenyo Maru collided with a freighter

within Canadian Territorial waters approximately 20 miles northwest of Cape Flattery.

Bunker fuel washed up as far south as Lincoln City from the wreck site. Tarballs

occasionally wash up on Oregon’s beaches. This demonstrates the vast distances that

nearshore currents are capable of transporting floating product.

In February 1999, the New Carissa, a 640-foot freighter, ran aground during a major

winter storm while carrying nearly 400,000 gallons of fuel oil and diesel. After days of

heavy surf, the New Carissa broke in half and released approximately 70,000 to 140,000

gallons of fuel into the marine shore environment. A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

assessment team estimated that 2,453 seabirds (including 262 marbled murrelets) were

killed or injured by the spill. Although the Tribe is now a trustee, we were not included

as a partner in the response or restoration projects as a result of the spill, and the Tribe

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

has never been compensated for the damages that were done to Tribal resources

including traditional harvesting areas to date.

Refined fossil fuel products in barges and small tankers are transported close to the

Oregon shoreline. Cargo vessels with bunker fuels enter and leave coastal ports. New

development of oil and gas terminals will increase the risk of spills. In addition,

alterations to the navigation channel within Coos Bay (including for example widening

or deepening the channel) may increase vessel traffic and consequently increase risk of

oil spills or hazardous materials releases within the estuary.

5.2 Pipelines

During construction, pipelines are a potential source of spill and contamination. Once in

operation, pipelines have the potential to present a serious safety hazard for Tribal

members and the local communities in the area where they are located. A gas

transmission pipeline is located within the Tribe’s Area of Interest. In the Coos Bay area,

Northwest Natural operates a gas transmission pipeline that crosses under the Coos

Bay from Empire to the North Spit, and also crosses higher in the estuary in the Isthmus

Slough near the intersection of US Highway 101 and Sumner-Fairview Road. Pacific

Connector Pipeline is proposing to construct a 36-inch diameter natural gas pipeline

that would cross the Coos River as well as the main Coos Bay estuary to meet a terminal

on the North Spit of Coos Bay. Both pipeline construction and operation present spill

risks to important areas to the Tribe including the Coos River and Jordan Cove.

5.3 Bridges

Bridge crossings present a risk due to accident or overturning vehicles. For example,

double tanker trucks haul fuel (gasoline or diesel) on highways throughout Oregon. In

the event of an accident, the contents of tankers could be released from bridges or roads

into nearby waters. Each of the major estuaries in the Tribe’s area of interest is crossed

by at least one bridge.



US Highway 101 crosses the Siuslaw River at approximately RM 4.

US Highway 101 crosses the Umpqua River at approximately RM 9.

US Highway 101 crosses the Coos Bay at Haynes Inlet in the north bay and at

Coalbank Slough and Davis Slough in the south.

The Cape Arago Highway (Hwy 540) crosses Coos Bay at Charleston/South

Slough.

Crown Point Road crosses Coos Bay at Joe Nay Slough (at Crown Point).

The Coos River Highway (Hwy 241) crosses Coos Bay at Catching Slough.

Newport Lane crosses Coos Bay at Isthmus Slough.

Hwy 241 crosses the Coos River at Graveyard Point.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

US Highway 101 also crosses many of the smaller waterways that drain to the Pacific,

including: Siltcoos Creek, which drains Siltcoos Lake at RM2; Winchester Creek at RM0;

and Tenmile Creek at RM4.

5.4 Railways

Railways pose risk due to the potential for accident or overturning rail cars. In 2016, a

Union Pacific train carrying Bakken crude oil derailed in Mosier, Oregon, adjacent to

the Columbia River, Rock Creek and a wetland. Sixteen cars derailed, three caught fire

and another four discharged oil. Containment booms were used to protect the nearby

waterways. Cleanup efforts required excavation of soils, potentially disturbing artifacts

or other resources of the nearby Tribes.

There are multiple rail crossings and lines in and adjacent to the key estuaries within

the Tribe’s Area of Interest. At the Siuslaw River, the Central Oregon & Pacific Line

crosses the river near RM 8 and proceeds along the south slough. Within the Umpqua

River, several rail lines converge in the vicinity of Bolon Island including the Central

Oregon & Pacific Line, Portland and Northern Railway, and Longview Lines. In Coos

Bay, a Union Pacific rail bridge crosses the main bay near RM 7, and several other rail

spurs and lines are located around the Bay including the Central Oregon and Pacific

Railroad on the North Spit, and the Union Pacific line along Haynes Inlet and the North

Slough in the north, and crossing at Coalbank Slough and along Isthmus Slough to the

south.

5.5 Industrial Shoreline Facilities

Industrial facilities located along the coastal and estuary shoreline have the potential to

be a source of release of oil or hazardous materials. For example, in January 2018, a

4,200-gallon tank located under a pier in Astoria began leaking oil into the Columbia

River, prompting a spill response action.

In Coos Bay, there are several industrial facilities located along the shore including

lumber (chip) mills, boat maintenance and repair, and related fueling operations. In

Reedsport, the Fred Wahl Marine Construction Company is located near Highway 101

and the Umpqua estuary. Past activities on the site have resulted in contamination on

the land, and practices that have resulted in direct discharge of untreated wastewaters

directly to the river. Through use of best management practices, most discharges can be

controlled at this type of facility. However, where contamination has already occurred,

the Tribe is concerned with proper cleanup to reduce the risk of recontamination

through sediment disturbance or groundwater migration. The Tribe will remain

apprised of new or potential industrial facilities, such as LNG (liquefied natural gas)

facilities, to understand the risks they may pose and evaluate spill response plans

adopted by the operators of those facilities.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

5.6 Upland Disposal Sites

Upland disposal sites where contaminated dredged materials are placed have the

potential to be a source of release in the event of tsunami, earthquake, or sea level rise.

In addition, dredging activities within estuaries and coastal waters, such as navigation

challenge maintenance dredging or other in-water development can re-distribute legacy

chemicals into the environment. The Tribe has an interest in ensuring future

development including dredge disposal will be designed and located to avoid

contamination by spill or release.

5.7 Existing Data, Analysis and Gaps

There are many sources of information available to identify sensitive resources, water

quality protections, and spill risk locations. These sources should be consulted in

preparation for an event. Below is a list of existing data sources that may provide

relevant and helpful information for spill response planning. This list should not be

considered exclusive, as new databases and information resources continue to be

developed.

Table 5.7: Existing Data Sources

Data Source

CTCLUSI water

quality collection

data loggers

Location/Citation

https://ctclusi.org/waterqualit

yprogram

Description

The Tribe’s water quality program collects data

for water quality parameters including water

temperature, turbidity, salinity, pH, dissolved

oxygen, and bacteria. Continuous data loggers

collect a sample every fifteen minutes.

Environmental

Response

Management

Application

(ERMA)

https://erma.noaa.gov/northw

est/erma.html

Pacific Northwest ERMA is an online mapping

tool that allows stakeholders and communities to

visualize ecological, land use, and infrastructure

data in one centralized location. With the

increase in oil transported by rail in the region,

along with existing marine traffic, emergency

planners are relying upon ERMA to help prepare

and respond to environmental pollution

incidents in Washington and Oregon.

Marine Cadastre

https://marinecadastre.gov/da

ta/

MarineCadastre.gov is an integrated marine

information system that provides data, tools, and

technical support for ocean and Great Lakes

planning. MarineCadastre.gov was designed

specifically to support renewable energy siting

on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf but also

is being used for other ocean-related efforts.

Marine Casualty

& Pollution Data

for Researchers:

U.S. Coast Guard

http://www.dco.uscg.mil/Ou

r-Organization/AssistantCommandant-for-PreventionPolicy-CG-5P/InspectionsCompliance-CG-5PC-/Office-

The Marine Casualty and Pollution Data files

provide details about marine casualty and

pollution incidents investigated by Coast Guard

Offices throughout the United States. The

database can be used to analyze marine accidents

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

of-Investigations-CasualtyAnalysis/Marine-Casualtyand-Pollution-Data-forResearchers-/

and pollution incidents by a variety of factors

including vessel or facility type, injuries,

fatalities, pollutant details, location, and date.

The data collection period began in 1982 for

marine casualties and 1973 for polluting

incidents, and is ongoing.

Marine

Traditional

Knowledge

Ethnographic

Database

http://tdntek.ecotrust.org/

This tool is the result of a project between the

Tolowa Dee-Ni' Nation and Ecotrust to migrate

an existing marine traditional ethnographic

knowledge into a more user-friendly, spatially

enabled web application. It is hoped that this tool

will help tribes to retain and organize their

traditional knowledge and have a new way to

share it with future generations.

National Pipeline

Mapping System

https://www.npms.phmsa.dot.

gov

The National Pipeline Mapping System (NPMS)

Public Map Viewer is a web-based mapping

application designed to assist the general public

with displaying and querying data related to

gas transmission and hazardous liquid pipelines,

liquefied natural gas plants, and breakout tanks

under Department of Transportation (DOT)

Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety

Administration (PHMSA) jurisdiction.

Northwest

Association of

Networked

Ocean Observing

Systems

(NANOOS) NVS

http://nvs.nanoos.org/

NANOOS is the Regional Association of the

national Integrated Ocean Observing System

(IOOS) in the Pacific Northwest, primarily

Washington and Oregon. The goals of NANOOS

are to present existing and develop new and

experimental prediction data and products to

address the ocean observing and predicting

needs of local stakeholders such as tribes, local

governments, educators, and the general public.

NOAA Digital

Coast

https://coast.noaa.gov/digitalc

oast/

This NOAA-sponsored website is focused on

helping communities address coastal issues. The

site contains visualization tools, predictive tools,

and tools that make data easier to find and use.

Training courses are available online.

Information is also organized by focus area or

topic.

Oregon Coastal

Atlas

http://www.coastalatlas.net/

The Oregon Coastal Atlas is a multi-group

project that has the goal of being a useful

resource for the various audiences that make up

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

the management constituency of the Oregon

Coastal Zone. The project is a depot for

traditional and digital information, which can be

used to inform decision-making relating to the

Oregon Coastal Zone.

Oregon

Department of

Geology and

Mineral

Industries

(DOGAMI)

LIDAR viewer

https://gis.dogami.oregon.gov

/lidarviewer/

The Lidar Data Viewer interactive map shows

the current extent of lidar data for the state of

Oregon, including downloadable data by 7.5

minute USGS quadrangle. The data are

maintained by the Oregon Department of

Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI).

Oregon

Environmental

Cleanup Site

Information

Database (ECSI)

Oregon Ocean

Policy Advisory

Council (OPAC)

http://www.oregon.gov/deq/

Hazards-and-Cleanup/envcleanup/Pages/ecsi.aspx

DEQ maintains the ECSI database to track sites

in Oregon with known or potential

contamination from hazardous substances.

http://www.oregon.gov/LCD

/opac/Pages/index.aspx

The Oregon Ocean Policy Advisory Council

(OPAC) is a legislatively mandated marine

policy advisory body to the Governor of Oregon.

Meetings of OPAC are usually held in cities on

the Oregon coast.

Oregon Spatial

Data Library

http://spatialdata.oregonexplo

rer.info/geoportal/

The Oregon Spatial Data Library is a joint effort

between the Department of Administrative

Services Geospatial Enterprise Office and Oregon

State University. Currently, hundreds of spatial

datasets are accessible from the Oregon Spatial

Data Library, including all of the statewide

framework data available for Oregon. These

datasets serve as base data for a variety of

Geographic Information System (GIS)

applications that support research, business and

public services.

Oregon Water

Quality

Standards

http://www.oregon.gov/deq/

wq/Pages/WQ-Standards.aspx

The Oregon Department of Environmental

Quality (DEQ) uses water quality standards to

assess whether the quality of Oregon's rivers and

lakes is adequate for fish and other aquatic life,

recreation, drinking, agriculture, industry and

other uses. DEQ also uses the standards as

regulatory tools to prevent pollution of the state's

waters.

South Slough

Reserve water

quality

monitoring

http://cdmo.baruch.sc.edu/

The System-Wide Monitoring Program (SWMP)

is a nationally coordinated effort that provides

long-term weather, water quality, biological

community, habitat, and land use/cover

information about estuaries and coastal

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

ecosystems for research, education, and coastal

management applications. Monitoring began in

1995 when the South Slough Reserve installed

two continuous water quality stations as part of

their System-Wide Monitoring Program.

Toxic Release

Inventory: U.S.

EPA

https://www.epa.gov/toxicsrelease-inventory-triprogram/tri-listed-chemicals

The Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) is a resource

for learning about toxic chemical releases and

pollution prevention activities reported by

industrial and federal facilities.

West Coast

Ocean Data

Portal

http://portal.westcoastoceans.

org/

The West Coast Ocean Data Portal is a project to

increase discovery and connectivity of ocean and

coastal data and people to better inform regional

resource management, policy development, and

ocean planning. The Portal informs priority West

Coast ocean issues such as tracking sources and

patterns of marine debris, adaptation to sea level

rise, understanding impacts of ocean

acidification on our coasts, and marine planning.

West Coast

Regional

Planning Body

http://www.westcoastmarinep

lanning.org/

The West Coast Regional Planning Body (RPB) is

a partnership between U.S. federal agencies, the

three West Coast states of Washington, Oregon

and California, 13 federally-recognized tribal

governments and the Pacific Fishery

Management Council, focused on discussing

existing and emerging uses of our ocean.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

Outreach and Education / Stakeholder Engagement

This Plan will be most effective if Tribal leaders, Tribal members, state and federal

agencies, and the public are aware of and understand the Plan. To meet that goal, the

Tribe will conduct communications and engagement in an inclusive, open, and

transparent way. The involvement of Tribal members and local communities are

essential to the effectiveness of the Plan. Tribal members and coastal communities will

experience the impacts of spill events and have insight into the sensitive and important

resources to be protected in the event of a spill event.

As part of the development of this plan, the Tribe engaged in discussions with Oregon

DEQ, Oregon Office of Emergency Management (OEM), and U.S. Department of

Interior (DOI) in order to communicate the Tribe’s intent and integrate this plan with

those of other agencies with relevant authorities in responding to spill events. The Tribe

will meet with the Captain of the Port and the Northwest Area Committee Regional

Response Team to introduce this Plan to the regional team coordinators, develop

relationships and build trust in advance of a spill or release and response effort.

As part of the development of this Plan, a draft was presented to the community at the

Tribal Council meeting in May 2018. Tribal members and Tribal Council members

commented in support of the plan, and raised issues including:

 Highlighting the Tribe’s historical treatment by the U.S., exclusion from past spill

recovery activities, and current role as a trustee;

 The importance of shellfish to the Tribe;

 Including fish and traditional food sources from the three major estuaries; and

 Educating community members about the laws regulating proper use and

handling of toxic substances and other methods to reduce risks of spills or

intentional discharges to Tribal waters.

Comments received on the Plan during that public process have been incorporated into

this Plan.

The Tribe will develop outreach materials tailored to address gaps in understanding

and inform and promote community member engagement.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

Applicable Policies and Legal Authorities

Many laws and regulations apply to the development of response plans and cleanup

actions. The following provides a brief overview of some of the most relevant

provisions applicable to this Plan and the Tribe’s role in responding to oil spills or

hazardous materials releases.

The Tribe is federally recognized pursuant to the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw

Restoration Act of October 17, 1984, Public Law No. 98-481, 98 Stat. 2250. Under that

authority, and in accordance with the Indian Reorganization Act of June 18, 1934, 48

Stat. 984, as amended, the Tribe established its Tribal government and adopted its

Constitution to protect its unique identity, secure the rights and powers inherent as an

Indian tribe, and preserve and promote cultural, religious and historical beliefs, among

other purposes. As a federally recognized tribe, the Tribe is entitled to all services and

benefits furnished to federally recognized tribes.

The Federal Water Pollution Control Act (also known as the Clean Water Act), 33 U.S.C.

§ 1251 et seq. (specifically 33 U.S.C. § 1321 et seq.), and the Comprehensive Emergency

Response Compensation and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA, or Superfund), 42 U.S.C. §

9601 et seq., provide for the development of a National Planning and Response System.

The Clean Water Act provides for coordination with tribal governments with respect to

oil spill prevention, preparedness, response and natural resource damage assessment,

and requires the U.S. Coast Guard to include representatives of affected tribes in

incident command for spill response and to share information with affected tribes and

include tribal governments in spill response decision-making. 33 U.S.C § 1321b.

Pursuant to CERCLA, tribes are entitled to receive substantially the same treatment as a

state with respect to notification of releases, consultation on remedial actions, access to

information, health authorities, and other provisions. 42 U.S.C. § 9626.

The National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), 40 CFR

Part 300, provides for the establishment of Area Committees, composed of personnel

from federal and state agencies who coordinate response actions with tribal and local

governments. The NCP states that regional planning and coordination of preparedness

and response actions shall be accomplished through Regional Response Teams (RRT).

40 CFR § 300.115. The Region 10 RRT and Northwest Area Committee (NWAC)

adopted the Northwest Area Contingency Plan (NWACP) as the spill contingency plan

for the Northwest Area.2 The NWACP is essentially a Memorandum of Understanding

by which all RRT and Area Committee member agencies will conduct responses to

releases of hazardous substances and oil discharges. The NWACP recognizes that each

federally recognized tribe has the right to initiate government-to-government

2 The 2018 NWACP is available at https://www.rrt10nwac.com/nwacp/ (last visited

March 25, 2018).

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

consultation on the policies within the NWACP at any time prior to or during an

incident. The NWACP states that NWAC agencies seek meaningful tribal engagement

and mutually effective policies. The Tribe expects that NWAC agencies will consult

with the Tribe on policies that are applicable to the Tribe’s area of interest. The Tribe

intends for this Plan to be referenced by, consistent with, and complementary to the

NWACP.

The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act, 42 U.S.C. § 11001 et seq.,

(EPCRA) serves to inform communities of chemical hazards in their areas. EPCRA

Section 313 requires covered facilities to annually report to EPA and their state on

releases and transfers of toxic chemicals. EPA is required to make this data available to

the public in a database, the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI). EPCRA also encourages

and supports planning for responding to environmental emergencies. EPA regulations

under EPCRA Section 313 establish requirements for covered facilities located in Indian

country to report TRI information to the appropriate tribe(s). See 40 CFR Part 372.

The Oil Pollution Act (OPA) amended Section 311 of the Clean Water Act to provide

new requirements for preventing, preparing for, and responding to any oil spill

affecting inland U.S. waters, expanded liability provisions, and strengthened the Oil

Spill Liability Trust Fund to provide greater resources to respond to oil spills. The OPA

allows for tribal trustees for natural resources. 33 U.S.C. § 2706. Although the federal

government must direct all public and private response efforts to spills, tribes may

implement their own non-federal oil programs. Tribal natural resources trustees’ costs

incurred in restoring or rehabilitating natural resources damaged by an oil spill can be

funded through the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund. See 33 U.S.C. § 2712.

State and federal laws prohibit excavation, destruction or alteration of any archeological

site or archeological objects without permits or special permissions. Destruction or

damage to any human burial site, human remains or American Indian sacred or special

objects is also prohibited. See, e.g., National Historic Preservation Act, 16 U.S.C. § 470 et

seq.; Archeological Resources Protection Act, 16 U.S.C. § 470aa-470mm; Native

American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, 25 U.S.C. § 3001 et seq.; Oregon Laws

Protecting Indian Graves, ORS 97.740 et seq.; Archaeological Objects and Site

Protections, ORS 358.905 et seq. Cultural resources can be affected during various stages

of the cleanup process, including site assessment, remedial investigation, and the

cleanup action itself. Any investigation or cleanup that has federal involvement triggers

Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, requiring consultation with the

Tribe regarding potential impacts to religious or culturally important resources.

The location and existence of cultural resources is highly sensitive information. To

protect these resources, it is important that this information be kept confidential.

Oregon public records law allows state agencies to hold sensitive cultural resource

information confidential. See ORS 192.501.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

Table 7.1: Applicable Tribal Laws and Policies

Constitution of the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw

Indians of Oregon.

Establishes Tribal government to secure rights and powers inherent to the Tribe,

protect and promote Tribal Identity, preserve cultural, religious and historical

beliefs, and other purposes.

Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians Spill Response

Plan.

Sets out tools for Tribal agency staff and Tribal members who may be the first point

of contact in the reporting of a spill incident, as well as Tribal staff who are

participating in response planning and implementation efforts in partnership with

lead federal and participating state agencies.

Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians Tribal Code.

Establishes regulations for Tribal governance including Government-to-Government

consultation and committee operations.

Table 7.2: Applicable State of Oregon Laws and Policies

Archaeological Objects and Site Protections, ORS 358.905 et seq.

Makes it a Class B misdemeanor to excavate, injure, destroy or alter any

archaeological site or remove any archeological object from state public or private

lands without a permit issued under ORS 390.235.

Oregon Laws Protecting Indian Graves, ORS 97.740 et seq.

Prohibits the disturbance, removal, injury or destruction of American Indian

artifacts, human remains or funerary objects. Requires consultation and notification.

Oregon Occupational Safety & Health Laws, ORS Chapter 654, OAR Chapter 437,

Division 002

Provides state authority for enforcement of occupational safety and health laws,

including employers in the public and private sectors who perform emergency

response activities.

Oregon Oil and Hazardous Material Spillage Laws and Emergency Management:

ORS 468B.300-.500, 401.025-.099, 453.347, and 466.605 to 469.680

Provide water pollution standards for oil spills, response actions, and emergency

management within the State of Oregon.

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Oregon Public Records Law, ORS 192.501

Exempts from public disclosure records containing information concerning the

location of archaeological sites or objects.

Table 7.3: Applicable Federal Laws and Policies

Archeological Resources Protection Act, 16 U.S.C. § 470aa-470mm.

Recognizes archaeological resources as irreplaceable part of America’s heritage and

provides for the protection of those resources.

Comprehensive Emergency Response Compensation and Liability Act of 1980

(CERCLA), 42 U.S.C. § 9601 et seq.

Provides for the National Contingency Plan, tribal participation in cleanup and

response actions.

Coastal Zone Management Act, 16 U.S.C. § 1451 et seq.

Provides for the management of U.S. coastal resources, with the goal to “preserve,

protect, develop, and where possible, to restore or enhance the resources of the

nation’s coastal zone.”

Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Restoration Act of October 17, 1984, Public Law

No. 98-481, 98 Stat. 2250.

Federally recognizes the confederated tribes and recognizes the Tribe is entitled to

all services and benefits furnished to federally recognized tribes.

Federal Water Pollution Control Act (Clean Water Act), 33 U.S.C. § 1321 et seq.,

Provides for the National Contingency Plan, tribal participation in enforcement and

response actions.

Hazardous Waste & Emergency Response Operations (HAZWOPER), 29 CFR Part

1910.

Regulates emergency response operations.

National Environmental Protection Act, 42 U.S.C. § 4321 et seq.

Requires evaluation of environmental impacts of proposed federal action, including

cumulative impacts and analysis of alternatives.

National Historic Preservation Act, 16 U.S.C. § 470 et seq.

Preserves historical and archeological sites. Section 106 requires federal agencies to

consider whether actions could affect historic properties and consult with state and

tribal historic preservation offices on potential impacts and protection measures.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act, 25 U.S.C. § 3001 et seq.

Provides for the protection of Native American graves. Assigns ownership and

control of Native American cultural items and human remains to Native Americans.

Oil Pollution Act of 1990, 33 U.S.C. § 2701 et seq.

Provides for prevention and response to catastrophic oil spills. Creates a trust fund

financed by a tax on oil to clean up spills when responsible party is incapable or

unwilling to do so.

U.S. National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP), 40

CFR Part 300

Provides the organizational structure and procedures for preparing for and

responding to discharges of oil and releases of hazardous substances, pollutants,

and contaminants.

Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986 (SARA) Title III, the

Emergency Planning & Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA), 42 U.S.C. § 11001 et seq., 40

CFR Part 370 – Hazardous Chemical Reporting: Community Right-to-Know

Created to help communities prepare for chemical emergencies. Requires industry

to report on the storage, use and releases of hazardous substances.

Stafford Act, 42 U.S.C. § 5121 et seq.

Provides for emergency relief funding from federal government, through FEMA,

available for hazardous material cleanups.

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Mitigation

The Tribe’s primary goal is avoiding injury to Tribal and community members, and to

Tribal resources in the first instance. Mitigation as it is often used to replace lost

resources generally is not possible for Tribal resources. This is because the people’s

relationship to the place is the result of thousands of years of use, tradition, history, and

story, as discussed above. Cultural artifacts simply cannot be replaced.

In the event that a spill event causes irreparable damage to a Tribal resource, the

responding agencies should confer with Tribal staff to understand the values of the

resource that were lost and identify potential restoration opportunities within the

Tribe’s Ancestral Territory.

In general, the Tribe approaches mitigation in the following steps:

1. Avoid impacting the resource entirely. As discussed above, many tribal

resources are irreplaceable. In the event of a spill, swift response action may

be effective in avoiding adverse impacts to Tribal resources.

2. Where avoidance is impossible, minimize impacts to the extent possible. The

Tribe understands that in some instances impacts cannot be avoided, but

expects that all practicable efforts to minimize impacts will be taken. Many of

the tools and planning elements of this Plan are designed to minimize

adverse impacts to Tribal resources.

3. Impacts that cannot be avoided or minimized should be fully mitigated to the

maximum extent. Mitigation may take the form of restoration, rehabilitation,

establishment, or enhancement of resources for the purpose of offsetting

unavoidable adverse impacts. Mitigation must be planned in consultation

with the Tribe.

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Regulatory Development Opportunities

To effectuate this Plan and support the Tribe’s role in response actions, the Tribe will

advance opportunities for legislation and ordinance adoption that recognize the Tribe’s

role and authority and reinforce the provisions of this Plan. The Tribe will also review

spill response plans developed by major new facilities operating within its Area of

Interest.

9.1 Tribal Code

The Tribe will adopt code provisions to enact the provisions of this plan.

9.2 Other Local Code Advocacy

In order to protect the Tribe’s cultural resources in estuaries within its Area of Interest,

the Tribe will work with local governments to adopt policies and ordinances to provide

for notification and consultation with the Tribe. For example, the Coos Bay Estuary

Management Plan Policy 18 (part of the Coos County Comprehensive Plan) provides

for notification and consultation with the Tribe and protection of information about

archeological sites. The Tribe will advocate for the adoption of similar provisions in

Lane and Douglas Counties to require consultation with the Tribe before activities

within the Siuslaw and Umpqua estuaries that may impact Tribal resources are

permitted.

The relevant language of Policy 18 states:

“Local government shall provide protection to historical, cultural and

archaeological sites and shall continue to refrain from widespread

dissemination of site-specific information about identified archaeological

sites.

“This strategy shall be implemented by requiring review of all

development proposals involving a cultural, archaeological or historical

site, to determine whether the project as proposed would protect the

cultural, archaeological and historical values of the site.

“The development proposal, when submitted shall include a Site Plan

Application, showing, at a minimum, all areas proposed for excavation,

clearing and construction. Within three (3) working days of receipt of the

development proposal, the local government shall notify the Coquille

Indian Tribe and Coos, Siuslaw, Lower Umpqua Tribe(s) in writing,

together with a copy of the Site Plan Application. The Tribe(s) shall have

the right to submit a written statement to the local government within

thirty (30) days of receipt of such notification, stating whether the project

as proposed would protect the cultural, historical and archaeological

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

values of the site, or if not, whether the project could be modified by

appropriate measures to protect those values.

“‘Appropriate measures’ may include, but shall not be limited to the

following:

a. Retaining the prehistoric and/or historic structure in situ or moving it

intact to another site; or

b. Paving over the site without disturbance of any human remains or

cultural objects upon the written consent of the Tribe(s); or

c. Clustering development so as to avoid disturbing the site; or

d. Setting the site aside for non-impacting activities, such as storage; or

e. If permitted pursuant to the substantive and procedural requirements

of ORS 97.750, contracting with a qualified archaeologist to excavate

the site and remove any cultural objects and human remains,

reinterring the human remains at the developer's expense; or

f. Using civil means to ensure adequate protection of the resources, such

as acquisition of easements, public dedications, or transfer of title.

“If a previously unknown or unrecorded archaeological site is

encountered in the development process, the above measures shall still

apply. Land development activities, which violate the intent of this

strategy shall be subject to penalties prescribed in ORS 97.990.

“This strategy recognizes that protection of cultural, historical and

archaeological sites is not only a community's social responsibility, it is

also legally required by ORS 97.745. It also recognizes that cultural,

historical and archaeological sites are non-renewable cultural resources.”

Coos Bay Estuary Management Plan Policy #18.

For this and similar policies to be effective and meaningful, the Tribe must be

contacted and engaged as soon as cultural resources are identified as potentially

present or impacted. The Tribe works with landowners and regulators to identify

avoidance or mitigation measures that could be implemented in advance of any

permit for development being issued. If the landowner, local government, or

other regulator waits until after permits are issued or work has begun to engage

the Tribe, any “consultation” is not meaningful and does not qualify as Tribal

consent.

9.3 Review of Facility Spill Response Plans

Facilities that could reasonably be expected to cause substantial harm to the

environment by discharging oil into navigable waters are required under Federal law

(Section 311(j)(1)(C) of the Clean Water Act as amended by the Oil Pollution Act of

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

1990) to prepare and submit facility response plans to the Environmental Protection

Agency. Oregon law requires similar plans. When these plans are developed for

facilities operating within the Tribe’s Area of Interest, the Tribe will review the plans to

ensure the plans are thorough and contain enough information, analyses, and

supporting data and documentation to demonstrate the operator’s ability to promptly

and properly remove oil or hazardous materials and minimize damage to Tribal

resources. The Tribe will compare facility response plans to this Plan to identify any

gaps in identified risks, priorities, or protection measures.

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10.

Funding

In the event of an oil spill or hazardous material release, trustees (including the Tribe)

can obtain access to federal funds. Funds are also available for planning and other

response purposes.

Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund

The National Pollution Fund Center (NPFC) manages the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund

(OSLTF). This fund is a source for payment of removal costs and damages resulting

from oil spills or incidents that threaten to spill oil into navigable waters of the United

States, adjoining shorelines, or the Exclusive Economic Zone (marine environment). In

the event of a hazardous substance release or imminent threat of a release, the federal

on-scene coordinator (FOSC) can obtain access to federal funds through CERCLA.

Where the Tribe assists the FOSC, it may receive reimbursable funding authority

through a Pollution Removal Funding Authorization (PRFA). The authorization to

establish and use this funding source is provided by the FOSC. The Tribe may also

submit claims for uncompensated removal costs or certain damages (natural resource,

real/personal property, loss of profits, loss of subsistence use of natural resources, loss

of government revenues, and increased costs of government services) caused by the oil

spill to the NPFC if the responsible party does not satisfy the claim. The Tribe may

request reimbursement of costs to carry out temporary measures to protect human

health and the environment without a contract or cooperative agreement.

Reimbursements are limited to $25,000 per hazardous substance response.

CERCLA Brownfields Program

Under CERCLA Section 128(a), the Tribe may seek grant funding for its Tribal Response

Program. Funds can be used to create new or enhance existing environmental response

programs. This Plan was developed pursuant to Section 128(a) funding. The Tribe may

seek additional funding for future revisions and additional elements of this Plan as

needed.

Stafford Act Disaster Response Funding

The Stafford Act Public Assistance program provides for emergency and natural

disaster response funding. The Act reflects federally recognized tribal governments’

status as sovereign nations, giving them the same status as states when requesting

federal disaster assistance. A tribe may declare a state of emergency on tribal lands

(may be limited to tribally-owned and trust lands) and request access to Stafford Act

benefits and federal assistance and hazardous materials cleanup funding. Under the

Stafford Act, the federal government pays 75%of costs while a tribe would pay 25%.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

This funding option is therefore more limited and may not be appropriate for oil spill or

hazardous material response funding.

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11.

Plan for Compensation Schedule

Under CERCLA, natural resource trustees are responsible for restoring, rehabilitating,

replacing or acquiring the equivalent of natural resources injured by hazardous

substance releases and losses of services provided by those natural resources. The

trustees, including tribal trustees, determine resource injuries, assess natural resource

injuries, present a claim, and recover damages (including the reasonable costs of

assessing damages) and develop a plan for restoration of resources. The Tribe will

establish a compensation schedule that will provide a simple methodology for assessing

damages to Tribal resources from oil or other hazardous material spills into fresh,

marine, and estuarine waters. The intent of the compensation schedule is to provide an

alternate methodology to the extensive and expensive natural resource damage

assessment presently being conducted following oil spills under CERCLA and the

Natural Resource Damage Assessment regulations. 40 C.F.R. § 300.

The compensation schedule will:

(1) Establish the relative vulnerability of Tribal resources to spills by taking into

consideration the relative toxicity of the materials spilled and the sensitivity of

Tribal resources present in the receiving environment; and

(2) Determine adequate monetary compensation for injury to Tribal resources resulting

from a spill.

The Tribe will develop a compensation schedule with the support of scientific and

cultural specialists.

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

12.

Training and Tools

There are a number of trainings and tools available for Tribal response officers. In

preparation for participation in a response effort, the Tribe will ensure that at least the

Tribal Response Officer has completed trainings on the National Incident Management

System and Incident Command System.

National Incident Management System

The National Incident Management System (NIMS) provides a consistent nationwide

template to enable all government, private sector, and nongovernmental organizations

to work together during incidents and response actions. NIMS utilizes the Incident

Command System (ICS). ICS is a management system that integrates facilities,

equipment, personnel, procedures, and communications within a common

organizational structure. ICS is normally structured to facilitate activities in five major

areas: command, operations, planning, logistics, and finance/administration. The

Incident Commander oversees the other four sections, in addition to public information,

safety, or liaison officers.

In order to effectively participate in a response action, the Tribal Response Officer

should complete trainings in NIMS and ICS. These are available online from the Federal

Emergency Management Administration (FEMA), at

https://training.fema.gov/emiweb/is/icsresource/TrainingMaterials.htm

HAZWOPER

The Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response Standard (HAZWOPER)

applies to employers and employees who are (or are potentially) exposed to hazardous

substances or are engaged in cleanup operations. HAZWOPER training must be

refreshed every 12 months. Unless specifically required by law, HAZWOPER training

will likely not be required for Tribal participation in ICS for response actions.

Nevertheless, it may provide helpful context to understand worker safety in a

hazardous material response event.

Regional Training Exercises

The Regional Response Team conducts emergency response drills in the Northwest

Region. The Tribe will participate in training exercises with the Regional Response

Team (following completion of ICS training) in order to identify information gaps and

challenges and better understand how the response action occurs.

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Planning Tools

The NOAA Office of Response and Restoration and EPA Office of Emergency

Management offer a suite of tools designed to assist emergency planning and response,

especially for events related to hazardous chemicals. Computer-Aided Management of

Emergency Operations (CAMEO) includes four core software programs that can (1)

estimate threat zones from chemical spills including gas clouds, fires and explosions, (2)

provide critical response information and physical properties about thousands of

hazardous chemicals, (3) manage data about facilities, transportation routes, special

locations of interest, past incidents, and response resources in a particular community,

and (4) show all of this information together on one map. More information on this tool

is available at: https://cameo.noaa.gov/

CTCLUSI Estuary Response Plan 2018

13. Spill Response Plan

The Confederated Tribes of Coos Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians developed this

spill response plan (Response Plan) for hazardous materials and oil spills for Tribal

implementation. This Response Plan is intended to be used by the Tribe and referenced

by partner agencies in response to an oil spill or hazardous materials release with the

potential to impact the Tribe’s area of interest.

The Ancestral Territory of the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua, and

Siuslaw Indians extends from the mouth of Tenmile Creek (Lane County) in the north,

south to Fivemile Point halfway between the mouths of Whiskey Run Creek and Cut

Creek (coinciding with the border between Sections 30 and 31, Township 27 South,

Range 14 West, Coos County), thence east to the crest of the Coast Range (to Weatherly

Creek on the Umpqua River). Areas of interest include, but are not limited to, the fivecounty service area: Lincoln, Coos, Curry, Douglas, and Lane counties; waters within

the Tribe’s Ancestral Territory including Tribally owned and non-Tribally owned lands;

and lands that contain headwaters of rivers or tributaries that flow through the

Ancestral Territory/Tribally owned lands.

In the event of an oil spill or hazardous materials release, federal law dictates that the

primary responsive agency will be either the U.S. Coast Guard or the U.S. EPA. Other

agencies will be collaborative in the responsive effort. The Tribe’s preference is for lowimpact protection techniques such as manual removal, passive collection, and diversion.

The Tribe intends to be actively involved in response planning and implementation of

cleanup efforts for incidents within its Ancestral Territory.

This Response Plan provides tools for Tribal agency staff and Tribal members who may

be the first point of contact in the reporting of a spill incident, as well as Tribal staff who

are participating in response planning and implementation efforts in partnership with

lead federal and participating state agencies.

As a corollary to this Response Plan, the Tribe has developed a comprehensive set of

maps identifying important and sensitive Tribal resources. The location of cultural

resources is confidential to the Tribe; therefore, the cultural resource maps are not

included with this public document. In the event of an oil spill or hazardous materials

release, responding agencies should contact and consult with the Tribe to identify

priority areas for protection.

Spill Response Plan

REQUIRED NOTIFICATIONS BY SPILLER

All spills of oil or hazardous substances into navigable waters as defined by the Clean

Water Act (CWA) and all spills of a reportable quantity of hazardous substance (40 CFR

Part 302) must be immediately reported by the spiller to the National Response Center

(NRC). The NRC will contact appropriate local U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) or

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) offices. Notifying state and Tribal offices does

not relieve the spiller from federal requirements to notify the NRC or vice versa.

National Response Center (NRC)

1-800-424-8802 Toll Free

1-202-267-2675 Toll Call

All spills of a reportable quantity* of oil or hazardous substances in Oregon must be

reported by the spiller to:

Oregon Emergency Response System (OERS)

24-hour Emergency Spill Response

1-800-452-0311 or 1-800-OILS-911 (in Oregon)

*Reportable Quantity in the State of Oregon:

For Oil: If spilled into waters of the state, or escape into waters of the state is likely, any

quantity of oil that would produce a visible oily slick, oily solids, or coat aquatic life,

habitat or property with oil, but excluding normal discharges from properly operating

marine engines; if spilled on the surface of land, any quantity of oil over one barrel (42

gallons).

For hazardous substances see OAR 340-142-0050.

For spills occurring in inland waters in Oregon, contact:

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Seattle

1-206-553-1263

(if not available, notify U.S. EPA San Francisco 1-800-300-2193)

Spill Response Plan

FIRST RESPONDER GUIDELINES

REMAIN UPWIND, UPHILL, OR UPSTREAM OF THE INCIDENT. From a safe

distance, assess the scene. Attempt to determine if radiological materials or hazardous

substances are present. Observe the following:

o Effects on people, animals, and the environment;

o Container types, markings, placards and labels. If available, use the DOT

Emergency Response Guidebook for reference;

o Signs of any released or discharged substances and any unusual or pungent

odors (move farther away or upwind if you detect an odor and are not sure it

is safe);

o Wind direction and prevailing weather;

o Distance and direction of nearby dwellings; and

o Distance and direction of any nearby surface water.

The initial responder shall then make notifications as listed in the preceding pages.

The initial responder shall not enter an area where the responder may become a

victim, even to rescue another.

Until help arrives, the initial responder should:

o Cordon off the incident area and establish a safe zone. If chemical vapors or

flammable/explosive materials are involved, evacuate all persons from the

immediate area and remain upwind of the incident area; if sources of

radiation or radioactive materials are suspected to be involved, use the

principles of time, distance, and shielding to reduce potential exposure;

o Enter the incident area only if properly trained and equipped with

appropriate protective clothing and equipment;

o Render first aid to victims; be sure to notify medical personnel if radiation

exposure or contamination is suspected;

o Serve as an on-scene communication point; and

o Brief the response team leader or incident commander upon arrival.

Spill Response Plan

Initial Assessment and Information Check List

The following information should be collected for all spills reported to the Tribe:

Date and Time of Call:

Caller Name, Address, & Phone Number:

Name of Person Taking the Report:

Vessel/Facility/Spiller Information:

Name and contact information of Potentially Responsible Party

Name of vessel/facility, railcar/truck number or other identifying information

Type and size of vessel/facility

Total quantity of fuel on board or in tank

Nationality (vessel only)

Location of incident (e.g., street address, lat/long, mile post, river mile)

Date and time of incident (or when discovered)

Description of spill (i.e., size, color, smell, etc.)

Type of incident (i.e., explosion, collision, tank failure, grounding, etc.)

10.

Material released

Spill Response Plan

11.

Source of material released

12.

Estimated amount released

13.

Resource impacted or potentially impacted (air, water, ground/soil)

14.

Weather/sea conditions

15.

Vessel/facility agent(s) name and phone

16.

Name and contact information of insurance carrier

17.

Number and type of injuries or fatalities

18.

Description of who is on-scene and what response activities are being done or

have been completed

19.

Have evacuations occurred

20.

Other agencies notified

Spill Response Plan

Contact Lists

In the event of an oil or hazardous material release event, the Tribe will coordinate with

various federal, state, and local partners. For a complete list of state and federal

agencies, refer to the Northwest Area Contingency Plan (NWACP), available at:

https://www.rrt10nwac.com/NWACP/Default.aspx

Table I.A: Primary Federal Agency Response Partners: Roles and Contacts

Agency Name

Triggers for

Areas of Expertise

Contact

Involvement

Information

Agency for Toxic

Substances and

Disease Registry

(ATSDR)

Need for public health

assessment of

oil/HazMat incident

- Toxicology

- Public health impacts

By phone, go through

the EPA Region 10 Duty

Officer (24-hour)

(800) 424-4372 or

(206) 553-4973

Bureau of Indian

Affairs (BIA)

Release is impacting or

has the ability to impact

Indian lands, shellfish

areas or cultural sites

- Identify tribal

government officials for

consultation

Through DOI:

(503) 720-1212

NW Regional Office:

(503) 231-6702

Federal Emergency

Management

Agency (FEMA)

FOSC requests advice or

assistance for civil

emergency planning

- Communication

- Interagency

coordination

Region 10 Regional

Response Coordination

Center:

(425) 487-4600

National Oceanic

and Atmospheric

Administration

(NOAA)

FOSC requests scientific

support, ESA

consultations, impacts

or potential impacts to

endangered marine

species or National

Marine Sanctuaries

- Forecast of oil

movement

- Forecast of oil fate and

persistence

- Aerial overflight oil

observations

- Tides, currents,

weather

- Chemical information

- Environmental

sensitive areas

- Natural resource

impact assessment

- Best management

practices

Office of Response and

Restoration Emergency

Response Division,

NOAA Scientific

Support Coordinator

Oil/HazMat incident

impacts a river whose

flow is controlled by

USACE dams or oil is

released from a USACE

dam

- Navigation channels

- River level and current

Portland District

Emergency Operations

Center

(503) 808-4510

U.S. Army Corps

of Engineers

(USACE)

Spill Response Plan

Spill Emergency Phone

(24 hour):

(206) 526-4911

U.S. Coast Guard

(USCG)

Provides FOSC for

coastal oil/HazMat

incidents

- Marine oil spill

response operations

- Mitigation

- Vessel safety and

navigation

- Responder safety

National Response

Center

(800) 424-8802

www.uscg.mil/d13/

U.S. Department of

Health and Human

Services (HHS)

HazMat or oil releases

that have the potential

to impact public health

- Assessment of health

hazards at a response

site

- Protection of response

workers

- Interpreting

monitoring data and

issuing public health

warnings

By phone, go through

the EPA Region 10 Duty

Officer

(800) 424-4372

U.S. Department of

Labor,

Occupational

Safety and Health

Administration

(OSHA)

FOSC requests support

assessing and

mitigating the risk of

responder health

impacts

- Review of health and

safety plans

- Review of work

practices

Portland Area Office

(non-emergency)

(503) 231-2017

U.S.

Environmental

Protection Agency

(EPA)

Provides FOSC for

inland oil/HazMat

incidents

- Environmental

sampling

- Air and water

monitoring

- Human health impacts

- Mitigation

R10 Duty Officer

(800) 424-8802

U.S. Fish and

Wildlife Service

FOSC requests support

for assessing or

mitigating risks to fish

or wildlife habitat

- Migratory birds,

- Waters and wetlands,

- Contaminants

affecting habitat

resources

- Laboratory research

facilities

Through DOI:

(503) 720-1212

www.epa.gov/oem

Table I.B: Primary State Agency Response Partners: Roles and Contacts

Agency Name

Triggers for

Areas of Expertise

Contact

Involvement

Information

Department of

State Lands (DSL)

Incidents involving or

potentially impacts

estuary, tidal, offshore

- State waters and

wetlands

Via OERS (24-hour):

(800) 452-0311

Non-emergency:

Spill Response Plan

and submerged and

submersible lands

(503) 986-5224

Legislative

Commission on

Indian Services

Incidents which may

impact or disturb

historical and/or

cultural resources, or

inadvertent discovery

- Identification of

historic archeological

resource protection

needs

Non-emergency:

(503) 986-1067

Occupational

Safety and Health

Division

Worker health issues

- Worker health

Via OERS (24-hour):

(800) 452-0311

Office of the State

Fire Marshal

Provides hazardous

materials incident

response

- Regional HazMat

Teams

- Guidance on HazMat

and emergency

response procedures

- Incident Command

System response

- Training, equipment

and response activities

Non-emergency:

(503) 378-3272

911 for fire or hazardous

materials response

Via OERS (24-hour):

(800) 452-0311

Non-emergency:

(503) 373-1540

(503) 934-8205 (Fire

Marshal)

Oregon

Department of

Environmental

Quality (DEQ)

Lead agency for

coordination of oil or

hazardous materials

response, except at

Umatilla Chemical

Depot

- Expertise on

environmental effects of

discharges, pollution

control and remediation

techniques

- Assist with hazardous

materials cleanup

- Develops

comprehensive plans

for air and water

pollution control and

waste disposal

Via OERS (24-hour):

(800) 452-0311

Oregon

Department of Fish

and Wildlife

Incidents that could

degrade fish and

wildlife and habitat

- Assessing damage to

natural resources

- Rescue and

rehabilitation of injured

wildlife

- Assist in identification

of fish and wildlife

protection needs

Via OERS (24-hours):

(800) 452-0311

- Emergency

management and

coordination of

response to disasters

In emergency (24-hour):

(800) 452-0311

oers.staff@state.or.us

oemd@oem.state.or.us

Oregon Emergency

Management

Declared emergencies

Spill Response Plan

Non-emergency:

(503) 229-5696

Non-emergency:

(503) 947-6088 (Habitat)

(503) 947-6301 (Wildlife)

(503) 947-6000 (Main)

- Provides public

information officer if

needed

(888) 695-1674 (satellite

phone)

Non-emergency:

(503) 378-2911

Oregon Health

Authority (OHA)

Primary response to

incidents involving

radioactive materials

and biological agents,

and shared coordination

for incidents with

potential to impact

public health

- Oversight of public

drinking water systems

and food service

facilities

- Monitors health

hazards

- Provides radiation

monitoring expertise

and training

Via OERS (24-hours):

(800) 452-0311

Oregon State

Historic

Preservation Office

(SHPO)

Incidents which may

impact or disturb

historical and/or

cultural resources

- Identification of

historic archeological

resource protection

needs

Via OERS (24-hour):

(800) 452-0311

Oregon State

Police

Need for Initial Incident

Command during early

phases of response,

incident site security, or

criminal investigation of

environmental crimes

- Incident Command

- Traffic control, crowd

control

- Emergency first aid

- Site security

- Communications

911 for emergency

response

Non-emergency:

(971) 246-1789 (Duty

Officer cell)

(503) 938-6790 (Duty

Officer pager)

Non-emergency:

(503) 986-0690

Via OERS (24-hour):

(800) 452-0311

Table I.C: Local, Tribal, and Nonprofit Partners: Roles and Contacts

Agency Name

Triggers for

Areas of Expertise Contact Information

Involvement

Confederated

Tribes of Siletz

Indians (CTSI)

Incident could impact

CTSI tribal resources

- Tribal resources

- Local conditions

- Traditional

Knowledge

Non-emergency:

(541) 444-2532

Coquille Indian

Tribe

Incident could impact

Coquille tribal

resources

- Tribal resources

- Local conditions

- Traditional

Knowledge

Non-emergency:

(541) 756-0904

(800) 622-5869

Cow Creek Band

of Umpqua Tribe

of Indians

Incident could impact

Cow Creek tribal

resources

- Tribal resources

- Local conditions

- Traditional

Knowledge

Non-emergency:

(541) 672-9405

(800) 929-8229

Spill Response Plan

Oregon Shores

Conservation

Coalition

Incident could impact

beaches or limit public

access to coastal areas

- Volunteers for

cleanup efforts and

citizen science

- Policy and advocacy

support

Non-emergency:

(503) 754-9303

Port of Coos Bay

Incident within the Port

of Coos Bay or railrelated incident

- Port operations

- Rail operations

- Local tides and

conditions

Non-emergency:

(541) 267-7678

Port of Siuslaw

Incident within the Port

of Siuslaw

- Port operations

- Local tides and

conditions

Non-emergency:

(541) 997-3426

(541) 997-3040

Port of Umpqua

Incident within the Port

of Umpqua

- Port operations

- Local tides and

conditions

Non-emergency:

(541) 271-2232

South Slough

National Estuarine

Research Reserve

Incident could impact

South Slough resources

- Coordination with

decision-makers

- Data collection

- local conditions

- area maps and access

information

Non-emergency:

(541) 888-5558

Surfrider

Foundation

Incident could impact

recreational resources

- Coordination with

decision-makers

- Volunteers for

cleanup efforts

- Policy and advocacy

support

Non-emergency:

Siuslaw Chapter:

chair@siuslaw.surfrider.org

Coos Bay Chapter:

chair@coosbay.surfrider.org

Oregon Field Manager,

Briana Goodwin:

bgoodwin@surfrider.org

II.

Coordination Strategies

The NCP requires that the Federal On-Scene Coordinator (FOSC) notify Tribal trustees

for Tribal natural and cultural resources that may be impacted by a release. The NCP

defines trustees to include tribal officials who act on behalf of the public to manage and

control natural resources. Trustees must be notified of oil spills and hazardous

materials incidents that may impact or threaten resources under their care. If it is

unclear whether an incident meets a Tribal trustee’s notification threshold, the trustee

should be notified. When EPA or USCG responds to an emergency using its FOSC

authority, it shall, as soon as possible, notify and offer emergency coordination to all

affected tribes. For CTCLUSI, the points of contact are:

Tribal Historic Preservation Officer: Stacy Scott, 541-888-7513

Spill Response Plan

Tribal Resource Response Officer: Janet Niessner, 541-808-5413

If the Tribe determines that Tribal resources have or may be significantly impacted by

the release, it will send a Tribal On-Scene Coordinator (TOSC). The TOSC will have

delegated authority to make decisions on behalf of the Tribe and will have been trained

in National Incident Management System/Incident Command System (NIMS/ICS)

through IS 400 class. The TOSC serves to fulfill two main objectives: 1) to ensure that

Tribal needs, priorities, and concerns are reflected in the response objectives and

decision making, and 2) to offer resources from the Tribe to support the response effort.

This is a full-time commitment for the duration of the response effort.

If there is no staff person available to fill the TOSC role, the Tribe will support the

response as a subject matter expert in the Environmental Unit. The Tribe’s

representative to the Environmental Unit will participate in decisions on response

priorities, deployment of response elements, and other implementation decisions. The

Tribe may also elect to support logistics, planning, or operations sections of the

response. If the incident is beyond the area of Tribal governing interest, but

nevertheless presents a concern to the Tribe, staff will interact with the Incident

Command and operations units through the incident’s Liaison Officer.

Even if the Tribe determines that it will not participate in the Incident Command or

through logistics, planning or operations sections of the response implementation, the

Tribe will remain informed regarding the planning and response efforts to ensure that

responses are coordinated and that any potential damage assessment information is

captured. The Oregon Office of Emergency Management (OEM) is responsible for tribal

relations during incidents requiring a coordinated state and/or federal response. The

OEM coordinates data sharing by other agencies and departments that have

responsibilities for collecting and maintaining data relevant to incident management for

incidents that involve tribes. The OEM coordinates and reports tribal emergency

management activities to the Oregon State Legislature’s Commission on Indian Services

(CIS).

If a Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) is conducted, the Tribe may elect to

participate in that effort to help define the injury caused by the release. NRDA is

separate from the response effort.

Spill Response Plan

Flowchart: Coordination Opportunities

Incident

National

Response Center

notifies Tribe

Prioritize actions,

identify most effective

techniques, define

cleanup endpoints.

Communicate with

stakeholders. Sustain

cleanup operations.

Notification

Formation of

Unified

Command

Tribal OnScene

Coordinator

opportunity

Operations

Recovery for

lost Tribal uses

Cleanup

endpoints met

Tribal

representative to

Environmental

Unit

Tribal

oversight

opportunity

Document and

assess penalties

Long term

cleanup if

needed

Spill Response Plan

III.

Notification Strategies for Incident Outreach

The Tribe will utilize the CTCLUSI Text Alert system to notify members of an incident

or spill within the Tribe’s Ancestral Territory or area of interest.

In the event of a spill or release, the Tribe will designate a Lead Information Officer

(IO). The IO will coordinate with state or federal lead agencies for public information.

The IO will:

a. Oversee incident messaging;

b. Facilitate information sharing with federal, state, and local partners;

c. Serve as subject matter experts as needed;

d. Liaise between the decision-makers and the news media;

e. Provide timely, accurate, coordinated information to response teams, Tribal

leadership, Tribal members, the public, news media, partners and other

interested parties. The information to be provided includes:

Nature and extent of the spill or emergency,

ii.

Areas of Tribal interest that have endured the effects of the spill or

emergency, and areas that may sustain damage in the future,

iii.

Actions Tribal members should take to protect themselves, and

iv.

Activities that have been initiated or will be initiated, in response to

the spill, emergency or disaster.

f. Inform Tribal leadership and officials on response efforts, protocols and

recovery programs;

g. Brief news media as information becomes available. Develop and maintain all

public information news releases, briefing sheets, talking points, background

information, and supplemental materials; and

h. Counter rumors with timely release of factual information.

Spill Response Plan

IV.

Safety Protocols

The protection of emergency response workers is critically important so that they may

safely perform their role in protecting the public and mitigating the incident. Safety

protocols are established and required by federal law. This section outlines the general

safety protocol requirements. The FOSC will appoint a Safety Officer to the Command

Staff to assist the Incident Commander with responder safety. The Safety Officer will

monitor operations, identify potential safety hazards, correct unsafe situations and

develop additional methods and procedures to ensure responder safety. Safety Officers

must be trained to the level of the incident. See 29 CFR 1910.120(q).

All responders to a hazardous materials incident will:

1) Follow all site-specific safety and health plans that have been developed for a

particular location or site.

2) Adhere to applicable local, state and federal laws, statutes, ordinances, rules,

regulations, guidelines, and established standards pertaining to responder safety.

3) Not exceed individual response certification level in accordance with 29 CFR

1910.120 (HAZWOPER) and OAR Chapter 437 Division 002 training under any

circumstance.

In addition, the following protocols shall be followed to ensure responder safety.

IV.1 Training

Any person engaged in responding to hazardous emergency situations shall be trained

on safety, health and other hazards present on the site, use of personal protective

equipment, practices by which they can minimize risks from hazards, safe use of

engineering controls and equipment on site, medical surveillance requirements,

including recognition of symptoms and signs which might indicate overexposure to

hazards, and the contents of applicable site safety and health plans.

IV.2 Pre-entry briefing

Before entering the site of a spill or release for initiating response action, information

about the site, and safety protocols shall be provided.

IV.3 Preliminary evaluation

The first step in a spill response action is to investigate the site. Site investigation allows

responders to determine appropriate actions and safety measures. A qualified person

with the specific training, knowledge, and experience, must do a preliminary evaluation

in order to aid in the selection of appropriate responder protection methods prior to

initiating any responsive action. The site evaluation should include:

o The site’s hazards, including the physical or chemical properties of hazardous

substances and how workers could be exposed to the hazards;

Spill Response Plan

Health and safety risks associated with exposure to hazardous substances;

Potential leaks of hazardous substances;

Location, size, topography and access to the site;

Required actions and time to accomplish;

Qualifications of emergency responders and approximate response times; and

Personal protective equipment needed.

IV.4 Hazard identification

All suspected conditions that may pose inhalation or skin absorption hazards that are

immediately dangerous to life or health, or other conditions that may cause death or

serious harm, shall be identified during the preliminary evaluation and survey.

Examples of such hazards include, but are not limited to, confined space entry,

potentially explosive or flammable situations, visible vapor clouds, or areas where

biological indicators such as dead animals or vegetation are located.

IV.5 Information required

The following information shall be obtained and provided prior to allowing responders

to enter a site:

o Location and approximate size of the site;

o Description of the response activity to be performed;

o Duration of the planned activity;

o Site topography and accessibility by water, air, and roads;

o Safety and health hazards expected at the site;

o Pathways for hazardous substance dispersion;

o Present status and capabilities of other emergency response teams that would

provide assistance at the time of emergency; and

o Hazardous substances and health hazards involved or expected at the site,

and their chemical and physical properties.

IV.6 Personal Protective Equipment

Personal protective equipment, which will provide protection to a level of exposure

below permissible exposure limits and published exposure levels for known or

suspected hazardous substances and health hazards, and which will provide protection

against other known and suspected hazards identified during that preliminary site

evaluation shall be provided and used during site entry. If the preliminary site

evaluation does not produce sufficient information to identify the hazards or suspected

hazards of the site, an ensemble providing protection equivalent to Level B personal

protective equipment shall be provided as minimum protection, and direct reading

instruments shall be used as appropriate to identify conditions immediately dangerous

to life or health. Once the hazards of the site have been identified, the appropriate

personal protective equipment shall be selected and used.

Spill Response Plan

IV.7 Contaminant and/or Hazard Monitoring

When the site evaluation produces information that shows the potential for ionizing

radiation or conditions immediately dangerous to life or health (IDLH), or when the site

information is not sufficient to reasonably eliminate these possible conditions, the

following monitoring shall be conducted during response actions:

o Monitoring with direct reading instruments for hazardous levels of ionizing

radiation.

o Monitoring the air with appropriate direct reading test equipment (i.e.,

combustible gas meters, detector tubes) for IDLH and other conditions that

may cause death or serious harm (combustible or explosive

atmospheres, oxygen deficiency, toxic substances).

o Visually observing for signs of actual or potential IDLH or other dangerous

conditions.

o An ongoing air monitoring program shall be implemented after site

characterization has determined the site is safe for the start-up of operations.

IV.8 Risk identification

Once the presence and concentrations of specific hazardous substances and health

hazards have been established, the risks associated with these substances shall be

identified. Responders who will be working on the site shall be informed of any risks

that have been identified.

IV.9 Notification

Any available information concerning the chemical, physical, and toxicological

properties of each substance known or expected to be present on site shall be made

available to responders prior to the commencement of activities.

IV.10 Site Control

Appropriate site control procedures shall be implemented to control exposure to

hazardous substances before cleanup work begins. Elements of the site control program

shall include, at minimum: site map; site work zones; the use of a “buddy system”; site

communications including alerting means for emergencies; the standard operating

procedures or safe work practices; and identification of nearest medical assistance.

Spill Response Plan

Assessing Damage

When an oil spill or hazardous material release occurs, the Tribe will participate in

Shoreline Cleanup and Assessment Technique (SCAT), a systematic method for

surveying an affected shoreline after an incident. SCAT is designed to support decision

making for shoreline cleanup. SCAT is flexible in its scale of surveys and in the detail of

the datasets collected.

SCAT surveys begin early in the response to assess initial shoreline conditions, and

ideally continue to work in advance of operational cleanup. Surveys continue during

the response to verify shoreline oiling, cleanup effectiveness, and eventually to conduct

final evaluations of shorelines to ensure they meet cleanup endpoints. The eight steps of

SCAT are:

1. Conduct reconnaissance survey(s);

2. Segment the shoreline;

3. Assign teams and conduct SCAT surveys;

4. Develop cleanup guidelines and endpoints;

5. Submit survey reports and shoreline impact sketches to the ICS Planning

Section;

6. Monitor effectiveness of cleanup;

7. Conduct post-cleanup inspections; and

8. Conduct final evaluation of cleanup activities.

When a SCAT team is formed, the Tribe will designate a natural resource staff member

to participate as a member of the SCAT team. The Tribe’s representative on the SCAT

team will be instrumental in identifying environmentally and culturally sensitive

resources in the spill area, and helping to implement constraints on cleanup, if

necessary, due to cultural concerns. In order to be an effective participant, the Tribe’s

representative will need to be someone with knowledge of shoreline processes, and

trained on SCAT terms and cleanup methods.

Spill Response Plan

VI.

Major Protection Techniques and Cleanup Strategies

This section outlines some general approvals and decision tools for using shoreline

cleanup methods. However, the responders’ specific treatment of a particular spill event

must integrate field data on shoreline habitats, oil type, degree of shoreline

contamination, spill-specific physical processes, and ecological and cultural resource

issues. Response techniques have windows of opportunity within which they are most

effective. Selection of a proper response method is highly dependent on incidentspecific conditions, and must consider trade-offs affecting the options’ potential

impacts, appropriateness for the habitat and location, and the timing of the application.

Using multiple methods simultaneously throughout an incident can produce a more

effective response and minimize impacts.

The Tribe’s preference is for low-impact protection techniques such as manual removal,

passive collection, and diversion. Cleaning spills using manual removal, collection, and

diversion is preferable because it actually removes the contaminant. Aggressive

techniques such as in-situ burning or use of dispersants will only be considered in

offshore areas and with full consideration of alternatives and potential impacts. Both

dispersants and dispersed oil particles are toxic to some marine organisms. Applying

dispersants to an oil slick shifts the possibility of oil exposure to animals living in the

water column beneath the ocean surface and on the sea floor. In-situ burning presents

safety risks both to response workers and the larger community from possible exposure

to toxic components of the smoke emitted from combustion. Consistent with the

NWAPC, decisions to use these techniques shall be made in consultation with the Tribe

as part of the dispersant authorization process and in-situ burning decision tree.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has developed guides

and manuals for spill response planning in marine and shoreline environments that set

forth the full set of response techniques as well as feasibility issues and guidelines for

selecting response actions. The following sections explain the basics of primary

shoreline protection and cleanup strategies for consideration by the Tribe.

VI.1 Shoreline Protection Strategies

The basic shoreline protection objective is to prevent or minimize contact between oil

and the shore zone (or a resource at risk in the zone). Shoreline protection limitations

include the properties of the spilled product, physical and environmental conditions

(current, waves, wind, tides, water depth), and logistical constraints (access, bulky

heavy equipment, towing positioning and tending equipment, personnel needs, channel

traffic, decontamination, recovery and storage, and disposal of contaminated materials).

Spill Response Plan

For spills close to shore or in estuaries or bays, the key strategies are to use collection,

diversion, or exclusion booming to contain the slick and prevent it from entering areas

with sensitive wildlife, fisheries, and Tribal resources. These strategies can be generally

defined as follows:

o Containment: hold oil in place. Oil recovery is the main objective.

o Deflection: Divert moving oil away from a sensitive area, possibly towards

another area where containment and oil recovery is more feasible.

o Exclusion: Barriers to prevent oil from reaching an area; usually without attempt

to recover the oil.

o Recovery: Removal of oil by skimmers, sorbent material, or manual pickup.

In open-water areas, responders may use skimmers and netting systems for recovery of

oil slicks and highly viscous oils, respectively.

VI.1.1 Booming

Booms are floating, physical barriers to oil, made of plastic or other materials, which

slow the spread of oil and keep it contained. Booms may be placed across a narrow

entrance to the ocean, such as for small streams, creeks, or small inlets, to close off the

entrance so that oil cannot pass through into mudflats, wetlands, or sensitive habitat

areas. Booms can also be placed to deflect oil away from shellfish beds or beaches used

by snowy plovers as nesting habitat. And booms can be placed around a sensitive or

important site, to prevent oil from reaching it. Booms are the most common protection

method.

Booms can be used on all water environments, weather permitting. Booms begin to fail

by entrainment when the effective current or towing speed exceeds 0.7 knots

perpendicular to the boom. Waves, wind, and debris contribute to boom failure.

Placing and maintaining boom and anchoring points should not cause excessive

physical disruption to Tribal resources. Booms and anchors must be maintained so they

do not fail or tangle and cause more damage. Vehicle and foot traffic to and from boom

sites should not disturb wildlife unreasonably or be co-located with cultural resources.

Cleaning booms will generate contaminated wastewater that must be collected, treated,

and disposed of appropriately.

VI.1.2 Skimming

Skimmers are placed at the oil/water interface to recover, or skim, oil from the water’s

surface. There are numerous types of skimming devices: brush, disc, drum, paddle, belt,

rope mop, sorbent belt, submersion plan, suction, and weir. These may be operated

from shore, mounted on vessels, or self-propelled. Skimmers are often placed where oil

naturally accumulates in pockets, pools, or eddies.

Spill Response Plan

Skimmers can be used on all water environments, weather and visibility permitting.

Waves, currents, debris, seaweed, kelp, and viscous oils will reduce skimmer efficiency.

VI.1.3 Barriers/Berms

When oil is threatening sensitive areas and booming is not feasible, barriers (other than

booms) may be placed across an area to prevent oil from passing. Barriers can consist of

earthen berms, trenching, or filter fences. This approach may be suitable at the mouths

of creeks or streams to prevent oil from entering, or to prevent oil in the creek from

being released into offshore waters. When it is necessary for water to pass because of

water volume, underflow, or overflow dams are used.

Responders must minimize disturbance to bird nesting areas, beaver dams, or other

sensitive areas. Placement of dams and filter fences could cause excessive physical

disruptions, particularly in wetlands.

VI.1.4 Physical Herding

Plunging water jets, water or air hoses, or propeller wash can be used to dislodge oil

trapped in debris or vegetation on water and direct floating oil towards containment

and recovery devices, or to divert oil from sensitive areas. Herding can be effective in

nearshore areas with little or no current, and in and around man-made structures like

wharves and piers. This approach should be considered with caution as it may emulsify

the oil or disrupt bottom sediments or submerged aquatic vegetation and

contamination of benthic habitats.

VI.1.5 Sorbents

Sorbents are organic, inorganic, and synthetic materials that remove surface oil in water

or at the waterline through absorption (like a sponge) or adsorption (coating of the

sorbent’s surface). Sorbents are placed on the floating oil or water surface, or are used to

wipe stranded oil. All sorbent material must be recovered and properly disposed or

recycled. In deploying sorbents, access must not adversely affect wildlife or be through

soft or sensitive habitats. Improperly deployed or tended sorbents can crush or smother

sensitive organisms.

VI.2

Shoreline Cleanup Strategies

The selection of cleanup strategies is based upon the degree of oil contamination,

shoreline types, and the presence of sensitive resources. Extremely sensitive areas are

limited to manual cleanup methods. The primary goal of cleanup is the removal of oil

from the shoreline with no further injury or destruction to the environment. Reducing

overall impacts usually requires a combination of techniques, including: 1) Natural

recovery; 2) Physical washing/flushing; and 3) Physical removal. The following

sections describe various cleanup strategies beginning with the least impact and risk

Spill Response Plan

and increasing in risks and challenges. The Tribe’s preference is to implement the

lowest-impact methods to achieve cleanup.

VI.2.1 No Action / Natural Recovery

In some cases, no attempt may be made to remove stranded oil, to minimize impacts, or

because there is no proven effective method for cleanup. This may be the appropriate

response where the shoreline is extremely remote or inaccessible, when natural removal

rates are very fast, or cleanup actions will do more harm than leaving the oil to be

removed naturally. This method may be inappropriate where high numbers of mobile

animals (e.g. birds, marine mammals, crabs) use the intertidal zone or nearshore waters.

VI.2.2 Manual Removal

Manual removal is achieved with the use of hand tools and manual labor to remove

surface oil and oily debris. No mechanized equipment is used in this process. This

approach is appropriate on shorelines where oil can be easily removed, in light or

moderate oiling conditions. Primary constraints with this approach include foot traffic

over sensitive areas or seasonal shoreline restrictions due to bird nesting, mammal

pupping, or similar events.

VI.2.3 Passive Collection (Sorbents)

Passive collection uses sorbent material placed on the surface of the shoreline substrate

to absorb oil as it is released by tidal or wave action. This technique is most useful when

the oil is of a viscosity and thickness to be released by the substrate and absorbed by the

sorbent, and is often used as a secondary treatment after gross oil removal and along

sensitive shorelines where access is restricted. Sorbents include peat moss, vermiculate,

and clay, or synthetic varieties such as plastic foams or fibers. Oil-filled sorbents must

be collected, treated, and removed.

VI.2.4 Debris Removal

When driftwood or debris on the upper beach and zone above high tide is heavily

contaminated and remains a potential source of chronic oil release or other

contamination on the shoreline, removal may be appropriate. Disturbance to adjacent

upland areas should be minimized and foot traffic over sensitive intertidal areas

restricted.

VI.2.5 Trenching

When large quantities of oil penetrate deeply into permeable sediments like sand and

gravel, trenching may be effective to remove subsurface oil. This method requires

digging trenches to the depth of the oil and removing oil floating on the water table by

vacuum pump or sucker. Water flooding or high-pressure spraying at ambient

temperatures can be used to flush oil to the trench. The oil must be liquid enough to

flow at ambient temperatures. Trenching should not be used in the lower intertidal area

when attached algae and organisms are abundant.

Spill Response Plan

VI.2.6 Sediment Removal

This technique removes oiled sediments by manual removal or mechanical equipment.

The oiled material must be transported and disposed of off-site. Mechanical equipment

is not appropriate for rocky shores, and should only be used on beaches and with

special supervision to minimize sediment removal. This approach is appropriate where

only very limited amounts of oiled sediments must be removed. Use of equipment can

cause significant disturbances and therefore should be strictly limited to upper

intertidal and areas above the high tide line.

VI.2.7 Ambient-Water Flooding (Deluge)

On beaches with coarse sediments or gently sloped rocky shorelines, this approach

washes surface oil from crevices and rock interstices to the water’s edge for collection

by booms and skimmers. Ambient sea water is pumped through holes in a pipe laid

parallel to the shoreline above the oiling. Water flows through the rocks or substrate

pushing loose oil ahead of it downslope for pickup. This technique is most effective on

heavily oiled shorelines when the oil is still fluid and loosely adhering to the substrate,

and where oil has penetrated into cobble or boulder beaches. This technique should not

be used at creek mouths. Where the lower intertidal zone contains rich biological

communities, flooding should be restricted to tidal stages when the rich zones are

under water to prevent secondary oiling.

VI.2.8 Ambient-Water/Low-Pressure & Ambient-Water/High Pressure Washing

This approach uses ambient seawater at low or high pressure to remove liquid oil. Both

techniques involve spraying ambient seawater with hoses to flush oil to the water’s

edge where the oil is trapped by booms and picked up with skimmers or sorbents. Lowpressure washing can be used on gravel beaches or vegetation, while high-pressure

washing is appropriate only for hard substrate and human-made surfaces. The timing

of flushing should be restricted to tidal elevations where the oil/water effluent does not

drain across sensitive low tide habitats.

VI.2.9 Warm-water/Moderate-to-High-Pressure Washing

When oil is thick or weathered and adhered to rock surfaces, heated seawater may be

sprayed to mobilize and flush oil down the beach to the water’s edge where it can be

trapped by booms and picked up with skimmers or sorbents. Similar to other flushing

techniques, timing should be restricted to avoid oiling sensitive low-tide habitats. This

approach should be restricted adjacent to stream mouths, tide pool communities, and

similar rich intertidal communities.

VI.2.10 Hot-Water/High-Pressure Washing

Hot water high-pressure washing can dislodge trapped and weathered oil from

inaccessible locations and surfaces not amenable to mechanical removal. This technique

can be used with immediate use of vacuum to remove the oil/water runoff, or can be

Spill Response Plan

used as a deluge system with oil flushed to water’s edge for collection with skimmers or

sorbents. This approach requires similar limitations as other washing techniques to

avoid sensitive low-tide habitats, stream mouths, and tide pool communities. Released

oil must be recovered to prevent further oiling of adjacent environments.

VI.2.11 Slurry Sand Blasting

Sandblasting can remove heavy residual oil from seawalls and riprap. Used (oiled)

stand may be recovered in some cases. This approach should not be used near oyster or

clam beds, or areas with high biological abundance on the shoreline directly below or

adjacent to the structures.

VI.2.12 Vacuum

A vacuum unit with suction head may be used to recover free oil pooled on substrate

surface or from the water’s surface in sheltered areas. Equipment can be mounted on

barges, boats, or trucks onshore. Special restrictions should be identified for areas

where foot traffic and equipment operation should be limited, such as rich intertidal

communities. Operations in wetlands are to be very closely monitored, with a sitespecific list of restrictions.

VI.2.13 Sediment Reworking

On beaches exposed to significant wave activity, beach sediments can be rototilled or

otherwise mixed to break up oil deposits and enhance the rate of oil degradation. Oiled

sediments in the upper beach area may be relocated lower on the beach to enhance

natural cleanup during reworking by wave activity. This approach may be appropriate

for beaches with significant amounts of subsurface oil or where deposits have started to

form pavements or hard crusts. However, due to mixing oil into sediments, this process

could further expose organisms living below the original oil layer. Re-suspension of

exposed oil and fine-grained, oily sediments can affect adjacent waterbodies. Sediment

reworking is not appropriate near shellfish-harvest or fish-spawning areas, or near bird

nesting or concentration areas.

VI.2.14 Sediment Removal, Cleansing, and Replacement

In this approach, oiled sediments are excavated using heavy equipment, loaded into a

container for washing and rinsing, and then returned to the original area. The beaches

must be exposed to wave activity to allow the replaced sediments to be reworked into a

natural distribution. This approach implicates several constraints. Excavating

equipment must not intrude upon sensitive habitats. Only the upper and above tide

areas should be considered. The washing must not change the grain size of the

sediment. This approach is generally restricted in spawning areas. Equipment can be

heavy, noisy, and large, and disruptive to wildlife. All resident organisms in the

intertidal area will be impacted.

Spill Response Plan

VI.2.15 Cutting Vegetation

Where it is necessary to prevent oiling of wildlife, it may be appropriate to remove oiled

vegetation by cutting. Cut vegetation is bagged immediately for disposal. This

approach is only appropriate where the risk of oiled vegetation contaminating wildlife

is greater than the value of the vegetation to be cut, and there is no less destructive

method to remove or reduce the risk to acceptable levels. Removal of vegetation will

result in loss of habitat for many animals and cut areas will have reduced growth for up

to two years. Along exposed shorelines, vegetation may not regrow, resulting in erosion

and permanent loss of habitat. Trampled areas (which are inevitable) will recover much

more slowly.

Spill Response Plan

VII.

Cleanup Strategies for Specific Locations

In the event of a spill, the Tribe will identify sensitive areas and Tribal resources at risk

of contamination or other damage. Human use resources are most sensitive when:

 Contamination can result in human health concerns, such as tainting of

subsistence fisheries;

 Cultural or archaeological sites are located in the intertidal zone;

 Contamination can result in significant losses through fouling, tainting, or

avoidance because of perceived negative impact; or

 The resource is unique.

The Tribe has developed comprehensive maps and other tools to identify specific

sensitive locations. These maps contain sensitive information that will remain in the

control of the Tribe. The Tribe will share information as needed with response team

leaders in order to best protect these resources. For specific location strategies,

responsive entities should contact the Tribal Response Officer or Tribal On-Scene

Coordinator (TOSC) if one has been assigned, or the Tribe’s Department of Natural

Resources and Culture.

VIII.

Complying with the National Historic Preservation Act during Emergency

Response

Although emergency response decisions must be made quickly, they must also be

informed decisions. Informed decisions are those made in consultation with the Tribe.

There must be formal consultation with the Tribe on newly discovered or unanticipated

cultural resources encountered or adverse impacts due to the response.

In order to comply with the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), the Federal

On-Scene Coordinator must first determine whether the spill is subject to categorical

exclusion from Section 106. If not, the responder shall notify the Tribal Historic

Preservation Office (THPO) and State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) for

consultation and activate a qualified Historic Properties Specialist to develop protective

measures for historic properties or cultural resources if determined by consultation.

When the response has completed, notify the THPO and SHPO.

The Federal On-Scene Coordinator shall ensure that all response personnel are notified

of the required actions after any discovery of cultural resources during emergency

response activities. Response personnel, including contractors, sub-contractors,

emergency responders, cleanup workers, and field crews are the people most likely to

encounter cultural resources while in the field. The following notification should be

provided to all response personnel:

Spill Response Plan

IX.

Notice to Response Personnel: Required Actions After Discovery of

Cultural Resources

In the course of your work, if you find an item that they believe or suspect is cultural or

historic, you must:

1. Stop work immediately at, near, and surrounding the area where you discovered

the object, item, or artifact.

2. Leave the suspected cultural item in place, undisturbed, exactly where it was

discovered. Do not pick the item up, touch it, or work around it.

3. If possible, mark the location where you discovered the item but do not disturb or

penetrate the soil with any object or tool. There may be other artifacts under the

soil that could be damaged by your actions.

4. Inform the field supervisor of the discovery as soon as possible.

Compliance with these procedures is mandatory; they must be followed by all

response personnel. Failure to comply with these procedures by excavating,

removing, damaging, altering, or defacing any archeological resource is a violation of

multiple State and Federal laws and may result in fines or penalties, criminal

prosecution, and imprisonment.

For more information on actions related to the discovery of cultural resources, consult

with your supervisor or contact the Historic/Cultural Resources Specialist.

Spill Response Plan

This is a copy of a public record, reproduced as it was published. It is not legal advice, and it may not be the version a court would rely on. Check the official source before you cite it.