How Multiple Dam EAP Table Top Exercises Are a Win-Win Situation

摘要

For many, an Emergency Action Plan Table Top Exercise is a daunting task requiring coordination between multiple entities including emergency response personnel, state regulators, and dam owners. This permit requirement is not always easily enforced on dam owners and in some cases is overlooked altogether. It also becomes a burden on private individuals who become High Hazard dam owners as a result of reclassification due to downstream development that occurred after they became owners to the dam. To alleviate this problem, some states are allowing multiple dam owners to hold a group Table Top exercise as a way to meet the requirements of their permit and lessen the burden on emergency responders who would otherwise have to attend each individual exercise. This presentation will describe a recent Emergency Action Plan (EAP) Table Top Exercise for multiple dams in Pulaski County, Arkansas, as part of a pilot project for the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission's Dam Safety Division. It will describe how multiple dam owners and emergency response agencies were brought together to review and simulate the execution of an EAP. By completing the Table Top exercise with multiple dam owners, we were able to better utilize emergency response personnel time by only requiring they attend one exercise instead of many. This exercise was also an opportunity for dam owners to discuss methods of emergency response with the emergency response personnel and to share ideas. As a training tool, this exercise helped make owners and emergency personnel aware of the basic concepts of dams, dam failures, available resources from local and state agencies, and the structure of an EAP. Most importantly, it allowed all invested parties to step through the process of implementing an EAP in a real-life emergency scenario.