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About
ICS/UC and the NRS
Managing
a major response – especially a complex, multi-jurisdictional
response – is one of the most important challenges facing
the National Response System (NRS). Effective coordination
among local, state, and federal responders at the scene
of a response is a key factor in ensuring successful responses
to major incidents. An Incident Command System/Unified
Command (ICS/UC) is an efficient on-site tool to manage
all emergency response incidents, and UC is a necessary
tool for managing multi-jurisdictional responses to oil
spills or hazardous substance |
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releases. Understanding the concepts
of ICS/UC is as important for local responders, who generally
arrive on-scene first and thus are most likely to implement
the management system, as it is for state and federal
organizations that may be joining the ICS/UC.
The National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency
Plan (NCP) states that the NRS functions as an ICS under
the direction of the On-Scene Coordinator (OSC). The NCP
also states that the basic framework for the NRS response
management structure is a system (such as a unified command
system) that brings together the functions of the local
government, state government, federal government, and
the Responsible Party (RP) to achieve an effective and
efficient response. In addition, the Hazardous Waste Operations
and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) standards include the
Incident Command System for emergency response.
When planned for and practiced, ICS/UC is viewed as the
most effective response management system to address discharges
or releases. As a result, the U.S. National Response Team
(NRT) and Regional Response Teams (RRTs) endorse the use
of ICS/UC and hope that this document helps the entire
response community understand the basic concepts of ICS/UC.
ICS/UC is an integrated and flexible structure that emphasizes
cooperation and coordination in local, state, and federal
responses to complex multi-jurisdictional, multi-agency
incidents. This structure is necessary to use resources
effectively – whether the resource comes from the parties
responsible for the release or discharge, the NRT and
RRT federal agencies, or the affected local governments
and states. Although ICS/UC was originally developed for
multi-jurisdictional incidents, the NRT advocates ICS/UC
as an effective tool for managing both large and small
incidents, especially those involving hazardous substance
releases or oil spills. |
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