The Environmental Protection Agency this week recognized members of the Los Alamos National Laboratory Integrated Reachback Center for their monitoring and characterization of chemical and radiological hazards during hurricanes Katrina and Rita by presenting them with an EPA 2005-2006 Award for Excellence.
The award was inscribed with the following statement by EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson, "For more than 35 years, EPA has been instrumental in protecting the health and lives of American families. Last year, as our country responded to the worst natural disaster in our nation's history, thousands of our employees selflessly gave their time and talents to assist in Gulf Coast recovery efforts."
The Los Alamos Integrated Reachback Center was one of only a few non-EPA agencies to be honored with EPA's Award for Excellence Medal. "The reachback capability, the level of technical capability, and the speed at which the information was provided was critical in conducting EPA's rapid needs assessment. It was an honor to have the LANL reachback capability to support the EPA ASPECT Team," said EPA ASPECT Program Manager Mark Thomas.
The Los Alamos Integrated Reachback Center was activated 48 hours prior to Hurricane Katrina making landfall, providing analysis and simulations of storm surge and impacts to critical infrastructure.
"Our primary mission in New Orleans was supporting ASPECT, a fixed-wing aircraft owned and operated by EPA. The Laboratory provided science, technology and support for chemical and radiological detection technology," said Ron Dolin, Integrated Reachback Center Coordinator. "ASPECT was the one of the first federal assets on scene, and for a month following Katrina the ASPECT aircraft flew virtually nonstop, monitoring chemical and radiological hazards, finding hazardous material containers, mapping damaged infrastructures, and helping provide overall situational awareness."
Bob Kroutil, of the Laboratory's Bioscience Division, the Los Alamos scientist who helped developed the ASPECT technology, led the ASPECT analysis efforts at the Laboratory. "We have responded with EPA to more than fifty incidents ranging from chemical and refinery plant accidents to national security events," said Kroutil. "Katrina was by far the most intense and long-lasting emergency response we ever participated in."
The ASPECT plane was still in New Orleans when it was predeployed to the Texas gulf coast ahead of Hurricane Rita.
"In Rita," said Kroutil, "we were instrumental in supporting the EPA and helping locate broken pipes and leaking storage containers. We were airborne surveying refineries even before the storm had passed."
ASPECT uses infrared technology to visualize invisible, odorless chemicals in the air. ASPECT detectors can determine the chemical composition of a plume and its level of concentration from a distance, alerting emergency crews on the ground of potential hazards. "ASPECT not only saves lives," said Kroutil, "it finds release sources early to minimize harmful impacts."
Within minutes of the plane's arriving on scene, ASPECT data is collected and a field analysis is performed. The data is simultaneously sent to Los Alamos, where it is further analyzed. "The entire process from data collection to a full assessment takes less than 15 minutes," said Kroutil.
The ASPECT aircraft remained in Texas for two weeks after Hurricane Rita helping with recovery efforts. It was then re-deployed to New Orleans where it remained for four more weeks.
Since the initial Katrina response, ASPECT has been called back to New Orleans several times to assist with chemical plume mapping and analysis. "There have been several fires of unknown materials," said Dolin. "When you pile up damaged cars, appliances and other materials during recovery and they catch on fire, you don't really know all the chemicals that may become airborne. This is when first responders on the ground need an asset like ASPECT."
"The Laboratory has developed an outstanding capability," said Dolin. "It is an honor to work with Bob Kroutil and our EPA partners on the nation's most pressing emergency responses. We are proud to have our work recognized by the EPA. The EPA's On-Scene Coordinators and field response teams are among the most dedicated and highly professional first responders I have ever had the pleasure to work beside. One cannot help but be impressed watching theses folks swing into action."
Los Alamos has partnered with the Environmental Protection Agency for many years in many different areas.
Reachback is a term used by first responders and incident commanders who reach back from an emergency scene to a national laboratory for expert help. The Los Alamos Integrated Reachback Center was established in 2004 to provide expertise in chemical, biological, radiological, explosive, GIS, and critical infrastructure simulation. The Integrated Reachback Center responds on average to two incidents per month.
Los Alamos National Laboratory, a multidisciplinary research institution engaged in strategic science on behalf of national security, is operated by Los Alamos National Security, LLC, a team composed of Bechtel National, the University of California, The Babcock & Wilcox Company, and the Washington Division of URS for the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration.
Los Alamos enhances national security by ensuring the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction, and solving problems related to energy, environment, infrastructure, health, and global security concerns.