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& Current News:
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LEPC GOALS
The Honolulu LEPC has established the following goals for this year:
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- Update the LEPC plan
- Expand LEPC outreach activities
- Assist the HSERC in amending HEPCRA and with rule making
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TRAINING ACTIVITIES
The Honolulu LEPC has been involved in a number of training workshops and activities over the past year. LEPC reps participated in the Continuing Challenge Hazardous Materials Workshop held in Sacramento, California, the HazMat Explo in Las Vegas, Nevada, and the National Association of SARA Title III Program Officials (NASTTPO) & the Department of Transportation Hazardous Materials Emergency Preparedness (HMEP) Grants Conference.
LEPC members participated in the 2008 NASTTPO & HMEP Grants Conference held in Savannah, Georgia during April 7-11, 2008. We were updated on national transportation, environmental and homeland security programs, and learned what other States, Tribes and localities were doing. States were informed of the HMEP grant awards for FY09 which reflect substantial increases over previous year grants. The increased award will allow the State to enhance Hazmat Tech training opportunities.
We also participated in the Hazmat Explo in Las Vegas, NV in November 2007. The EPA Region IX and the NASTTPO Mid-Year Conferences were jointly held at the Hazmat Explo. We gained valuable information on national and regional programs, and took advantage of the opportunity to network with many of our mainland colleagues.
Eleven members of the Honolulu Fire Department attended the 2007 Continuing Challenge Hazmat Workshop in Sacramento, CA, held September 3-7, 2007. We've managed to send LEPC members to this workshop for the past 8 years, and it continues to provide a great opportunity to keep our hazmat personnel up to date on the latest developments in the field. The Campbell Local Emergency Action Network(C.L.E.A.N.) (see profile below) provided an $8,000 grant for a fourth year to cover the expenses of 5 of the 11 HFD personnnel to attend this year's Continuing Challenge Hazmat Workshop. HFD Captain Sonny Maguire was selected to the Continuing Challenge planning committee this year, and served as the Master of Ceremonies for the workshop. C.L.E.A.N. also sponsored Captain Maguire's travel expenses to plan this year's workshop. C.L.E.A.N.'s generous grant allowed new hazmat leaders to attend the workshop to gain the latest information in hazardous materials and weapons of mass destruction, view the latest technology, meet with vendors and subject matter experts, and network with other hazardous materials technicians.
Members of the Honolulu Fire Department and the Honolulu LEPC participated in the Cameo Course presented by Louisiana State University on November 19-21, 2007. Instructors Tom Bergman and Al Valerioti did a superb job in presenting this course. Attendees used actual data for Oahu which greatly enhanced the relevance of the training. We plan to schedule another Beginning Cameo course and an Advanced Cameo course during the fall of 2008.
LEPC PLAN UPDATE
We've completed eight projects to assess chemical hazards on the island of Oahu over the past years under the Department of Transportation Hazardous Materials Emergency Preparedness Grants Program.
A hazard assessment for facilities on the island of Oahu that report Chlorine and Anhydrous Ammonia under EPCRA was completed in 2002 and updated in 2006. Our 2003 project focused on facilities in the vicinity of Honolulu Harbor that store or use chemicals that may have an offsite impact due to spill, fire or explosion. This project was also updated in 2006. Our 2004 project focused on the Honolulu International Airport and surrounding industrial areas. Our 2005 project studied the Pearl City Industrial Park & Waipio Gentry Business Park. The 2006 project assessed facilities in the Kakaako & Waikiki areas. Our 2007 project to study the windward Oahu communities of Kailua and Kaneohe has just been completed. These projects were prepared utilizing Risk Management Program guidelines to assess off-site consequences of a release, and are fully integrated into Cameo, Marplot and Aloha. We also plan to integrate this data into the City's Geographical Informations System.
We are starting the next phase to update our plan to assess facilities in the Waipahu area of Oahu. This project is scheduled to be completed by September 2008.
The Hazardous Materials Emergency Response Plan, which is Appendix 5 of Annex T of the City & County Emergency Operations Plan was completed and recently published. The Plan and reporting facilities are available for viewing at the Department of Emergency Management. Interested parties should call 723-8958 to schedule an appointment.
ELECTRONIC TIER II SUBMISSION AND CAMEO.
The State of Hawaii is currently in the fifth year of utilizing Tier II Submit electronic submissions from reporting facilities. The State maintains a central data base and provides the data to each county for import into Cameo. The Honolulu LEPC worked with the HSERC to establish data entry standards and helped establish the intial database for Oahu facilities. This system standardizes reporting facility data statewide and eliminates duplicate data entry from several sources. Facility data for the City & County of Honolulu have been imported into Cameo and plotted on Marplot by the LEPC, and subsequently exported to the Honolulu Fire Department.
The Honolulu LEPC advocates the adoption of a web-based, real time Tier II reporting system and will be working with the State to establish such a system in the future.
HSERC INITIATIVES
The four county LEPCs recently sent a letter to the HSERC with a number of issues, and recommended that Administrative Rules be developed for HEPCRA. After studying the issue, the HSERC decided that HEPCRA should be amended along with rule making to address implementation and enforcement issues. An amendment to HEPCRA clarifying reporting requirements for hazardous substances and extremely hazardous substances is currently before the 2008 Legislature. Work has also begun to write implementing Hawaii Administrative Rules to HEPCRA. You can view a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking describing the process. The Honolulu LEPC is participating in this rulemaking process.
The HSERC is also looking into establishing procedures to identify new businesses that fall under the provisions of HEPCRA and bring them into compliance as they begin operating in Hawaii. The Honolulu LEPC will also be assisting with these efforts.
FIRE PAL SOFTWARE PROGRAM - "STOP, LEAVE IT ALONE, GET A GROWN-UP"
The Honolulu LEPC recently purchased the copyright for the Fire Pal software "Stop, Leave It Alone, Get A Grown-Up" on behalf of the Hawaii State Emergency Response Commission. This interactive learning tool for Hazardous Materials in the home, school, and workplace is intended to familiarize children in grades 1-3 with the hazards posed by these materials. Lesson plans are available for teachers and parents, and there is a certificate for kids completing the program. You can view various screens below.
Main Screen Kids Welcome Kitchen Scene Parents/Teachers
The LEPC in partnership with the Campbell Local Emergency Action Network will be distributing over 5,000 copies of Fire Pal to local schools this Fall. Copies of the Fire Pal CD will also be distributed by the HFD to all elementary schools on Oahu during Fire Prevention Week in October 2007. Pictured in this photo are HFD Captain Chris Toda, C.L.E.A.N. President Annie Lam, and LEPC Coordinator Leland Nakai at a Fire Pal meeting.
CAMPBELL LOCAL EMERGENCY ACTION NETWORK (C.L.E.A.N.)
C.L.E.A.N. was formed in early 1996 to analyze potential vulnerabilities, determine emergency planning requirements, and address public safety and health for Campbell Industrial Park (CIP) businesses and their neighboring communities. C.L.E.A.N. is a non-profit organization whose membership includes residents from neighboring communities, CIP businesses and government agencies. Members from the Honolulu LEPC are included in C.L.E.A.N. and have been closely involved and associated with it since its inception. Click here to view a profile of C.L.E.A.N.
C.L.E.A.N. publishes an Emergency Resources Guide for CIP and distributes over 300 copies to CIP businesses, government agencies and local groups every year. This guide serves as a supplement to the Honolulu LEPC's Hazardous Materials Response Plan for the CIP area. You may view the 2006 CLEAN Resources Guide here. You can also download a zipped copy of the Emergency Resources Guide PDF File here (5.8 MB ZIP). You will need a copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader to view either file.
You may obtain your free copy from Adobe Systems, Incorporated. Acrobat and the Acrobat logo are trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated.
 Download the Acrobat Reader.
C.L.E.A.N. conducted a hazardous materials Table Top exercise in 1997, a Hurricane exercise in May 2000, and emergency planning workshops for CIP businesses in September 2001 and April 2002. C.L.E.A.N. has purchased over 500 Emergency Alert Sentinel radios for CIP businesses and neighboring communities, and helped finance a local warning siren to further enhance the area warning and notification system. C.L.E.A.N. also assisted the State Department of Education in upgrading Shelter- in-Place and warning and notification capabilities for CIP area schools, and has sponsored the distribution of the Fire Pal software program in Kapolei area schools in partnership with the Honolulu LEPC.
C.L.E.A.N. hosted a seminar given by EPA on electronic Tier II filing in January 2007. Janice Witul from EPA Region IX, and representatives from the State Department of Health, Honolulu Fire Department, and the Honolulu LEPC discussed their roles in the program. Representatives from businesses on Oahu, Maui and the island of Hawaii attended this event. You can view photos of this seminar below:
CLEAN Seminar Photo 1 CLEAN Seminar Photo 2 CLEAN Seminar Photo 3
Other current projects are the development of an evacuation plan for CIP, assisting local fire station 40 with their resource requirements and hosting an Emergency Preparedness Seminar in May 2008. Click here to view the Emergency Preparedness Seminar Flyer. C.L.E.A.N. has recently developed its own website which can be viewed at http://www.cleanhawaii.org.
C.L.E.A.N. provided an $8,000 grant to the Honolulu LEPC for a fourth year to send 5 Honolulu Fire Department Hazmat personnel to the 2007 Continuing Challenge Hazmat Workshop, held in Sacramento, California in September 2007. C.L.E.A.N. also sponsored the travel expenses of HFD Captain Sonny Maguire as a member of the workshop planning committee. C.L.E.A.N. is planning to provide another grant to the Honolulu LEPC to sponsor Honolulu Fire Department personnel to the 2008 Continuing Challenge Hazmat Workshop and the Hot Zone Conference in Houston, Texas.
C.L.E.A.N. celebrated its 10th anniversary on September 21, 2006. This anniversary celebration was held at the Hawaiian Waters Adventure Park, and honored representatives from business, government and the community who have played key roles in C.L.E.A.N.'s many accomplishments since its formation.
C.L.E.A.N. has been an important partner of the Honolulu LEPC and has done invaluable work to enhance the preparedness of CIP businesses and the surrounding community. The Honolulu LEPC has enjoyed an extremely valuable relationship with C.L.E.A.N. since its inception, and will continue working with C.L.E.A.N. to enhance warning and notification systems and emergency response procedures for the Campbell Industrial Park area.
DOMESTIC PREPAREDNESS - WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION
The City and County of Honolulu is one of the original 27 cities involved in the Domestic Preparedness Program mandated by the Nunn-Lugar-Domenici Act of 1996. The City and County of Honolulu has formed a Metropolitan Medical Response System, capable of responding to terrorist incidents involving the use of Nuclear, Biological, or Chemical (NBC) weapons of mass destruction.
In 1998, the Department of Defense provided training for weapons of mass destruction preparedness to personnel from City and State agencies and from local industry. The DOD also conducted a biological table top exercise and a full scale chemical field exercise on Oahu in 1999. The City and County of Honolulu has received millions of dollars in federal grants and in-kind equipment to date to upgrade our readiness posture.
Honolulu is in a heightened alert posture since the events of September 11, 2001. Response, detection and analysis procedures for bioterrorism events have been refined; WMD training and exercises have been conducted and more are scheduled this year; and we have re-modeled our City Emergency Operating Center and implemented the use of the E Team emergency management software.
The State has adopted a Hawaii Homeland Security Advisory System which follows the National System, but adds a Condition Black when a terrorist incident has occurred in the State of Hawaii. You can view a brochure describing the Hawaii Homeland Security Advisory System along with recommended preparedness actions and activities for the different conditions at the following site:
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