Does the incident have environmental implications?
Assess the situation to determine how to prevent or minimise any impact on people and/or the environment (see Assessing the nature of the incident).
The following issues are likely to need to be considered as soon as possible in order to deal with an environmental incident effectively:
- what is the nature of the environmental incident? Are hazardous substances involved? Is there a risk of pollution (water/ground/air) and is the risk ongoing/increasing? Is there a risk of fire/ explosion?
- did the environmental incident occur on-site or off-site?
- is there a threat to human life or health and do any individuals require emergency medical treatment and/or evacuation? (see Does the incident involve injuries and fatalities?)
- which private parties may have to be notified (eg neighbours, other third parties)?
- which public authorities may have to be notified? (see Reporting the incident to the appropriate parties)
- is the assistance, co-operation and/or consent of third parties required before action can be taken?
- is there any ongoing risk that requires the emergency services to be notified/involved? (see Working with the emergency services)
- do operations need to be shut down (or partially shut down)?
- does access to relevant areas need to be restricted?
- are technical teams required and how quickly can they be assembled?
The incident management (IM) team should plan and implement urgent steps to limit damage and bring the incident under control. In particular, steps should be taken to prevent the causes of the incident or any resulting damage from continuing.
Keep the following points in mind:
- any on-site and off-site emergency plans should be implemented as appropriate. Many sites (eg European 'top-tier' sites regulated under the Seveso II Directive) will have these plans in place
- keep records of any steps taken to deal with the environmental incident, including steps taken by third parties and the emergency services
- consider whether legal and/or litigation privilege can be asserted over documents
- consider potential media issues arising from the incident and adopt an appropriate media strategy in response (see Media relations)
