Revised Canada-US Marine Pollution Contingency Plan Signed

By Karen Robes Meeks

On Feb. 19, US and Canadian Coast Guard officials signed an updated version of the Dixon Entrance Annex to the Canada-United States Joint Marine Pollution Contingency Plan in Juneau, Alaska.

The refreshed annex signed by US Coast Guard 17th District Commander Rear Adm. Matthew T. Bell, Jr., and the Canadian Coast Guard Western Region Assistant Commissioner Roger Girouard includes basic content and format changes in accordance with new national guidelines. It also provides clearer pollution notification and response protocols as well as refreshed references to US Customs Service procedures for transboundary movement of personnel and resources.

Since 1983, both countries have abided by the CAN-US Joint Marine Pollution Contingency Plan, which encompasses five geographic annexes and spells out the scope and terms for planning and coordinating responses to transboundary pollution in the maritime domain. Coast Guard 17th District and its Canadian counterpart collaborate to keep up with two of the annexes: Annex 4 (Beaufort Sea) and Annex 5 (Dixon Entrance).

By Sarah Spangler