EPA's Radiological and Nuclear Emergency Response ProgramJune 18, 2009 Presented by: Ronald Fraass, Lab Director National Air and Radiation Environmental Laboratory*

EPAs Role in Terrorist IncidentsPre-releaseSupport the DHS and the FBI in threat credibility assessmentCan pre-deploy at Nationally Significant Special Events (NSSEs) or on Domestic Emergency Support Team (DEST)Incident-specificPost-releaseForensic assets assist in evidence collectionEmergency response assets respond to consequences of incident at the tactical levelClean-up efforts*

Consequences Response RoleProvide overall response coordination (NRF/ESF#10) emergency response management/support to federal, state, tribal, and local governments

Perform and coordinate radiological monitoring and assessment

Develop Protective Action Guides (PAGs)

Provide Special Teams emergency response radiological expertise and support under the NCP and also as NIRT members if requested by FEMA

Serve as Coordinating Agency under the NRFs Nuclear/Radiological Incident Annex in some circumstances:

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US EPAs SPECIAL TEAMS

Working Together to Support National Emergency Response*

- OSC Locations - National Labs & Centers - RERT Locations - ERT Locations - NDT Location * - NCERT

EPA Response Assets** *

Radiological Emergency Response Team (RERT) Established in 1971Mission - leads or assists federal, state, tribal, and local response efforts before, during, and following a radiological incident

Focus: Radiation monitoring & evaluation Sampling / monitoringLab analysis Hazard evaluationCharacterizationClean-up decontamination Risk Assessment Waste disposal *

Environmental Response Team (ERT) Established in 1978Mission: Support the nations response, cleanup and renewal of its contaminated land, water and air.

Focus: classic environmental emergencies and moreCharacterization Sampling / monitoring Hazard evaluation Risk AssessmentHealth & Safety Decon / disposal*

National Decontamination Team (NDT) Established 2003

Mission to provide on-site scientific and technical expertise in response to incidences of national significance involving environmental contamination and acts of terrorism related to weapons of mass destruction. Focus: WMD agents

Buildings, infrastructure, indoor environments, agriculture, environmental mediaSamplingHealth and SafetyDecontaminationWaste DisposalNature and extent of contamination*

National Counterterrorism Evidence Response Team (NCERT) Established in 2001MISSION To provide specialized law enforcement management of chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) incidents

Focus : provide special agents for crime scene forensics and evidence collection in contaminated zonesRNC 2004 NYCRICIN INCIDENT DC*

Special Team AssetsPERSONNEL

Environmental ScientistsHealth Physicists Medical OfficersGeologists Industrial HygienistsToxicologists ChemistsBiologistsEngineers (Chem, Env, Civ, Nuc)Env Protection SpecialistsSpecial Agents Law Enforcement

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Special Team AssetsMobile Labs MERLS, TAGA, Phyllis, ASPECT, field lab systemsScanner Van/ERGS/RobotsReal time Air Monitoring Mobile Command Posts/platformsSampling and Monitoring equipment for rad/chem/bioForensic sampling RadNet Fixed & deployable monitorsFixed Labs: Radiological and Mixed Waste

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EPA has upgraded its national radiation air monitoring because air is a likely pathway of exposure from a terrorist incidentPreviously known as the Environmental Radiation Ambient Monitoring System (ERAMS)Nationwide, continuously operating environmental radiation monitoring systemUpgraded air monitoring to include both fixed and deployable componentsAir monitoring provides near real-time gamma spectroscopy & beta detectionMilk, precipitation, and drinking water also routinely monitoredHelps decision-makers estimate the effects of national scale radioactive releases on human health and the environmentDeveloped system to meet data quality objectives based on response timelineNational Radiation Monitoring*

Fixed Monitor SystemsMajor ComponentsAir SamplerRadiation Instruments :Gamma Spectroscopy & Beta Detectors transmit data in near-real timeData Processing & StoringData Telemetry4 options

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RadNet Fixed Air Monitors*

Deployable Monitors40 deployable air monitors improve system coverage around an incident or potential threat

Automatically transmit near-real-time external exposure rate

Provide more flexible monitoring capabilityInclude high and low volume air samplers and simplified weather station*

Radiological Incident Response ChallengesMaintaining radiation emergency response, clean-up capabilities, and preparednessApplication of DHS guidance for establishing cleanup levelsPractical planning and exercises to make this approach viable and acceptable to affected state and local officials Expanding national laboratory operating capacity for radionuclidesProcessing and integrating massive incident dataEnsuring that appropriate research is being conducted to help support our radiological clean-up missionTransferring decontamination & clean-up technologies to urban environmentsIntegrating limited technical specialists into national response*

Assist DOE (in the emergency and intermediate phase) and lead the Federal Radiological Monitoring and Assessment Center (FRMAC) in the long-term phaseAEA and more specifically the Radiological Emergency Planning and Preparedness Regulationassign EPA the responsibility to develop incident-specific PAGs for statesUnowned/unlicensed sources, foreign incidents with impacts on the U.S.

*These assets are described in greater detail on the following slides. We have assets located throughout the country, which weve increased since 9/11 by outposting more OSCs.*EPA's Radiological Emergency Response Team (RERT) leads or assists federal, state, tribal, and local response efforts before, during, and following a radiological incident by:

Providing technical advice and assistance to prevent or minimize threats to public health and the environment;

Providing advice on protective measures to ensure public health and safety;

Providing assessments of dose and impact of any release on public health and the environment;

Performing monitoring, sampling, laboratory analyses and data assessments to assess and characterize environmental impacts, and;

Providing technical advice and assistance for containment, cleanup, restoration, and recovery following a radiological incident.

*Complex, unique, WMD multi-matrix sampling & monitoringDetect, assess, decon & disposal of radioactive materialsAir dispersion modeling Oil spill response & forensic fingerprintingTechnical assistance for health & safetyInformation management technologyAnalytical - rapid turnaround, field analyticsLevel - A capabilitiesExperienced Scientific / Water Dive Unit

*NDTNDT is the newest kid on the block and was established after the Anthrax incidents on Capital Hill to fill a national gap in the areas of decontamination and disposal for weapons of mass destruction. NDTs primary objective is to provide expertise in radiological, chemical, and biological decontamination for buildings, transportation, agriculture, food, open space, etc. Although their mission and primary focus is on decontamination and disposal of weapons of mass destruction for incidents of national significance, their capabilities and expertise extend beyond that. The NDT has a team of 15 highly technical experts. All of the technical staff hold Ph.D.s and include toxicologists, HVAC engineers, health physicists, a medical doctor. NDTs specialized equipment includes the ASPECT aircraft, a communications vehicle and various field equipment. Although NDTs mission is to provide advice on decontamination and disposal, they will have involvement early on in an incident with assessment, providing advice on sample collection and nature and extent of contamination, and worker health and safety. Even though, ERT contractor staff, OSCs contractors, and ???, will most likely conduct the decon (mops and buckets), all NDT staff are level-A ready to go into the hot zone. As discussed above, NDTs mission is for WMD for INSs, however in reality, NDT will most likely be involved with any WMD-type agentas some call exotics (including anthrax, ricen, plutonium 210) whether it is a WMD INS or not. NDT recently awarded a Decontamination, Analytical, and Technical Services contract that will provide six staff on-site as well as other support personnel to provide scientific and operational support to NDT including technical issues surrounding the sampling and analyses with subsequent decontamination and disposal of buildings, building contents, public infrastructure, indoor environments, agriculture, and associated environmental media. 15 multi-disciplined response personnelContract support, 5 on-siteSurge capacity additional expertise ($25M- $30M)

**3Established in 20017 Full time Agents/Staff30 CID Special Agents stationed around CONUS High-Hazard Evidence Recovery Team

Focus: Law enforcement crisis and consequence management aspects of (CBRN) 0 CID Special Agents stationed around CONUS High-Hazard Evidence Recovery TeamFocus: Law enforcement crisis and consequence management aspects of (CBRN) Continuous OperationExamples of NCERT Deployments:Amerithrax Investigation: Washington, D.C.-October and November 2001Winter Olympics: Salt Lake City, UT-January and February 2002Superbowl XXXVI: New Orleans, LA-January 2002Top-Off 2: Seattle, WA and Chicago, IL-May 2003CID Evidence Collection Support: Houston, TX-June 2003SuperBowl XXXVIII: Houston, TX-January 2004G-8 Summit: St. Simons Island, GA-June 2004Republican National Convention: New York City, NY-August 200435th Organization of the American States Convention: Ft. Lauderdale, FL-June 2005Response to Hurricane Katrina: New Orleans, LA-September 2005SuperBowl XL: Detroit, MI-January 2006NBA All-Star Game: Houston, TX-February 2006MLB All-Star Game: Philadelphia, PA-July 2006CID Evidence Collection Support: North Slope, AK-August 2006CID Technical/H&S Support: Boise, ID-September 2006*People - *Mobile Labs - Platforms trucks trailers, ER Truck w/air compressor, stuff like that.

Radnet fixed 180 target 59 are installed 40 deployables. Following the 1963 moratorium on atmospheric nuclear weapons testing, the focus of many radiological environmental monitoring systems shifted to baseline, trend analysis, and emergency preparedness. In 1973, EPA established ERAMS by consolidating various components of existing radiation monitoring networks into one system. These components included the Radiation Alert Network, the Tritium Surveillance System, the Interstate Carrier Drinking Water Network, and the Pasteurized Milk Network.