Contingency Plans

Scope of Work: Assistance in development of Emergency Action Plan and Emergency Response Procedures

In 1990, Hydro Projects North (HPN) requested Acheron’s assistance in preparing an Emergency Action Plan (EAP) for the Whitin Reservoir and Manchaug Reservoir Dams. Toward that end, Acheron prepared inundation mapping for the river basins downstream of the dams. Each map included an aerial photograph and a copy of the U.S.G.S. map for the study area. Two lines on each map depicted the approximate 100-year flood plain and the outer limit of the inundation zone expected to be caused by a combination of dam failure and flood during the spillway design flood. These maps were also accompanied by written descriptions of the procedures used in their preparation, as well as recommendations for the dams’ routine inspections and maintenance programs in the event of an emergency.

Subsequent to the EAP’s development, HPN requested Acheron’s assistance in consolidating the information from the EAP into a more concise document for actual field use during a dam emergency. As a result, Acheron developed Emergency Response Procedures (ERPs) for the two dams. The ERPs outline the specific responses required for each of the various emergency conditions that could exist at either dam. To supplement the ERP, Acheron developed a combined inundation map which depicts all areas impacted by dam emergencies and indicates estimated times for flood wave travel throughout the inundation area.

Scope of Work: Worked to improve and update Robinson’s already-established Integrated Contingency Plan

Robinson Manufacturing Company retained Acheron to improve an Integrated Contingency Plan that had been developed by another consulting firm. It was during this period that Acheron first developed the Response Pockets for use by incident response personnel during actual emergencies. Acheron interviewed Robinson employees, conducted site inspections and eliminated redundancies in the integrated plan.

Client: S.D.Warren, Westbrook, Maine

In March 1994, Acheron completed work on S.D. Warren’s Integrated Contingency Plan (ICP). Acheron offered several alternative formats for our client to choose from as we worked to integrate the client’s various contingency and incident response plans. Acheron also incorporated State and Federal regulations into the final document. Again, Acheron worked closely with S.D. Warren to eliminate redundancy between plans and to standardize procedures used to address emergencies. Our staff interviewed response personnel to tailor the plan to our client’s specific needs. Response Pockets were again developed to aid emergency personnel in evaluating actual emergencies and coordinating their response to incidents.

Acheron organized the various incident response documents already in place at S.D.Warren and integrated them with newly developed criteria, as well as State, local and Federal regulations. Acheron ensured that the ICP satisfied applicable State and Federal regulations. Beyond satisfaction of regulatory requirements, a primary aim of the ICP was to provide one integrated, easy-to-use source of guidance for response to many types of potential or actual incidents by S.D. Warren personnel. In keeping with this goal, Acheron designed "Response Pockets" to be located at the front of the document. To create the Response Pockets, Acheron condensed and summarized information from the larger ICP into short, accessible directions to be used by S.D. Warren’s incident response personnel during actual emergencies. Included in the Response Pockets were emergency phone numbers, flow charts, procedure guidelines, and incident checklists. Acheron provided the ICP and Response Pockets in hard copy. The documents were designed to allow for future revisions and additions by S. D. Warren.