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NAVFAC Supports South Africa's Maritime Environment

Navy NewsStand

Story Number: NNS100901-27
9/1/2010

From Naval Facilities Engineering Command Europe Africa Southwest Asia Public Affairs

DURBAN, South Africa (NNS) -- The Naval Facilities Engineering Command Europe Africa Southwest Asia's (NAVFAC EURAFSWA) Navy on-scene coordinator met with South African military and civilian personnel for an oil spill preparedness workshop in Durban, South Africa Aug. 2.

South Africans, including representatives from various governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations, participated in the workshop.

"These workshops help protect us and our environment from the potentially destructive impacts that oil spills can cause," said John Owens, NAVFAC EURAFSWA's Navy on-scene commander program manager. "Partnering with other countries in a planning and information exchange forum builds our combined capabilities, and ensures that we can respond quickly and effectively in a unified, coordinated manner if there is ever a need."

With ongoing incidents in the Gulf of Mexico, China, and inland U.S., the workshop included a hands-on exercise simulating a potential local scenario with supporting presentations. During this exercise, participants worked together on the importance of spill preparedness, identified potential impacts, learned spill planning and response requirements.

Discussions on stakeholder roles and responsibilities, effective component strategies, and the national oil spill contingency plan were supplemented by presentations from the Department of the Environment and the South African Maritime Safety Agency, the two primary agencies responsible for the South African national oil spill program.

Commander Navy Region Europe, Africa, Southwest Asia and U.S. Naval Forces Africa also supported this workshop, which was sponsored by AFRICOM's Environmental Security Engagement and Defense Environmental International Cooperation Programs.

NAVFAC EURAFSWA executes more than $650 million a year in construction, professional engineering and facilities services for the U.S. Navy, U.S. Department of Defense and NATO commands in those countries throughout Europe, Africa and Southwest Asia where the Navy is the DoD lead agent for Military Construction.