ESSM

SUPSALV maintains an extensive inventory of pollution response equipment at the Emergency Ship Salvage Material (ESSM) bases in Williamsburg, VA; Port Hueneme, CA; Anchorage, AK; Pearl Harbor, HI and Bahrain and will soon be added to the existing stockpile of salvage resources in Italy, Japan and Singapore. The ESSM Bases are strategically positioned to provide storage, maintenance, and mobilization centers to support Navy emergency marine salvage and pollution response operations worldwide.

Since pollution response is an integral part of any salvage operation, the co-location of salvage and spill response equipment to support Navy casualty incidents (collisions, groundings, etc.) provides the basis of an exceptional spill response capability with substantial cost savings. ESSM oil spill response equipment is pre-assembled into systems to ensure transportability and sustainability.

INVENTORY

SUPSALV's inventory of equipment is based on providing appropriate levels of response equipment necessary to meet federal regulations for a response organization capable of responding to a "Worst Case Discharge." SUPSALV has designed most systems for offshore, open-water oil recovery operations but also has some specialized systems for inland, river, and cold weather spill response operations. Equipment is capable of containment and recovery of many grades of refined and crude oils, including heavy residual oils, marine and jet fuels.

These response systems are fully provisioned with all necessary support equipment, tools, and spares to allow SUPSALV to respond to NOSC requests without burdening the ICS with extensive logistics requirements. The unique systems allow SUPSALV to operate sustainably in remote locations for open ocean, inland or arctic spills, and spills relating to salvage operations. Equipment includes oil containment boom, skimmers, temporary oil storage, support craft, vessel lightering systems, decontamination systems, and various other systems to support this very specialized mission. SUPSALV also maintains deployable field command posts, personnel berthing vans, communications systems, portable rigging shops, and maintenance shops. A full description of each of the SUPSALV response systems be found below.

For more information about SUPSALV's response capability metrics (by location) in terms of the U.S. Coast Guard's defined Effective Daily Recovery Capacity (EDRC) for oil skimmers, Temporary Oil Storage Capacity (TSC), and feet of containment boom, see the "Contingency Planning Resources" links on the right side menu. 

Show here are 42" oil containment boom legs with their mooring systems waiting for deployment. The State Pier in Gulfport, MI was SUPSALV's equipment staging area during Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill Response Operations in 2010.




SUPSALV's rapidly deployable logistic support units (From left to right: Command and Control, Workshop, and Rigging Vans).

TRANSPORT

SUPSALV's worldwide pollution response mission is accomplished through a sophisticated system of logistics support. The large inventory of response equipment is designed for rapid mobilization and transportation via road, military air, or sea. Most equipment is packaged "ready-for-issue" in ISO 20-foot containers, which do not require wide-load permits for road transport. SUPSALV routinely coordinates all airlift and land transport to a spill site taking advantage of both the military cargo transport system and commercial transportation. Equipment configurations are pre-planned for C-5, C-130 cargo aircraft. All equipment is staged ready for immediate deployment and is available to all U.S. Navy activities, DoD facilities and federal agencies on a cost reimbursable basis.

PERSONNEL

Experienced field managers and highly trained operators and mechanics meet the equipment at the site, mobilize the equipment, operate it and provide for maintenance and demobilization. For very large or remote operations, local laborers can also be used to augment the core SUPSALV workforce if necessary.