SRI LANKA COAST GUARD FACILITATED FOR SRI LANKA OIL SPILL RESPONSE WORKSHOP AND EXERCISE

The ‘Oil Spill Response Workshop and Exercise’ conducted by the United States Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) Environmental Security Directorate along with the US Embassy in Colombo which was facilitated by the Sri Lanka Coast Guard (SLCG) was successfully completed on 10^th June 2022 at the Hilton Hotel, Colombo. The HE Julie J. Chung, the Ambassador of the United States to Sri Lanka and Maldives graced the inaugural ceremony of the event held on 06^th June 2022 as the Chief Guest and Rear Admiral Anura Ekanayake, Director General of the Sri Lanka Coast Guard attended as the Guest of Honour.

The five-day workshop included training on marine oil spills and how to promptly respond to them; how to enhance interagency coordination during such incidents; incident command system; how to assess environmental impact and minimize environmental damage resulting from oil spills; and safety measures for the first responders.

On the fourth day of the workshop, Sri Lanka Coast Guard (SLCG) conducted a static display of the equipment and equipment deployment exercise simulating an oil spill response incident inside the harbour at the Dikovita Fishery Harbour to showcase the existing capacity and the capability of the SLCG to other stakeholders.

Representatives from the Central Environment Authority, Ceylon Petroleum Cooperation, Ceylon Petroleum Storage Terminals Limited, Coast Conservation and Coastal Resources Management Department, Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Department of Wildlife Conservation, Disaster Management Centre, Foreign Ministry, Marine Environment Protection Authority, Merchant Shipping Secretariat, National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency, Sri Lanka Air Force, Sri Lanka Coast Guard, Sri Lanka Navy and Sri Lanka Ports Authority attended for the five day workshop and exercise.