by Ken Carrasco
Secretary, IOSA Board of Directors
For many of us, the first of the year represents renewal, a time for renewed health, purpose, and vigor in their lives.
This has also been true for the Islands Oil Spill Association in striving to return to its mission of responding to oil spills in our San Juan Islands. It has been a very difficult several months for IOSA and the reader may recall that the organization was very close to disbanding altogether. During the month of December, however, an expanded Board of Directors stepped forward with a determination to lead IOSA toward a rejuvenated role as a group of community-based volunteers who serve as the first-line response to spilled oil in our local waters.
The board realized that leaving our wonderful waters vulnerable to spilled chemicals was simply not acceptable. The ecological and economic effects could be horrendous. We realized that the path to once again serve as an effective spill response organization would not be easy, but would be both difficult and essential.
A first step in this commitment was a presentation on Dec. 10 to the San Juan County Council by me and Brendan Cowan, the director of the county’s Department of Emergency Management, about IOSA’s situation and future potential. This testimony was, of course, recorded and is available for viewing at the county council website.
Another step was to expand the Board of Directors from 5 to its current 9 members. The Board decided to create an advisory “IOSA Action Team” composed of volunteers who have a variety of skills and interests that will contribute to rebuilding lOSA. Organized and led by Brendan Cowan, the Action Team will begin meeting early this year to set initial objectives and strategies for a “2019 Action Plan.”
The board and action team have embraced the mission of restoring IOSA as a fully capable proficient spill response organization. The initial focus in 2019 will be to rebuild IOSA’s finances and ensure sustainability, create a leadership structure with clear cut roles and responsibilities, and develop a plan for proficient operations.
Once the organization is functional, we anticipate additional calls for volunteers to bolster IOSA’s front line response staff, solicit help with training and exercises and ensure that there will be adequate numbers of trained responders in place around the county to safely, promptly and competently respond to a wide range of spill scenarios in the San Juan Islands. Anyone who is interested in participating in the action team is urged to contact Brendan at brendanc@sanjuandem.net or at 360-370-7612. For updates, visit www.iosaonline.org/updates/.
