Welcome to Skagit County
|
SKAGIT COUNTY DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT RECEIVES $40,000 FROM SHELL FOR SAFETY EQUIPMENT The Skagit County Department of Emergency Management recently received $40,000 from Shell Puget Sound Refinery for the purchase of protective equipment for the Hazardous Material Response Unit. In 2002, the Department of Emergency Management (DEM) responded to 285 hazardous materials incidents. The Department acts as the Incident Command Agency in cooperation with the Washington State Patrol for hazardous materials incidents occurring in Skagit County, in addition to maintaining Tier II data as required by the Community Right to Know Act. “These funds will go to the purchase of essential personal protective equipment for a team response,” said DEM Director Tom Sheahan. The funds are part of the Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEP) being paid by Shell Puget Sound Refinery. The SEP fund was the result of an agreement between Equilon Enterprises, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Northwest Air Pollution Authority. Equilon agreed to make major investments in plant technology to reduce plant emission and the company also agreed to provide funds for EPA-approved local projects aimed at reducing pollution. In 2001, Shell purchased Texaco’s interests in Equilon which had been a Shell and Texaco joint venture. The refinery’s Health, Safety and Environmental manager, Mark Koslicki, commented, “We work closely with the Department of Emergency Management, particularly in preparing for effective response to any major event involving the refinery and we are well aware of the valuable service they provide the community. We are pleased that some of the funds from this program can be directed in a way that will assist them in their work I protecting the community.”
|