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Environmental Emergencies | en español
Pesticide Poisoning
Call 911 in case of emergency. Call Poison Control 1-800-222-1222 for first aid information.
More on poison prevention.
Concerned Citizens Resources
Natural events and disaster response
Additional Resources
Prevention, Pesticides & Toxics
Chemicals in Your Community (PDF) (29pp, 908K, About PDF)
Environmental emergencies, like oil and chemical spills and the release of radioactive materials, may occur from
- transportation accidents,
- events at chemical or other facilities using or manufacturing chemicals, or
- as a result of natural or man-made disaster events.
To report oil and chemical spills
and radiation emergencies,
call the National Response Center:
1-800-424-8802
Different kinds of environmental emergencies
Who plans for and responds to these emergencies?
Some important key groups
Related links
Different Kinds of Environmental Emergencies
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Planning for and recovering from disasters like hurricanes, tornadoes and snow storms
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EPA's Office of Emergency Management helps prevent, prepare for, and respond to oil spills, chemical spills and accidents and other health and environmental emergencies
- EPA's radiological emergency response specialists prepare for and respond to emergencies involving radioactive materials including nuclear power plant accidents, lost (orphaned) radiation source devices, and acts of terrorism involving nuclear materials.
- Pesticide
exposure - If someone has swallowed or inhaled a pesticide or
gotten it in the eye or on the skin call 911
if the person is unconscious, has trouble breathing, or has convulsions. Check the label for directions
on how to give first aid and call the Poison Control Center at 1-800-222-1222
for help with first aid information. More
poison prevention tips.
Who plans for and responds to these emergencies?
Responding to environmental emergencies is complex. Responsibilities are often spread across the federal, state and local sectors, depending upon the size and type of the emergency. Frequently, the environmental, emergency management, public safety, and public health agencies of all three levels of government are involved. Industry also has a very important role to play in preparing for and responding to these emergencies.
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The National Response Center serves as the sole national point of contact for reporting all oil, chemical, radiological, biological, and etiological discharges into the environment anywhere in the United States and its territories. In addition to gathering and distributing spill data for Federal On-Scene Coordinators and serving as the communications and operations center for the National Response Team, the NRC maintains agreements with a variety of federal entities to make additional notifications regarding incidents meeting established trigger criteria.
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U.S. National Response Team is made up of 15 federal agencies with responsibilities for preparing for, or responding to, major oil or hazardous chemical emergencies. The NRT is primarily a national planning, policy and coordinating body and does not respond directly to incidents.
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Thirteen Regional Response Teams (RRTs) around the nation
- exchange information about their abilities to respond to on-scene coordinators' (OSCs') requests for assistance;
- develop Regional Contingency Plans to ensure that the roles of federal and state agencies during an actual incident are clear;
- conduct training to test the abilities of federal, state, and local agencies to coordinate their emergency response activities; and
- identify available resources from each federal agency and state within their regions.
-
The American Red Cross
is America's largest humanitarian organization, helping people each
year prevent, prepare for and cope with emergencies. - The Federal Radiological Preparedness Coordinating Committee coordinates federal peacetime emergency planning and preparedness assistance to state and local governments. It also enhances federal response planning and preparedness for such emergencies by assisting FEMA in providing policy and program direction, coordinating efforts of member agencies to minimize duplication and maximize benefits to state and local governments, and coordinating national response planning and preparedness activities.
- Department of Homeland Security Preparedness and Response site
- Citizen Corps Part of USA Freedom Corps, Citizens Corps was created to help coordinate volunteer activities that will make our communities safer, stronger, and better prepared to respond to any emergency situation.
