INTRODUCTION
The state’s Local Emergency Planning Commissions (LEPCs) would like to know what hazardous, especially EHS, may be passing through county roadways to plan for possible emergencies. In addition, the local fire and rescue units would like to know what dangerous and perhaps life-threatening situations they might face with an EHS spill on local roads.
The state’s LEPCs are encouraged by The Federal Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration (PHMSA) to develop Commodity Flow Studies (CFS). However, most LEPCs lack the funding and other resources needed to accomplish this task. To assist local communities, the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security (ODEMHS) uses PHMSA’s Hazardous Material Emergency Preparedness (HMEP) grant to fund this ongoing research effort. Technical guidance is provided by the Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality, who is the custodian of a CAMEO database of Oklahoma facilities that store hazmat on site.
A key product of this ongoing, collaborative research effort is OK-EFRA, an ArcGIS® web application that presents EHS flow, EHS incident risk, and risks related to health, flammability, and instability/reactivity for Oklahoma roadways.
An ArcGIS application (OK-EFRA) was developed to inform LEPCs, first responders, and other local bodies in Oklahoma counties as to what EHS may be transported on county roads and highways.
Models to assess EHS incident, health, flammability, and instability risks were developed and risk levels were displayed as heat maps in the ArcGIS application (OK-EFRA) to serve as input to the emergency preparedness planning activities.
The county information sheet presents a summary of the main findings related to EHS flow and incident risk assessment.