LEPC Minutes 05-10-2023 (002)
May 8, 2023, at 11:00 AM
New Hanover County Government Center 2nd Floor Conference Room
Attendance
Name
Business
Name
Business
Stephen Alexander
SR&R Environmental, Inc.
Rhonda Olson
UNC Wilmington
Norman Barden
Piedmont Natural Gas
Jodie Ruskin
UNC Wilmington
William Coyle
Piedmont Natural Gas
Holden Shepard
Cape Fear Public Utility Authority
Hope Downs
NHC 911 Director
John B. Smith
American Red Cross
Andrew Dwyer
American Red Cross
Ron Stancil
Sturdy Corporation
Stan Harts
Alcami Corporation, LEPC acting Vice-Chair
John Stephenson
City of Wilmington Fire Department
Billy Howard
NHRMC Emergency Medical Services; LEPC Chair
Jeff Suggs
NHC Health Department
Tina Kuhr
GE Hitachi; LEPC Secretary
Mark Venters
GE Hitachi/Global Nuclear Fuels
Bill MacKay
NHC Emergency Management
Linda Willis
NC Dept of Natural Resources
Phil Misklow
Stephan
Carol Yates
Corning
Welcome and Introductions - The meeting was called to order by Stan Harts, LEPC acting Vice Chair, at 11:03 AM.
Review and Approval of Minutes – The minutes from the March 13, 2023, LEPC meeting were approved as corrected.
Membership Announcements:
There were several new members attending today. The LEPC members present introduced themselves.
Wednesday, May 10, was the North Carolina Statewide Hurricane Exercise.
CFPUA is restarting its exercise program.
GE Hitachi will be folding their biennial exercise on October 4, 2023 and will be seeking offsite agency support.
The Wilmington Regional Health and Safety School is coming up July 20 & 21 at the Wilmington Convention Center. For further information go to https://www.wilmingtonsafetyschool.com/
UNC-W commencement is being held Friday, May 12 and Saturday, May 13. Expect heavy traffic on College Road.
The Red Cross will be installing smoke alarms in the Smith Creek neighborhood on Friday, May 12.
Discussion Topics - Stan Harts
Volunteers are needed for sub-committees to accomplish the following tasks:
Bylaws Update - Title III of the Superfund Amendment and Reauthorization Act (SARA) of 1986, known as the "Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) of 1986 specifies
LEPC responsibilities. The bylaws were last updated in 2018 and need to be revised, for example to allow for virtual meetings. It was agreed that the Executive Committee will work with
Bill MacKay (NHC EM) to mark-up the bylaws and present them to the membership at the July meeting for approval.
Hazmat Plan Review – EPCRA requires LEPCs to review chemical emergency response plans at least annually. John Stephenson, Mark Venters, Stephen Alexander, and Phil Misklow agreed to
work on the review of the NHC Hazmat plan.
Tier II Submittal Review – This will be a high level review to determine if companies failed to submit reports (for example, companies that submitted in previous years that had not submitted
a report for the current year). The purpose would be to send friendly reminders to those who the LEPC believes should have submitted a Tier II report in 2023 but did not. John Stephenson
said that he had access to all the NC information in EPlan because of his membership in the state Rapid Response Team.
Fall Workshop Planning – NHC has grant funding, and the LEPC is looking at options for use. We are looking at a to a 5 to 6 hour event. Topics suggested included Tier II reporting/Eplan
and recent events. The grants cannot be used for food for the workshop. The LEPC recommended that the team reach out to other LEPCs in the region. Linda Willis, John Stephenson, and
Carol Yates volunteered to assist with this.
Committee Updates - Stan Harts
Executive Committee – This committee will handle the bylaws update.
Emergency Planning/Response – This committee will handle the Hazmat Plan review.
Community Education/Public Awareness – This committee will plan the fall workshop.
Open Forum
New Hanover County Emergency Management hosted a discussion based tabletop exercise “Port City Microburst” on April 28, 2023. The North Carolina Hazardous Materials Regional Response
Team, North Carolina Urban Search and Rescue Task Force 11, New Hanover County Fire and Rescue, Wilmington Fire Department, and other LEPC members participated. The scenario involved
a structure collapse at the state port with people trapped inside. They discussed how to respond, the assets and personnel needed,
mass casualty protocols, and more. The county expects to have the Lessons Learned report from CrisisTEC soon and have it available for discussion at the next LEPC meeting.
Adjournment
The business meeting was adjourned at 11:46 a.m., followed by a tour of the new EOC and associated facilities led by Bill MacKay.
Next LEPC Meeting
The next LEPC meeting is scheduled for July 12, 2023, starting at 11:00 a.m. at the New Hanover County EOC. Other LEPC meetings in 2023 are scheduled for September 13, and November 8.