A Fast Response Capability within NOAA/NOS/CO-OPS

Duuring a maritime emergency, such as an oil spill, it is important to develop an effective response based on sound scientific observations and expertise in order to protect the lives, commerce and environment in the affected area. The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Ocean Service´s (NOS) Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services (CO-OPS), with support from the Emergency Response Division within the Office of Response and Restoration (a.k.a. NOAA Hazmat), has been developing a fast response capability to satisfy this objective. The Quick Response Estuarine Buoy (QREB) has specifically been developed as a rapid-deployment system for the collection of oceanographic and meteorological information at a targeted location in an effort to ensure safe, efficient and environmentally- sound navigation while supporting the environmental needs of Hazmat´s response. The QREB is intended to be a self-contained, small moored system that can be easily deployed in coastal waters by a small size vessel. The buoy has a meteorological package and an acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) mounted below its hull. The real time data are communicated through both an IP modem and a GOES satellite antenna for durations up to 30 days. The buoy was deployed during the NOAA Safe Seas 2006 (SS2006) exercise in the Gulf of the Farallones and Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuaries. Real-time environmental data from the QREB near the site of a simulated oil spill were made available to the Scientific Support Team (SST), Hazmat, the National Weather Service (NWS) and other emergency responders at the Incident Command Post to provide guidance in managing the simulated situation and were also incorporated into the local weather forecasts and used to truth Hazmat´s General NOAA Operational Modeling Environment (GNOME) forecasts. Although the Safe Seas drill proved successful, it is evident that improvements are still required for the QREB to- become fully operational in response to a real event. Upon successful testing, the QREB will not only be available for event response, but will also be primarily used to collect current velocity data in key navigational areas of the United States in support of the mission of the National Current Observational Program (NCOP) within CO-OPS.