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Highlights From the 2019 SCAA Annual Meeting & Conference



SCAA held its 46th Annual Meeting & Conference last month on March 26th and 27th.  Thank you to all who attended -- it was our largest attendance turnout on record featuring some exceptional speakers, topics, and panels.


The first day included presentation topics on lessons learned from the SCAA Health & Safety Committee, funding unique responses, environmental insurance, detection and recovery techniques for sunken and submerged oil, and marine debris challenges in the response community. 

PHMSA Administrator Howard "Skip" Elliott, served as the luncheon keynote speaker providing a status summary update on PHMSA’s current and future efforts for spill response and planning Initiatives.  

New this year, and well-received by survey results, was the addition of professional motivational speaker Paul Butler who addressed the SCAA membership about leadership, loyalty, commitment and work ethic during his Leadership for a Lifetime presentation emphasizing how the past prepares us for the future. 

The day concluded with a formal reception in the ballroom with networking opportunities, food and beverage. 

Day Two began with a panel discussing how OSROs can reduce response liability for their clients and themselves, and then a bevy of SCAA committee updates.  The afternoon focused on updates from our regulatory partners: NOAA, USEPA, USCG, BSEE, PHMSA, and the NPFC; and our industry partners: APICOM, ASA, and Alliance of Hazardous Materials Professionals.   Before SCAA President Robert Chambers’ closing remarks, a workshop was held on a key issue for the response industry: Employee Recruitment and Retention.  SCAA members shared best practices on how to engage employees for a professional career in the response industry.

As always, the SCAA Annual meeting served as an important information sharing event, providing the members / attendees with plenty of opportunity to network and catch up with peers.



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