Requirements Pertaining to All DOE Operations

DOE-STD-1128-98

Guide of Good Practices for Occupational Radiological Protection in Plutonium Facilities

phenomena impacts, environmental damage, or worker safety and health concerns.

Planning, preparedness and response requirements for some types of emergency

conditions are specified by other agencies having authority over DOE facilities and

activities. For example, Federal regulations on occupational safety, environmental

protection and hazardous waste operations have consequent "emergency planning"

requirements. Rather than meet these requirements piecemeal through separate

programs, DOE has combined, under the EMS, all planning and preparedness activities

for emergency events having health, safety or environmental significance.

involving hazardous materials are grouped into one of three classes according to

magnitude or severity. Classification of events is intended to promote more timely and

effective response by triggering planned response actions generally appropriate to all

events of a given class. This principle, termed "graded response", is embodied in DOE

Order requirements and is important to the effective management of response

resources.

(d) Tiers of Emergency Management Responsibility. Within the EMS, responsibility

for emergency management extends from the individual facility level to the cognizant

DOE Field Element, and culminates at the cognizant Headquarters Program Office.

The responsibilities vested at each level of the hierarchy are specified in DOE

Order 151.1 (DOE, 2000a). The responsibility and authority for recognizing,

classifying, and mitigating emergencies always rests with the facility staff. The head of

the cognizant Field Element oversees the response of contractors and supports the

response with communications, notifications, logistics, and coordination with other

DOE elements. The DOE Headquarters (HQ) Emergency Operations Center (EOC)

receives, coordinates, and disseminates emergency information to HQ elements, the

cognizant Program Office, Congressional offices, the White House, and other Federal

Agencies.

9.1.2 Requirements Pertaining to All DOE Operations

DOE Order 151.1 (DOE, 2000a) identifies standard program elements that comprise each

DOE facility emergency management program. The elements form a standard framework,

with the details of each program element varying according to the nature and magnitude of

the facility hazards and other factors. The Orders require that a facility-specific hazards

assessment be conducted and the results used as the technical basis for the program element

content. Using the results of an objective, quantitative, and rigorous hazards assessment as a

basis, each program is configured to the specific hazards and response needs of the facility.

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