Sea Alarm presents at the first Effects of Oil on Wildlife Conference in four years
The Effects of Oil on Wildlife (EOW) conference is the biggest event of the international oiled wildlife response community and is the only global meeting focusing on the planning, response, rehabilitation and research aspects of oil spills and their impacts to wildlife. The EOW was an exciting opportunity for Sea Alarm to learn about new developments in oiled wildlife preparedness, new technologies and new insights from recent pollution incidents.
During the conference, experts shared recent experiences from inland spills and incidents caused by other pollutants than oil. They also discussed new tools for oiled wildlife responder wellness which emphasised the need to establish routines and management tools for taking care of yourself and your team. Another hot topic was outbreaks of infectious disease such as Avian Influenza and its implications for wildlife emergency preparedness and response.
Saskia Sessions-Puplett took part in the conference and spoke at the ’cooperative efforts’ session, where she made a presentation on the EUROWA initiative. Sea Alarm coordinates EUROWA, a unique example of a model for international collaboration in oiled wildlife preparedness and response.
The first EOW was held back in 1982 and this 14th edition took place in Long Beach, California, hosted by International Bird Rescue and AIUKA. Sea Alarm has regularly attended these conferences for many years and was one of the organisers of the 2009 EOW in Tallinn, Estonia.
For the first time at an EOW, conference presentations were recorded and made available via the site Animalprofessionals.com.You can explore the presentations by creating an account here.
For further information, contact secretariat@sea-alarm.org
