No matter how well-trained your staff, or how complete your safety plans are, emergency spills are bound to happen. And when they do—whether they involve oil, mercury, or other hazardous materials, having an experienced, 24/7/365 partner already in your corner to coordinate clean-up efforts will be critical.
So, what criteria should you consider when selecting an environmental cleanup company to deal with emergency spills?
EXPERTISE
- Not all emergency spills are created equal. Some are more complex and dangerous than others and require different protocols. Your environmental cleanup company should have an experienced, well-trained crew who knows how to assess and evaluate an emergency spill, secure the area, and create an effective protocol for containing it as quickly as possible to minimize any liability to you resulting from damage caused to people and property.
- Your most effective partner for emergency spill response will have an environmental cleanup division that has project managers who are supported by in-house and/or a strong network of environmental managers and engineers, compliance experts, emergency responders, scientists, and chemists, giving them the ability to offer unique, streamlined solutions to a wide range of emergency spill situations. Look for a professional emergency spill response team that is fully trained in wet-dry techniques and safety measures.
RESPONSIVENESS
The sooner a spill is handled, the less damage it can do. That’s why your first consideration should be finding an emergency spill response team that will respond quickly to your call, no matter what time of the day or night.
- Make sure the contractor has a 24/7 response phone line that is monitored 24/7/365. Some companies say they area available 24/7, but do not pick up the phone when called. The best emergency spill teams will have experienced team members on call around the clock, year-round to take your call.
- Do members of the emergency spill response team take vehicles home at night equipped with spill cleanup/containment supplies so they can respond immediately to your call? Some contractors need to drive to their office/yard and load up before they can head to your emergency—wasting precious time!
The most reputable emergency spill response teams like ACE Environmental will have numerous, experienced team members on-call around the clock, 365 days a year, ready to talk to you and deploy/mobilize a response team immediately. ACE’s spill response teams take their vehicles home each evening, and are ready to deploy at a moment’s notice in order to begin an emergency spill cleanup.
PRICING
The time to get an Emergency Spill Agreement in place is before you are faced with dealing with one. The last thing you’d want to do while an emergency is unfolding, is to be worried about completing, signing and returning paperwork that authorizes your emergency response contractor to proceed. Get that done beforehand, so you have peace of mind that the response team is on their way!
ACE Environmental provides a spill agreement and offers a fully transparent pricelist of all materials, tools, equipment and personnel that could be utilized. Every spill is different, but ACE provides a complete “menu” of everything we may use, depending on the situation. Remember, time is precious, and the longer mobilization/response is delayed, the more the spill can spread/absorb into troublesome areas, making for a costly cleanup. Avoid that by having ACE Environmental always on-standby for any emergencies that arise.
EQUIPMENT
- The most responsive emergency spill response team will always own and operate its own vehicles and equipment, including spill vans and pick-up, dump, box, roll-off and vacuum/AirMover/Tanker/Vactor/Jettertrucks—all outfitted with spill response and personal protective equipment.
- Additional heavy equipment at the ready should include loaders, excavators, bobcats, and scissor lifts, as well as various roll-off containers and drums. Trailers that can move equipment and supplies to the emergency spill as quickly as possible are also essential.
- The best environmental cleanup companies will also have a stock of spill response equipment and materials in inventory, as well as monitoring equipment such as LEL/O2 meters, PIDs, and skimmers.
CREDIBILITY
You wouldn’t hire an employee for a key position without checking their references, so be just as vigilant when choosing an emergency spill response team. Visit the websites of your prospective partners. Reputable companies, like ACE Environmental are eager to share their clients, provide testimonials, discuss their capabilities/qualifications and highlight completed jobs via case studies. Since we’re proud of our work, you will be too!For more than 18 years, ACE Environmental has been a proven leader in 24-hour emergency spill response for spill cleanups and other hazardous material-related emergencies in the Maryland, DC, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia region. We pride ourselves in building customer-intimate solutions for environmental challenges. Feedback from our clients consistently compliments our quick service and flexibility in dealing with any situations that arise.
You can’t plan for a spill, but you can be more prepared. Complete your Spill Agreement today, to ensure ACE Environmental is your partner for any “surprises” in 2023 – we’ll ACE it!
