CANUSLAK Joint Response Team (JRT)
| CCG Central & Arctic Region |
Through a bilateral Joint Marine Pollution Contingency plan (JMPCP), Canada and the United States have established a coordinated system for planning, preparedness, and responding to harmful substance incidents in the contiguous waters along shared marine borders. This joint plan supplements each country's national response systems and coordinates the interface of these systems for boundary areas. The JMPCP calls for five Geographic Annexes that specify response procedures and are the responsibility of the Assistant Commissioners of the Canadian Coast Guard and District Commanders of the United States Coast Guard. The Coast Guards also chair Joint Response Teams (JRTs) for each geographic area that consist of appropriate government representatives to provide advice and counsel to facilitate coordinated planning, preparedness, and response to a harmful substance incident; recommend amendments to the JMPCP or the Geographic Annexes, or provide advisory support to the CCG On-Scene Commander and the USCG On-Scene Coordinator.
The CANUSLAK Geographic Annex covers the boundary waters of the Great Lakes between Canada and the United States, defines the CANUSLAK JRT, and is regularly tested and improved in an ongoing series of CANUSLAK exercises.
