Konrad Oil Spill Exercise in the Östergötland Archipelago, Sweden

This week, on 11–12 November, our Swedish partner, the Östra Götaland Fire and Rescue Service (PP8), hosted a regional two-day oil spill exercise named Konrad in the archipelago of Östergötland.

The main aim of the exercise was to identify sensitive ecological areas, protect them from oil spill damage, and conduct measurements to reduce the consequences for the environment.

On Monday, partners from the University of Turku (PP1), Southwest Finland Emergency Services (PP3), and Danish Civil Protection League (PP4) learnt about the activities and operations of the Östra Götaland Fire and Rescue Service and how oil spill response is arranged in Sweden.

The guests had a grandstand view to observe how their host organises and performs oil spill response activities. These included cooperation between rescue actions on land and at sea and shallow water actions, for instance. Seamless and coordinated cooperation between key actors proved to be a teaching of the utmost importance. It is also what OIL SPILL is all about.