Prestige: French Polmar Plan
The term "Polmar" encompasses two plans co-ordinated by different ministries.
- The Polmar Sea Plan is entrusted to “Maritime Préfets” (in metropolitan France), the means they have come from several ministries (action of the State at sea), in particular from the Ministry of Defence – French Navy.
- The Polmar Land Plan, applicable on the coast, is devolved to Department Prefects, closely linked to Defence Zone Prefects. Each French “département” (= French administrative division) has its own Polmar Land Plan. When triggering one of these plans, the Prefect in charge of the oil combating operations has the means of the different authorities, among which those settled by the ministry of the sea department, in Polmar storage centres share by different French departements.
Polmar’s settlement
The means of Polmar at sea storage centres had been made under pre-alert by maritime transport department of the coastal harbours (DTMPL) since the 14th of November when the first sights of pollution, coming from the Prestige, were signalled. The centres involved were those of the Atlantic coast (le Verdon, Saint-Nazaire et Brest).
On the 3rd of December at 5 pm, the Maritime Prefect for the Atlantic triggered the maritime stage of Polmar Plan in order to gather and settle private and public means of response (trawling, pumping…). An important flotilla of oil-recovering vessels coming from different countries of Europe and trawlers requisitioned with the help of Maritime Affairs, to catch pollutant with trawls, were gathered in a few weeks. Several thousands of tonnes of pollutant were recovered during the days where the weather was fine enough for the fleet to operate.
The
Pyrénées Atlantiques and Landes
Polmar Plans were triggered on the 7th and 8th of December, the
Gironde’s Plan on the 2nd of January 2003,
followed by the Charente-Maritime’s plan
on the 3rd of January.
The first movements of protection equipment had been operated since
the beginning of December from Verdon’s centre towards Pyrénées-Atlantiques
and Landes French departements. Then they increased, in order to
pre-position the protecting booms and to spread some of them as
a precaution on the whole Atlantic departements, from the Polmar
centres of Verdon, Saint-Nazaire and Brest. Moreover equipment and
booms were sent from Le Havre, Sète and Marseille. These
movements of equipment went on to refine the preparation (mini screening-machines,
cleaners and light equipment…).
Equipement involved inside the on land Polmar Plan
Whether they triggered their Polmar Plan or not, all the departements of the Atlantic coast were prepared to face pollution. Overall co-ordination was managed by the Defence Zone Prefects, particularly in the defence areas in the south-west of Bordeaux and in the west of Rennes.
Decentralized services of the Ministry of public works (Departmental Equipment Agency, Maritime Service and Maritime Affairs) take part actively to the implementation of the means of response.
At the height of the slicks arrival, some 160 members of the Equipment Agency were mobilized at all levels: duty office at the headquarters, preparation of equipment, coastal surveillance, maintenance of equipment, transfer of controls, supervision of sites…
This amount of people exceeded 200 during the caution-booms disposal operations.
Now, because of the reduction of beaching slicks and their concentration in Aquitaine, less than one hundred Equipment Agents undertake the maintenance of the settled plan.
The Regional and Departmental Equipment Agency take part to the preparation of the markets (supplying of nets, cleaning products, geotextile, clothing …) in the frame of the shoreline clean-up operations (Finistère, Morbihan, Loire-Atlantique and Vendée).
Last update: April 2006