Tier 1/2/3 Spill Response

Tier 1/2/3 spill response is the IPIECA tiered-preparedness model that scales oil spill resources to incident size. Tier 1 covers small operational spills at or near an operator’s own facility, handled with the operator’s own equipment. Tier 2 covers larger spills that extend beyond the local area and draw on shared regional or mutual-aid resources from several stakeholders. Tier 3 covers major spills needing substantial national and international resources, mobilized through National Contingency Plans and global response cooperatives. The framework lets planners match boom, skimmer, and dispersant capacity to a credible worst-case discharge rather than a single fixed inventory.