Emergency Response

DIVISION: Emergency Management
GENERAL PHONE NUMBER: (609) 633-2168
FAX NUMBER: (609) 777-0985
NJDEP Hotline: 1 (877) WARN DEP (1-877-927-6337)
WEB SITE

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION:

The department has the responsibility of responding to emergencies involving oil and hazardous materials, to ensure that discharges of these materials do not threaten the health of the public and environment. In response to this mandate, the department maintains the Bureau of Emergency Response (BER). The bureau, headquartered in Trenton, supports two field offices strategically located in Robbinsville, Mercer County and Cedar Knolls in Morris County. These locations allow for rapid response on a 24-hour basis, 7 days a week. Additionally, the bureau is an integral part of the state response to any terrorist events involving chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear or explosive weapons (CBRNE).

At the site of an incident, the emergency responder's mission is to assess the probable impact on public health and the environment, and advise local officials on the appropriate course of remediation while ensuring that Technical Requirements for Site Remediation are met. In those cases where the responsible party is unknown, or cannot or will not assume responsibility for the discharge, emergency responders may access the New Jersey Spill Compensation Fund to ensure that corrective actions are not delayed.

MONETARY ASSISTANCE PROVIDED:

The bureau can engage emergency contracts to clean up spills of hazardous materials when a responsible party is unable to do the clean up. All spills of hazardous materials must be reported to the DEP Hotline at 1-877-WARNDEP

PERMITTING RESPONSIBILITIES:

None

PUBLICATIONS AVAILABLE:

None.