Emergency Response Assistance Canada (ERAC)

Early Bird Registration Now Open! Join us at the next Dangerous Goods Emergency Management Conference this June 2-4, 2026 in Calgary. Secure our special, early bird rate before March 31! Learn more and register at: erac.org/conference2026/

What is one of Emergency Response Assistance Canada's strengths? Developing robust Environmental Emergency (E2) plans and facilitating small- and full-scale emergency response exercises. Take a deeper dive into our E2 services: erac.org/en/services/em…

with the group. We're proud to showcase the preparedness and collaboration that keep our members ready and communities safe.

that can be quickly accessed and deployed during an incident. Our President, Spencer Buckland, Safety & Emergency Management Director, Patrick Knight, and our Alberta Regional Manager/Technical Advisor, Chris Whitman, took part and shared valuable insights

Yesterday, we had the pleasure of providing one of our plan participant members tour the Emergency Response Assistance Canada Operations Centre, located in the industrial area of Calgary. This facility stores critical equipment, such as fire suppression, specialized tools, and resources

Our Dangerous Goods Emergency Management Conference will take place in Calgary next June. Our 2026 event is one you won't want to miss! Stay tuned—more details to be released soon. #yyc #EmergencyResponse

We pause to reflect on the significance of today. Remembering and honouring the brave individuals who fought for our freedom and those who gave their lives in service to the country we call home. Their courage, dedication, and sacrifice will forever be remembered. Lest we forget.

ERAC is pleased to welcome Kristie O’Brien, who joins our Calgary office as our new Executive Assistant. Kristie brings a wealth of experience providing administrative support to senior corporate executives in Alberta’s energy sector. At ERAC, Kristie will be responsible for supporting ERAC’s President and Board of Directors. Welcome Kristie!

Annual tabletop (small-scale) and/or on-site exercises are important because they help supervisors, staff and contractors better understand their roles and responsibilities during a serious event. Working through the details of your emergency response plan during a quiet period provides clarity for all and helps reduce the stress (a little) during an actual event.

SAVE THE DATE! ERAC is pleased to announce our 2026 Dangerous Goods Emergency Management Conference will be held on June 2-4, 2026, at Hotel Arts in Calgary, Alberta. More details to come later this fall.

This summer, ERAC and Super Save Group have been holding a series of five-year, full-scale, Environmental Emergency (E2) exercises at various Super Save Group facilities across Canada. This week, ERAC was in British Columbia to conduct a full-scale E2 exercise at Super Save Group’s Langley facility. Full-scale exercises are typically complex and resource-intensive and are staged in a realistic field environment requiring the deployment of personnel, resources and equipment. These exercises allow plan holders to measure the effectiveness of their emergency response plans. Special thanks to @LangleyCity_ Fire Rescue for their participation in our E2 exercise.

Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) requires all facilities that store certain amounts of specified regulated substances identified under ECCC’s Environmental Emergency (E2) regulations to conduct a full-scale emergency response exercise within five years of implementing their E2 plan. This week, Patrick Knight, ERAC’s Director, Safety & Emergency Management, and Aidan Osborne, ERAC’s Emergency Management Advisor, were in Langley, British Columbia to conduct a five-year, full-scale E2 response exercise with Superior Gas Liquids and Bulk Specialty Inc. Full-scale exercises allow plan holders to implement administrative controls to reduce the severity and impact of a potential incident, assess the effectiveness of their emergency response plans, and ensure that people, property and the environment are protected. Special thanks to the Township of Langley Fire Department and Langley RCMP for participating in our exercise.

This week, ERAC Emergency Management Advisor Aidan Osborne is in Newfoundland and Labrador to conduct five-year, full-scale Environmental Emergency response exercises at North Atlantic’s Mount Pearl and Pasadena locations. Full-scale exercises allow plan holders to implement administrative controls to reduce the severity and impact of a potential incident, assess the effectiveness of their emergency response plans, and ensure that people, property and the environment are protected.

To maintain compliance under the Environmental Emergency (E2) regulations, you must conduct an annual tabletop exercise or emergency response activity, as well as a full-scale exercise within five years of implementing your E2 plan. Annual exercises or response activities are to be conducted within one year of the facility becoming subject to the regulations and must test different emergency scenarios each year. Full-scale exercises are typically complex and resource-intensive and are staged in a realistic field environment requiring the deployment of personnel, resources and equipment. ERAC can plan, facilitate and evaluate your small and full-scale exercises to ensure regulatory compliance, and most importantly, the safety of your employees and the public. For more information: rb.gy/87o4ds

ERAC is committed to continuous learning and improvement. This week, ERAC Technical Advisors Sharlotte Stevens, Josh Watts and Marc-Olivier Boudreau are at the Monterey Peninsula College Public Safety Training Center in Seaside, California to participate in The Ammonia Safety & Training Institute’s 32-hour Ammonia Responder Course. The Ammonia Responder Course provides participants with valuable information on the challenges of responding to ammonia-related emergency events through classroom and hands-on training scenarios and live-drill exercises. Photo (left to right): Marc-Olivier Boudreau, Josh Watts and Sharlotte Stevens

ERAC is pleased to welcome Lisa Reyes, who joins us as our new Calgary-based Health and Safety Specialist. Lisa brings over a decade of experience in safety compliance, fleet operations and asset management across the construction and oilfield logistics sectors and has a proven track record of aligning health and safety systems with operational performance and fostering strong safety cultures. Welcome Lisa!

What are my responsibilities as an ERAP holder? What is required during an ERAP activation? What are ERAC’s responsibilities during an ERAP activation? ERAC has developed the ERAP Readiness and Review Program, a resource for current and potential Plan members to determine their organization’s level of readiness in response to an emergency response assistance plan (ERAP) activation. The ERAP Readiness and Review Program presentation can help you learn more about your ERAP, your responsibilities as an ERAP holder, and ERAC. You can access this web-based tool at: rb.gy/rsglw5