In 2001, the Norwegian Clean Seas Association For Operating Companies (NOFO) completed a three year R&D-program for development of a dynamic, risk based oil spill response regime for the entire Norwegian continental shelf, including coastal areas and the shoreline. A central element of the new regime is an oil spill contingency planning system, where all relevant information are made fully available on the Internet. The web based Oil Spill Contingency Planning System (OSCPS) has proved to be an important and useful result of the project, and the responses from authorities as well as stakeholders have been positive. The system contains guidelines and standards that have been adopted by the industry, resulting in standardized and comparable site specific analyses. In addition to the information available on the Internet, a suite of Geographical Information System (GIS) tools have been developed and made available for all NOFO member companies. These tools have proved useful in analyses, training and desktop exercises. This paper provides an overview and highlights of our new OSCPS and Geographical Information System (GIS) tools, presenting examples of use and lessons learned. The paper also presents the responses from authorities and stakeholders to this open and transparent approach.

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