The Wenchuan earthquake caused tremendous damage to chemical production, storage and transportation facilities within the affected area. This can cause dangerous chemicals to spill into the environment resulting in secondary disasters to the public and responders if not properly handled.

The American Society of Transportation and Logistics (ASTL) feel it’s our duty to contribute to the recovery efforts. With the support of China International Talent Exchange Foundation, we organized a free Hazardous Materials Emergency Response workshop on July 2, 2008 in Beijing. Mr. Steve Hawks, a leading subject expert from the U.S. and ASTL board member volunteered his time to conduct the workshop.

Mr. Hawks described how U.S. government, industry, and communities respond to hazardous materials after major disasters. He also explained how to plan for and respond to these events to prevent and mitigate the damage. He shared his forty years of experience in handling and transporting hazardous materials with the attendees in this workshop. About fifty representatives from State Administration of Work Safety, Ministry of Transportation, Cosco Group, China Storage and Warehouse Group, Sinopec, and Military Logistics Agency attended the one-day workshop.