Islands’ Oil Spill Association has been protecting the waters in and around San Juan County since 1985. Their recent annual report provides insight into their activities that included  hosting a two-day large joint exercise on San Juan Island and deploying six geographic response plans within San Juan County. In 2025, the association obtained 501(c)(3) nonprofit status from the IRS opening up new funding opportunities. Also  Rick Winings was promoted to Deputy Director. He’s been with IOSA for three years.

Map of Geological Response Plans (GRP)  in Washington State.

According to WA Department of Ecology: Geographical response plans (GRPs) have been created to guide the response and protection of valuable areas in case of a spill.GRPs are written for specific areas, such as a river, lake, or section of Puget Sound, that include oil-spill response strategies tailored to local shorelines or waterways. GRPs contain maps, descriptions, and strategies to reduce injury to sensitive natural, cultural, and economic resources. They also set priorities for various spill risks from vessels, trains and facilities, and direct the response until real-time information becomes available.

In 2025 IOSA responded to eight documented pollution events within San Juan County. They were activated by the state WA Department of Ecology or the US Coast Guard provide initial site assessment and response.

A significant milestone this year was the reactivation of Geographic Response Plan (GRP) deployments – IOSA staff and volunteers deployed and tested six different SJC GRPs in 2025, bringing this critical capability back into practice.

Our Tier One training program continued to succeed at proving monthly training sessions across all three main islands.

IOSA led a large joint drill in June of 2025 our largest multi-agency coordination exercise to date. Over two days, 52 participants from 15 partner organizations simulated a large-scale incident in San Juan County with tabletop exercises and field deployment strategies and coordination. This drill demonstrated IOSA’s role as a force multiplier for agency response in our remote island environments and it strengthened the relationships that make local San Juan County rapid response possible.