PARAMARIBO, SURINAME – On June 22 in Paramaribo, stakeholders gathered for a workshop focused on improving oil spill response decision-making as part of the Suriname Energy, Oil and Gas Summit (SEOGS) 2026 pre-summit events.
The session, titled “NEBA/SIMA in Practice: A Hands-On Introduction to Response Trade-Offs and Decision Quality,” was delivered by Oil Spill Response Limited (OSRL) and introduced participants to Net Environmental Benefit Analysis/Spill Impact Mitigation Assessment (NEBA/SIMA).
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The workshop explored how response strategies such as mechanical recovery, in-situ burning, shoreline protection and other methods are assessed to determine which option minimizes overall impacts on people, the environment and infrastructure.
The event brought together the very institutions that would be responsible for making these decisions in the event of an actual spill in Suriname, including the National Coordination Center for Disaster Relief (NCCR), the National Environmental Authority (NMA) and Staatsolie, alongside other stakeholders. That composition gave the workshop added weight: rather than a theoretical exercise, it placed regulators and operators in the same room to work through the same decision-making framework they would have to apply together under real conditions.
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Tristan Barston, Principal Preparedness Solutions Advisor at OSRL and the facilitator of the workshop, said bringing stakeholders together is an important part of building preparedness capacity.
“It’s important to recognize the SEOGS organizers for how they put stakeholders in the same room together towards a common goal,” Barston said.
For Suriname, where the National Oil Spill Contingency Plan already exists but where the legal architecture around response decision-making is still developing, the workshop opened a conversation that organizers said had not previously taken place in this format.
Marny Daal, part of the SEOGS organizing team, said the discussion was particularly relevant as Suriname continues to strengthen its preparedness framework.
“This is the first time we talk about the NEBA/SIMA in an oil spill workshop. Why we choose a certain method is vital,” Daal said. She also highlighted questions surrounding liability and decision-making during a response, noting the importance of having clear processes in place before an incident occurs.
