2023 Decon Conference Agenda
The 2023 EPA International Decontamination Research and Development Conference will be held December 5-7, 2023 in Charleston, South Carolina.
View the Final agenda below. All times are Eastern Time Zone.
Tuesday, December 5 | Wednesday, December 6 | Thursday, December 7
Tuesday, December 5
Session 1 | Session 2 | Session 3
Opening Plenary
Location: Magnolia Grand Ballroom
| Time | Session |
|---|---|
| 7:30 am | Registration Check-in |
| 8:00 am |
Welcome |
| 8:10 am |
Introduction |
| 8:15 am |
Opening Remarks |
| 8:20 am |
EPA Speaker |
| 8:40 am |
Plenary: Joint USCG/EPA Responses and Demonstrations |
| 9:10 am |
Plenary: Integrating Scientific Resources into the East Palestine (Ohio) Train Derailment Emergency |
| 9:40 am | Break |
| Time |
Chemical Agents: Decontamination I |
Materials and Waste Management |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Magnolia Room A/B | Magnolia Room C |
| Session Moderator | John Archer | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency | Jeffrey Szabo | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
|
|
Full-Scale Testing of a Simulated Chemical Warfare Agent Contamination Response Lukas Oudejans | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
Best Practices to Improve the Resiliency of Disaster Waste Management Amy Schwarber Krause | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
| 10:25 am | Development of a Chemical Decontamination for Critical Areas Janlyn Hope Eikenberg | U.S. Army |
Disaster Decision-Making to Support Sustainable Waste Management Marissa Matsler | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
| 10:50 am | Chemical Hot Air Decontamination: The Effect of Elevated Humidity Joseph Myers | U.S. Army |
Assessment of Traditional Treatment and Disposal Methods for Biosolids Contaminated with Bacillus globigii Spores Adam Burdsall | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
| 11:15 am |
Active Matter for Chemical Decontamination |
Efficacy of a Commercial Decontamination Product on Opioids, Adulterants, and Clandestine Laboratories Evan Durnal | MRI Global |
| 11:40 am | Lunch Break | |
| Time | Biothreat Contagion Preparedness Research | Applications of Social Science - Decontamination, Sampling and Risk Communication |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Magnolia Room A/B | Magnolia Room C |
| Session Moderators |
Katherine Ratliff | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
Brittany Kiessling | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
|
|
Efficacy and Safety of Aerosolized Triethylene Glycol for Airborne Pathogen Inactivation in Indoor Spaces Mitchel Simpler | JB&B Gediminas Mainelis | Rutgers University |
Environmental Justice Organizing Around Chronic Environmental Contamination E. Christian Wells | University of South Florida |
| 3:25 pm | Environmental Risk Assessment & Mitigation of COVID-19 and Other Pathogens: Field Sampling, Laboratory Analysis, and Assessment of Disinfecting Technologies Judith Chui Ching Wong | Singapore National Environment Agency |
Minimizing Infectious Disease Outrage with Communication and Behavioral Intervention Strategies Sean G. Kaufman | Safer Behaviors |
| 3:50 pm | Efficacy of Chemical Disinfectants Against SARS-CoV-2 and Surrogate Coronaviruses on High-Touch Surface Materials Megan W. Howard | Battelle |
Risk Communication Challenges with PFAS Contamination of Drinking Water Matthew W. Seeger | Wayne State University |
| 4:15 pm |
Disinfection of Sensitive Device Surfaces Contaminated with COVID-19 Surrogates and Role of Organic Burden |
Applying Risk Communication Best Practices During Emergency Response Madeline Beal | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
| 4:40 pm | Day 1 Adjourns | |
Wednesday, December 6
| Time | Session |
|---|---|
| 8:00 am | Plenary: Doing Disasters Differently: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Emergency Management Marcus Martin, Chief of Operations | Institute for Diversity and Inclusion in Emergency Management |
| 8:30 am | Plenary: Recommendations for Wide-Area Radiological Cleanup Pursuant to U.S. Disaster Response System Bill Steuteville, Region 3 Homeland Security Coordinator | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
| 9:00 am | Break (Poster and Tech Café set-up in Palmetto and Carolina Room) |
| Time | Session |
|---|---|
| 9:30 am |
Demonstrations of emerging and innovative technologies in decontamination and application. Poster presentations summarizing current research. Be sure to check out current student and recent graduate posters taking part of the Student Poster Competition. The Special Sessions page has a listing of all Poster & Technology Café presentations. |
| 11:30 am | Lunch break |
| Time | Session |
|---|---|
| 12:00 pm |
Current students and recent graduates are invited to a discussion panel of researchers and emergency responders. Panelists will informally discuss their experiences in various roles related to decontamination and homeland security. **Lunch will not be provided. The Special Sessions page has further information on this session. |
| Time | Biological Agents: Sampling & Analysis | Hazard Response |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Magnolia Room A/B | Magnolia Room C |
| Session Moderators |
Worth Calfee | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
Chelsea Hintz | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
|
|
Validation of Air Sampling for SARS-CoV-2 and Mpox Virus Using the Sartorius MD8 Airport Sean Collins | UK Health Security Agency |
Game Over is Not an Option: The Application of Serious Games to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Emergency Response Mission |
| 1:25 pm | Sampling and Recovery of SARS-CoV-2 from High-Touch Surfaces by Sponge Stick and Macrofoam Swab Megan W. Howard | Battelle |
Accessing Chemical Hazard and Safety Data via the Internet Antony Williams | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
| 1:50 pm |
Emergency Response Planning: Laboratory Support Considerations Peter Roumeliotis | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
Field Demonstration of Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) Waste Debris Volume Estimation Kent Hofacre| Battelle |
| 2:15 pm | Environmental Sampling for Mpox Virus in Domestic, Workplace and Hospital Settings Thomas Pottage | UK Health Security Agency |
PHILIS Mobilization Response to East Palestine Train Derailment Sang Chung | CSS, Inc. |
| 2:40 pm | Break | |
| Time | Biological Agents: Decontamination II | Radiological Agents: Decontamination, Sampling & Analysis |
|---|---|---|
| Locations | Magnolia Room A/B | Magnolia Room C |
| Session Moderator | Sanjiv Shah | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency | Erin Silvestri-Niemer | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
|
|
Comparison of Commercially Available Electrostatic Sprayers and Decontaminants for Personnel Biological Decontamination John Archer | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
Filtration of Radioactive Fallout Particles in Sand Filter Beds Michael D. Kaminski | Argonne National Laboratory |
| 3:25 pm | New Method for Legionella pneumophila Claims in Cooling Tower Water Lisa Smith | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
Analysis of Task Performance During Radiological Surveillance by Means of Discrete Event Simulation Lt. Michael H. Ames | U.S. Air Force |
| 3:50 pm | Evaluating Air Treatment Technology Performance Against Infectious Aerosols Katherine Ratliff | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
Days After RDD Recovery - Technology Sub-Group Identified Gaps Scott A. Hudson | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
| 4:15 pm | Evaluation of an Ionized Hydrogen Peroxide Fogging System for Inactivation of Select Agent Viruses on Laboratory Surfaces at Room-Scale Lindsay Gabbert | U.S. Department of Homeland Security |
Accurate Measurement of the Resuspension of Fallout Particles as Input into Urban Plume and Dosimetry Models Michael D. Kaminski | Argonne National Laboratory |
| 4:40 pm | Day 2 Adjourns | |
Thursday, December 7
| Time | Chemical Agents: Decontamination II | Multi-Agency Collaborations |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Magnolia Room A/B | Magnolia Room C |
| Session Moderator | Judy Ancharski | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
Sanjiv Shah | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
|
|
Risk-Based Values for Evaluating Surface Exposure to Chemical Warfare Agents April Luke | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
Analysis for Coastal Operational Resiliency (AnCOR) Wide Area Demonstration |
| 8:25 am | SoRite® DECON: A New Decontaminant that Destroys Problematic Psychoactive Drugs Keri Lestage | Aseptic Health LLC |
Timothy Boe | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
| 8:50 am | Decontamination Options for Sensitive Equipment-Related Materials Contaminated with a Fourth Generation Agent (FGA) Jason Sherrieb | Avarint, LLC |
Laboratory Processing and Sample Analysis of Environmental Sponge Stick and Microvacuum Filter Cassette for the Detection of Bacillus atrophaeus Subspecies Globigii How-Yi Chang | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention |
| 9:15 am | Mass Casualty Decontamination Research: What's Next? Kate McCarthy-Barnett | U.S. Department of Homeland Security |
NTAG-R Programme - Enhancing Chemical, Biological, and Radiological Recovery Operations in the UK |
| 9:40 am | Break | |
| Time | Session |
|---|---|
| 11:50 am | Student Competition Winner Announced Gregory Sayles, Center for Environmental Solutions & Emergency Response Director | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
| 12:10 pm | Closing Remarks Gregory Sayles, Center for Environmental Solutions & Emergency Response Director | U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
| 12:20 pm | Conference Adjourns |
Questions and Other Information
The conference is hosted by U.S. EPA’s Center for Environmental Solutions and Emergency Response. If you have technical questions about the content of the conference, presentation guidance, logistics, or any other topics, please contact EPA_Decon@epa.gov.