An official website of the United States government.

This is not the current EPA website. To navigate to the current EPA website, please go to www.epa.gov. This website is historical material reflecting the EPA website as it existed on January 19, 2021. This website is no longer updated and links to external websites and some internal pages may not work. More information »

Related Topics:
Contact Us

2019 EPA International Decontamination Research and Development Conference

Hosted by EPA's Center for Environmental Solutions and Emergency Response.

November 19-21, 2019
Sheraton Norfolk Waterside Hotel
777 Waterside Drive, Norfolk, Virginia USA

Quick Links:
Conference Room Block
Agenda

Join us for the 11th International Conference on Decontamination Research and Development hosted by U.S. EPA's Office of Research and Development's Center for Environmental Solutions and Emergency Response. 

Sheraton Norfolk Waterside Hotel Sheraton Norfolk Waterside Hotel Background

Since 2005, EPA's Office of Research and Development's Center for Environmental Solutions and Emergency Response (CESER) has organized and hosted an international conference on decontamination research and development. Decontamination is one of the critical challenges that the United States and EPA would face in recovering from a major chemical, biological, or radiological (CBR) incident. The conference is designed to facilitate presentation, discussion, and further collaboration on research and development focused on an all-hazards approach to cleaning up contaminated buildings (both interior and exterior), infrastructure, and other areas/materials. The conference continues to focus strongly on matters involving CBR threat agents, but also includes all hazard elements.

Click here to view the 2018 EPA International Decontamination Research and Development Conference proceedings.

Topics for this conference include:

  • New chemical, biological, and radiological (CBR) detection and decontamination research data or field activities and large scale demonstrations related to the detection and decontamination of biological (including agricultural threat agents and biotoxins), chemical, and radiological threat agents in indoor (in facilities) or outdoor areas/materials;
  • Cross-cutting topics related to restoration, including: clean-up levels/risk assessment, exposure assessment, sampling/analysis of threat agents, fate/transport/containment, material compatibility with decontamination processes, tool and guidance development, waste management of threat agent-contaminated materials, water/wastewater decontamination, and systems approach to response and regulatory issues;
  • Regional, state, and local initiatives highlighting local priorities, challenges, and science and technology developments related to response and recovery efforts from intentional or accidental environmental incidents; and
  • Special topics: The special topics will address emerging issues as identified by the conference committee. This year’s special topics are:   
    • Coastal Operational Resiliency (AnCOR) project: presentations and preliminary findings of the EPA/DHS/USCG collaborative project focusing on the post-biological incident consequence management (sampling, decontamination, waste management, etc.) of urban and maritime structures, assets, and surfaces.
    • Waste Management: All Hazards Applications
    • Illicit Drug Remediation Efforts: Opioid Epidemic Efforts
    • Big Data, Artificial Intelligence, Information Sharing, Mapping, & System Integration in Disaster Response
    • Case Studies/Applied Research: Engaging Federal, State, Local Responders, and Industry
    • Case Studies/Applied Research: How Does Bench Scale Correlate to Real Scenarios?

Please contact Canden Byrd at 919-293-1660 or EPA_Decon@icf.com for further questions. further questions or to be added to the conference mailing list (registrants are added to the mailing list by default).

  • Announcements

    November 15th, 2019

    The registration deadline has passed, and online registration is closed. To register on site, see the registration desk.

    Additional conference materials have been added under the "Agenda & Conference Materials" tab.

    We look forward to seeing you in Norfolk!

    The 2019 Decontamination Conference Team

    October 17th, 2019

    A series of networking events have been added under the "Networking Opportunities" tab. Come join us for dinner, a hockey game, and a tour of Norfolk's resiliency efforts related to storm, flooding, and sea level rise.

    The 2019 Decontamination Conference Team

    October 2nd, 2019

    The 2019 EPA International Decontamination Research and Development Conference Agenda is now availabile!

    To view the 2019 conference agenda click here.

    The 2019 Decontamination Conference Team

    September 30th, 2019

    The call for abstracts has ended. Thank you to those who submitted an abstract. Authors were notified of provisional acceptance on Tuesday, September 24th, 2019.

    Remember to register! The registration deadline is November 12th, 2019. There is no registration fee.

    The 2019 Decontamination Conference Team

    Wednesday, August 21st, 2019

    The call for abstracts has been extended until August 30th. See the abstract submission tab for more information.

    The 2019 Decontamination Conference Team

    Thursday, July 13th, 2019

    Call for abstracts! See the Abstract Submission tab.

    Registration is open! 

    The 2019 Decontamination Conference Team

  • Agenda & Conference Materials

    The 2019 EPA International Decontamination Research and Development Conference Agenda is now availabile!

    2019 Decon Conference Agenda (PDF) - Full: Click here 

    Conference Materials:

    Last update: 11/15/19

  • Registration

    Registration is CLOSED

    Please see the conference registration desk to register on site.

    The registration deadline is November 12th, 2019.

  • Abstract Submission

    Thank you for your interest in submitting an abstract to the 2019 EPA International Decontamination Research and Development Conference. The call for abstracts has CLOSED. Authors were notified of provisional acceptance on Tuesday, September 24th, 2019. The abstracts and corresponding presentations will appear as part of the conference proceedings.

  • Networking Opportunities

    The organizing committee has put together a list of several social events that participants may be interested in attending. They are an informal way to continue conversations after the conference sessions and explore the Norfolk area.

    • Tuesday November 19, 6:30 pm
    • Wednesday November 20, 7:30 pm (Doors open 6:30 pm)
    • Thursday November 21, 12:45-2:15 pm
      • Guided Bus Tour by Old Dominion University Institute for Coastal Adaptation & Resilience
      • Local docents will give a tour of selected resilience projects in Norfolk related to storm, flooding, and sea level rise.
      • Click here to RSVP Exit. Attendance is free, but you must register by November 12th
      • The bus(es) will depart from and return to the conference hotel
  • Presentation Guidelines
    • Time limits will be strictly enforced!
    • Speaker presentations (PowerPoint or PDF format) will be 20 minutes followed by a 5 minute question and answer period.
    • We suggest limiting your presentations to no more than 15 slides; a general guideline is to have one slide per 1.5 to 2 minutes of the presentation.
    • Please avoid elaborate animation.
    • If using video clips in your presentation, please have them available as separate files.
    • Meeting room equipment will include:
      • Laptop computer with internet access and MS Office PowerPoint 2013
      • LCD projector
      • Screen
      • Podium with microphone
      • Laser pointer
    • Slides will be made publicly available on a password-protected website in PDF format after the workshop and as part of the EPA conference report; prior to the workshop contract support staff will request permission from you to post your slides and for inclusion in the EPA conference report. Do not include confidential or company-sensitive information in your presentation.

    Last update: 6/11/19

  • Poster & Tecnology Café Guidelines

    Poster Session

    • Attendance at the poster location is requested only during the poster session. Multiple posters to be presented by the same author will be placed adjacent to each other.
    • Each poster session author will be provided with a poster board (4' height x 6' width). The board will indicate the poster number in upper right and left corners. Authors are responsible for mounting their own material at any time prior to the poster session. 
    • All illustrations, charts, etc., to be posted should be prepared in advance as materials for these purposes will not be available at the meeting site. EPA will provide a reasonable supply of push pins but we suggest authors provide their own if possible.
    • Authors may wish to bring extra copies of their data and conclusions. No duplication facilities will be available through EPA. Authors may also wish to provide sign-up sheets for attendees who may wish additional information, reprints, etc.
    • We discourage the use of laptop computers or other equipment for multimedia presentations during the poster session. 

    Technology Café

    • The purpose of the Technology Café is to highlight a technical or scientific achievement through demonstration and discussion. The Café is not intended to advertise or promote a product or service.
    • A two-hour timeframe will be allotted for conference participants to interact with a given technology (optional), presentation material, and presenter. Scheduling information (i.e., date, time, and location) will be published following the release of the conference agenda in September.
    • Participants will be given time to set-up and test connections for any laptop computers or other equipment needed for multimedia presentations and technology demonstrations prior to the Technology Café session. Conference organizers will be present to help address any connection issues.
    • Presenters are responsible for setting up their own material AND for removing it by the end of the same day.
    • Presenters are responsible for being present during the Technology Café for demonstration purposes.
    • Each Technology Café session presenter will be provided a table space and a (optional) poster board (4' height x 6' width) which can be used to mount a poster containing general information describing the technology. The board will indicate the participant identification number in upper right and left corners.
    • Internet connection via Wi-Fi will be available.
    • Multiple demonstrations/technologies to be presented by the same presenter will be placed adjacent to each other.
    • All illustrations, charts, handouts, etc., to be posted or handed out should be prepared in advance as materials and duplication facilities for these purposes will not be available at the meeting site.
    • EPA will provide a reasonable supply of push pins, but it is recommended that authors provide their own if possible.
    • Authors may also wish to provide sign-up sheets for attendees who may request additional information, reprints, etc.

    Last update: 6/11/19

  • Student Competitions

    Student Poster Competition

    Current students and recent graduates are invited to participate in a poster competition where they will gain experience in concisely presenting their results to a panel of judges with scientific backgrounds. Participants will be expected to deliver a 5-minute lightning talk to the panel of judges when they arrive at their poster during the poster session. The participants will be judged on knowledge/presentation of the lightening talk (35 points) and the poster’s scientific content (35 points), visual appeal (20 points), and potential research impact (10 points). All students will receive an evaluation form with feedback from the judges.  The top three posters will be announced during the conference. The top winner will be invited to showcase their research as part of an official EPA Homeland Security Research Program webinar and received a signed certificate.

    Student Poster Eligibility

    • Please select “Yes, I am a student and would be interested in participating in a poster competition” on the abstract submission form.
    • Students must be currently enrolled in an institution of higher learning OR have graduated within the previous 6 months.
    • Data used for the poster competition must have been collected while enrolled in school.

    Student Video Competition

    Current students and recent graduates are invited to participate in a video competition to highlight their research discoveries to a diverse, non-specialist audience. The purpose of the video competition is to allow students to communicate the impact of their work in a creative way.  Participants are encouraged to describe how they view their work relating to Homeland Security. There are no discipline specific restrictions. Videos that pass the organizing committee’s review and contain each of the key components (see eligibility) will be shown throughout the conference and conference attendees will vote on the crowd favorite. The winning video will be announced at the conference and posted to the conference website. The winner will also be invited to showcase their research as part of an official EPA Homeland Security Research Program webinar and receive a signed certificate. Student attendance at the conference is encouraged (registration is free!), but not mandatory to participate in the student video competition. Students should post their video to YouTube and share a link of their submission. Video links should be submitted by November 4th, 2019  to EPA_Decon@icfi.com.

    Student Video  Eligibility

    • Please indicate “EPA Student Video Competition at International Decon Conference 2019” in the subject line of email when sharing video links.
    • Video submissions should be no longer than 2 minutes in length and must contain the following key components: Who you are, where you study, the goals of your research, how you conduct your work, and your intended impact to Homeland Security research.
    • Students must be currently enrolled in an institution of higher learning OR have graduated within the previous 6 months.
    • Data used for the video competition must have been collected while enrolled in school.

    Last update: 8/21/19

  • Logistics/Hotel Information

    A block of rooms have been reserved at the Sheraton Norfolk Waterside Hotel (conference venue). To reserve a room using the group rate, click here. Exit

    Please note that the room block is limited to 150 rooms. It is highly recommended reservations be made as soon as possible.

    Other nearby hotels (within walking distance):

    Norfolk Waterside Marriott Exit
    235 E Main St, Norfolk, VA 23510
    (757) 627-4200

    Hilton Norfolk The Main Exit
    100 E Main St, Norfolk, VA 23510
    (757) 763-6200

    Courtyard by Marriott Norfolk Downtown Exit
    520 E Plume St, Norfolk, VA 23510
    (757) 963-6000

  • Organizing Committee

    The conference is hosted by EPA's National Homeland Security Research Center. If you have questions about the conference or a proposed presentation, please contact a member of the conference planning committee.

Contact Us to ask a question, provide feedback, or report a problem.