The WLA-RP has been designed to be compatible with the Incident Command System (ICS). The ICS was established by the Department of Homeland Security to provide a flexible and scalable system with common structure and terminology that facilitates coordination during an emergency response.
For smaller scale incidents and during the initial phases of large incidents, management functions may be handled by one person, the Incident Commander (IC). In this case, the IC will serve as the ASR. As an incident escalates, the ICS structure may expand and the responsibilities of the ASR and PRL may be transitioned into the Environmental Unit (EU). The EU facilitates environmental data management, monitoring, sampling, analyses and assessment, including the efforts by the labs.