An isolation barrier is a physical or procedural boundary established at hazardous materials or CBRN (chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear) incidents to prevent the spread of contaminants beyond a designated area. It serves to separate contaminated zones from clean zones during operations such as decontamination or containment. Not to be confused with isolation zones, which refer to broader operational areas, isolation barriers specifically refer to the tangible or procedural limits used to control contamination. These barriers are critical components within the Incident Command System (ICS) structure and support safety protocols like PAR (Personnel Accountability Report).
Category context: Hazardous materials, decon, isolation zones, UN/ERG concepts, and CBRN terminology.