Upcoming Events
Maritime Social Media Advisory Meeting, Seattle WA
Dec. 11, 2012
PNWER Annual Summit, Anchorage AK,
July 14-18 2013
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About the Center
The Pacific NorthWest Economic Region (PNWER) launched the Regional Disaster Resilience and Homeland Security Program in November, 2001 with the goal of improving the Pacific Northwest's ability to withstand and recover and to protect its critical infrastructures from all-hazards disasters. Based in Seattle, Washington, PNWER is a statutory, non-profit public/private organization that was formed in 1991 by legislatures of the northwest states of Alaska, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Canadian provinces and territories of Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Yukon & Northwest Territories. For more information please visit www.pnwer.org
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Message from the Director
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Brandon Hardenbrook PNWER Center for Regional Disaster Resilience Director
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As 2012 closes we are reminded of the severe impacts a major catastrophic event has on regional critical services and the economy. Hurricane Sandy highlights the need to continue to develop economic resumption and infrastructure recovery plans to quickly restore the region. It has been estimated that over $80 million a day was lost in cargo shipments alone because of Sandy's impact on ports. Shippers were faced with the task of searching for nearby port capacity to accept cargo and establish new relationships on the fly. It also points to the fact that the economy of a region hinges on the success of our first responders, critical infrastructures and key service providers. These interdependent relationships are crucial and are best established and understood well before a disaster.
Over the past year PNWER worked to find new opportunities to build these important connections and took on several new innovative projects, including the development of a cross border maritime commerce resumption strategy, a unique cyber security exercise and the development of a social media situational awareness system for the Puget Sound. We look forward to expanding this work in 2013 and continuing to connect regional stakeholders and highlight best practices in the Pacific Northwest and beyond. We applaud all of you involved in disaster preparedness planning and look forward to working with you in 2013.
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US-Canada Maritime Commerce
Recovery Project Update
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Rear Admiral Keith A. Taylor, Commander of the Thirteenth Coast Guard District addresses stakeholders at the tabletop exercise
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In order to strengthen the resiliency of our trade dependent regional economy, PNWER, in partnership with the US Coast Guard and Transport Canada, held several workshops and an exercise focused on regional bi-national maritime commerce recovery.
This effort resulted in "
" and its thirty-six recommendations. The Guidelines were adopted as the planning guide for the project.
Initial workshops were held in Vancouver, BC in March and May, 2012 to focus on the development of the Guidelines. A workshop was held on July 10, 2012, in Seattle to adopt the "Guidelines" previously developed by the participants and explore the development of communications and information sharing protocols for the tabletop exercise The development of the protocols focused on three principles: 1) review and utilize existing structure, plans and procedures to determine existing mechanisms that share information and communicate bi-nationally; 2) draft an international agreement referencing existing regional plans and procedures to expedite maritime commerce recovery; and 3) draft a regional information-sharing protocol framework that includes all Community of Interest stakeholders.
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Brian Bramah, Regional Director Transportation Security, Pacific Region, Transport Canada addresses stakeholders at the July workshop in Seattle.
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The tabletop exercise held on October 2, 2012 focused on the existing Pacific Northwest Emergency Management Arrangement and a draft annex to specifically address communication and information-sharing for maritime commerce recovery. Additionally, the exercise prioritized the essential next steps for implementing the Guidelines' recommendations and the protocol framework.
This initiative is part of The US-Canada Beyond the Border and Perimeter Security Action Plan to develop information sharing protocols and communication mechanisms to swiftly recover from any maritime disruption. For more details on the Beyond the Border Action Plan, please see http://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/wh/us-canada-btb-action-plan.pdf
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Maritime Social Media Project Update
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As the most trade dependent state, Washington economy is extremely dependent on maritime supply chains. The ports in the Puget Sound are vital to the import and export of goods, as well as for the cruise industry and commercial fishing. Ensuring the resiliency of our ports starts with the people who use them daily -- from longshoremen to ferry commuters. The Maritime Social Media Project will give the users of the ports new tools for reporting security incidents, or for providing real-time information during a disaster. PNWER has partnered with Pierce County to develop a smart phone app and social media filtration program to help the public connect directly with the Coast Guard, port authorities, and local government, to provide a real time situational awareness that will increase the likelihood of limiting a disaster before it occurs, and allowing for more targeted response.
The project steering committee is currently testing the smart phone app that has been developed for this project, and progress is underway on a social media filtration tool which will help inform port and other security and safety leaders about what is happening around the ports by examining twitter, facebook, youtube and other social media streams. Early next year the tools will be ready for Puget Sound stakeholders to test. For more information or to be part of the advisory committee, please contact Megan Levy at megan.levy@pnwer.org
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Emerald Down II
Regional Cyber Security Exercise
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The Emerald Down 2 Cyber Security Exercise was conducted on September 5-6, 2012 in Seattle, Washington. The purpose of the event was to educate regional public and private sector executives and management both inside and outside of the information technology (IT) field about the growing and changing cyber security threats to our critical infrastructure. The exercise was developed to inform stakeholders about: the need for cyber event plans; the interdependencies of the regional critical infrastructures; and dependence on IT systems. Regional public and private sector critical infrastructure protection and information technology professionals participated in this event to explore cyber event response plans, impacts and recommendations
Presenters Included:
- Jenny Durkan, US Attorney, Washington
- Grady Summers, Vice President, Mandiant
- Josh Michaels, FBI
- Lynne Miller, Public Information Officer/Communications Specialist at King County
- Mike Hamilton, Chief Information Security Officer, City of Seattle
- Kirk Bailey, Associate Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer, University of Washington
- Patrick Lamphere, Principal Security Analyst Manager, Microsoft
- Russ McRee, Manager, Security Analytics & WSG Cybersecurity Advisor to WA Military Department, Microsoft & Washington State Guard
- Kristi Longbrake, NERC CIP Standards Lead, Tacoma Public Utilities
- David Matthews, Deputy CISO, City of Seattle
This event was a follow-on activity to the first Emerald Down cyber event exercise, conducted in 2010. Emerald Down 2 was designed to capture the most recent perspectives about a widespread cyber event with both organizational and global implications for communications and connectivity. The scenarios presented provided exercise participants with opportunities to explore a range of cyber events from internal network disruptions to an attack on a municipal water utility's SCADA systems.
The key findings of the exercise centered on three main areas: 1.) communications, 2.) policy and procedures 3.) and situational awareness and education. Communications considerations include understanding that while the information security community relies on trusted relationships and informal networks, large scale cyber event response planning will require a more formal process for regional information sharing and coordination. This includes developing a common taxonomy for defining event severity and establishing standards for response thresholds as well as determining the appropriate reporting and escalation procedures between public and private entities and regional and Federal aid agencies.
Emergency response plans and policies need to include strategies for cyber-based events. There was a general recognition that policies and procedures are only effective if they are communicated and integrated into daily operations. Finally, organizations need to increase efforts to educate employees about the current nature of threats and to increase situational awareness about the current threat environment.
The top three high-level recommendations are as follows:
- There is a clear need to develop methods for regional data and resource sharing and communication about the threat environment that formalizes the important trust-based network that has developed between information security specialists in the region.
- Organizations need a clearly delineated escalation path in order to access both regional and Federal resources in the event of a major crisis.
- Finally, there is an urgent need to develop a common taxonomy about situation severity and response thresholds. This would provide a contextual basis for both the formal and informal communications that are necessary between organizations to determine situational awareness and coordinate event response strategies.
In conclusion, the Emerald Down 2 Cyber Event Exercise was designed to stimulate discussion and awareness of the uniquely pervasive aspects of cyber-based disruptions to local and regional infrastructure operations. The scenarios that were reviewed stimulated thoughtful exploration of significant topics that need to be explored in further detail as the region continues to define and refine private and public business continuity and response plans for a large-scale cyber attack. At the forefront of those continued discussions will be efforts to improve regional communications and coordination; policies and procedures; and situational awareness in order to promote resiliency and recovery from a regional cyber event.
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Tackling Security and Disaster Resilience Issues at the 2012 PNWER Summit
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Canadian Minister of Public Safety Vic Toews outlines triumphs, potential of the Beyond the Border Action Plan at the PNWER 22nd Annual Summit in Saskatoon, SK
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Border Issues
On July 16 at the 22nd annual PNWER Summit in Saskatoon, SK the Border Issues working group held a session focused on the progress of the Beyond the Border Action Plan, Presentations were provided by Paul Haddow, the director of Border Implementation for the Canadian Privy Council Office and Bradd Skinner from the US Department of Homeland Security.
Additionally, Dr. Don Alper from Western Washington University and the Border Policy Research Institute discussed the use of metrics at the border. Alper emphasized the importance of using simple metrics (wait times and volume of traffic) to recognize inefficiencies and identify actions that facilitate cross-border flows.
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PNWER Delegates Discuss the US-Canada Beyond the Border Action Plan in Saskatoon, SK
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The action items that were developed in the session included a call to urge CBSA and other US and Canadian agencies to publish port of entry specific northbound traffic data for research that will help streamline the border crossing process. PNWER also encourages the government of British Columbia to take additional action to increase the number of British Columbians who hold enhanced driver's licenses (EDL) because EDL usage significantly improves border efficiency.
The PowerPoint presentations from the session can be viewed here.
Disaster Resilience Working Group
The PNWER regional economy is highly interdependent and rests on the assurance of our ports, multi-modal transportation and critical service providers.Therefore to highlight such issues the Disaster Resilience working group held a session at the summit regarding the importance of strengthening the resiliency of our cross-border regional supply chain in the context of the Beyond the Border Action Plan.
Speakers at the session (click the link to see their presentation):
- Pat Docking, PDocking Consulting Ltd.
- Scott Rudderham, Senior VP, Operations, Canpotex
- Blair Wagar, COO, Global Transportation Hub
- Duane McKay, Commissioner of Emergency Management and Fire Safety, Saskatchewan
- Rep. Deb Boone, Oregon House of Representatives and Vice Chair of the FEMA Regional Advisory Council
- Jack McGee, President, Justice Institute of BC
A few of the action items developed during the session included:
- PNWER encourages the development of cross border MOUs to allow critical skilled individuals to assist in restoring critical infrastructure, including engineers/inspectors and other specific critical skilled labor. As part of this process,
- PNWER encourages jurisdictions to create an inventory of critical skills needed and potential shortages. PNWER also encourages jurisdictions to develop good samaritan laws to protect assisting workers during a disaster
- PNWER will host a conference call to update the region on progress made on the development of resilience planning initiatives across the region.
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Regional Infrastructure Interdependencies
Recovery Workshop
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In early 2012 PNWER led a regional Interdependencies Recovery Workshop at the Microsoft Conference Center in Redmond, WA with the goal of improving economic resilience within the Puget Sound region and beyond. The workshop helped to increase regional stakeholders understanding of interdependencies issues related to recovery and restoration of critical infrastructure after a major earthquake. Furthermore, attendees were educated about the impacts of different types of earthquakes the region faces and how social media could be used during recovery and restoration. The workshop was sponsored by the WA Homeland Security Region 6 Critical Infrastructure Protection Working Group.
The scenario for the workshop was a major earthquake, highlighted by Bill Steele of the University of Washington Seismograph Lab and Pacific Northwest Seismic Network. His analysis of recent earthquakes and the types that could devastate the Puget Sound region set the stage for the workshop activities.
The objectives of the workshop were to: 1) determine what might keep a business from reopening following a major earthquake; 2) explore what might be done to reduce the impact and speed business resumption ahead of time; and 3) provide guidance to recovery planners about what should be included in recovery plans focused on economic recovery.
The key findings from the days' activities centered on three primary areas of focus: 1) information; 2) employees; and 3) infrastructure priorities. First, information must be readily available, shared and found at a single source. Second, employees are the primary business resumption challenge. For businesses to be prepared, employees and their families must be prepared. Third, infrastructure such as roads, power, water, communications, transportation systems, financial capacity, fuel and the myriad of interdependent systems need to be prioritized to speed business resumption.
The top three high level recommendations supporting the key findings were: 1) establish a single source of business information like a business emergency operations and recovery center; 2) create incentives for business to prepare employees and their families so they can resume work, buy goods and sustain the economy; 3) include infrastructure priorities in recovery plans and include the private sector in policy decisions following a major event.
In conclusion, recovery planning in the three counties represented at the workshop (King, Pierce and Snohomish) are well underway. Further development of economic recovery portions of these plans are necessary. It is well understood by the emergency management community that they are not the experts in economic recovery and engagement of the private sector in planning as well as the involvement in decisions following a major event is critical. There is work to be done but we've taken the first step toward reducing the impact on our economy and allowing business to recover when the big earthquake occurs. It takes dialogue, planning and action. Our region has taken the lead, it is now time to act.
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Upcoming Activities
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For more information about the Center for Regional Disaster Resilience and our ongoing projects, please see www.regionalresilience.org
Upcoming Activities in 2013
Puget Sound Maritime Social Media Project - PNWER will continue to work with stakeholders to implement and test the maritime social media initiative in early 2013. For information about becoming part of the project, please contact Megan Levy at megan.levy@pnwer.org
Puget Sound Maritime Resilience Initiative - PNWER will take lessons learned from the US-Canada Maritime Recovery Initiative and will assist in developing several tabletop exercises to examine port continuity of operations plans and work toward developing a regional maritime resilience strategy. To become involved in this project, please contact Joe Larsen at joe.larsen@pnwer.org
2013 PNWER Annual Summit - The 23rd Annual PNWER Summit will take pace July 14-18, 2013 in Anchorage, AK. Several sessions will focus on security and resilience. Please see http://www.pnwer.org/2013summit/Home.aspx for more information regarding the agenda and registration.
Proposed Projects
Supply Chain Resilience Working Group - PNWER is working with the city of Seattle and the Regional Catastrophic Planning Program across eight counties in Washington to examine the development of a Supply Chain Resilience Working Group. This working group will begin to address specific recommendations from the Blue Cascades V Exercise Action Plan.
Recovery Support Function Interdependencies Workshop - PNWER is partnering with several counties to explore the development of workshops with newly appointed recovery support function leads to explore interdependencies issues impacting recovery. Because many of the RSF's have limited understanding of the cascading impacts of their decisions regarding recovery and their interdependent relationships between all the RSF's, it will be important to establish these relationships and begin to talk through specific scenarios.
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