What is the RRAP?

RRAP CoverThe Regional Resiliency Assessment Program (RRAP) is a cooperative, non-regulatory assessment program implemented to examine the resilience of critical infrastructure and systems through regional analysis. The program, led by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of Infrastructure Protection (IP), addresses a range of hazards that could have significant consequences, both regionally and nationally.

Quadrennial Energy Review Cover
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Each RRAP typically involves data gathering and analytical effort followed by continued technical assistance to support resilience-building. RRAPs can incorporate various components, including voluntary facility vulnerability assessments, targeted studies and modeling, first responder capability evaluations, subject matter expert workshops, and other valuable information-exchange forums.

Multiple gaps in federally accessible data impede decision making on policies and investment related to resilience, reliability, and security. These data are critical for understanding the extent to which existing energy infrastructure is resilient and for better informing resilience investments. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) released the Quadrennial Energy Review (QER) in April 2015. The Review recommends that DOE, in collaboration with DHS and interested infrastructure stakeholders, develop common analytical frameworks, tools, and metrics to assess the resilience, reliability, and security of energy infrastructure assets. As a result, DHS approved a 2016 RRAP nomination for DHS and DOE to collaborate on issues identified in the QER.

Explore Quadrennial Energy Review Highlights and State Risk ProfilesNew Extreme Weather Data

 

Vulnerability of the Region 1 Electric Energy System Components

Energy transmission and distribution infrastructure in the Northeast is both extensive and aging (ISO-NE 2014, Pepco 2014). The region’s population and electric power infrastructure are concentrated in coastal cities and low-lying river valleys (USGCRP 2014), making the Northeast electric grid vulnerable to flooding from both heavy precipitation events and coastal storm surge during hurricanes, both of which are projected to increase as a result of increased extreme weather events.

Region 1 Electric Energy Power System

    • 6.5 million electricity customers; population 14 million
    • 350+ electric generators
    • 8,000+ miles of high-voltage transmission lines
    • 13 interconnections with systems in New York and Canada.
    • 32,000 MW of installed generation capacity

Path Forward

The Region 1 Electric Energy RRAP will have two phases, each with multiple steps

Phase 1

DATA GATHERING, ANALYSIS,AND PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

STEP 1 Identify energy infrastructure (e.g., substations with large power transformers) in Region I that might be vulnerable to extreme weather (now and in the future)

STEP 2 Employ DHS and DOE methodologies, tools, and processes to evaluate risks in the identified energy infrastructure

STEP 3 Engage with State and private sector stakeholders to identify gaps in our understanding of regional or sector-specific issues

STEP 4 Identify and document dependencies and interdependencies associated with at-risk energy infrastructure to better understand the cascading impacts resulting from possible disruption

STEP 5 Provide information and products to States on available analytical capabilities and resources to enable them to better prepare for disruptions and to make more informed planning, response, and recovery decisions

IMPLEMENTATION

Work with stakeholders to implement resilience enhancement options identified during the RRAP

Provide ongoing assistance via DHS Protective Security Advisors (PSAs) to assist appropriate State organizations with incorporating information from the RRAP into their planning efforts, as outlined in the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) publication Community Resilience Planning Guide for Buildings and Infrastructure Systems.

 

Legacy Regional Resiliency Assessments

Each RRAP typically involves data gathering and analytical effort followed by continued technical assistance to support resilience-building. RRAPs can incorporate various components, including voluntary facility vulnerability assessments, targeted studies and modeling, first responder capability evaluations, subject matter expert workshops, and other valuable information-exchange forums. The 2014 Casco Bay Region Climate Change Resiliency Assessment was recently completed for Region 1.

2014 Casco Bay Region Climate Change Project Additional Reports

A Ten-year Radar Climatology of Rainfall over Portland, Maine

Average rainfall rates from KGYX radar over Maine

Climate Models Datasets for Climate Assessments: A Summary for the State of Maine

Urban Flooding Analysis Using Radar Rainfall Data and Rainfall Data and 2-D Hydrodynamic Model: A Pilot Study of Back Cove Area, Portland Maine

Summary: Intensity, Duration, Frequency (IDF)

Additional Resources
  National Climate Assessment   U.S. Climate Resilience Toolkit  Quadrennial Energy Review