1. Law Enforcement Regional Technology Assessment and Gap Analysis (Salient Solutions Corp/Lee Reese) - Summary and Full Reports Complete
The NPG’s
approach to enhancing homeland security focuses efforts on identifying and developing critical capabilities from the Target Capabilities
List (TCL). A significant amount of effort and resources have been devoted over the course of the past few years to achieving targeted
capabilities. While much has been accomplished, there remain a number of potential gaps in specialized law enforcement capabilities
to achieve the objectives outlined in the NPG. This effort will survey the conformity of selected Law Enforcement agencies throughout
the Southeastern region of the United States with the technology aspects of the Department of Homeland Security Target Capabilities
List, utilizing a nationally-recognized law enforcement professional, with the requisite law enforcement seniority and homeland security
technology experience, to survey continuing law enforcement technology needs throughout the law enforcement community in the Southeastern
United States.
2. Regional Emergency Planning Model for Continuous Disaster Mitigation Response (Western Carolina University
- Laura Meyers) -Phase I Model Completed. Phase II Effort in progress.
Deficiencies in interagency communication remain a key obstacle to successfully developing and implementing
emergency plans during times of disaster. The Institute for the Economy and the Future at Western Carolina University, under contract
to SERRI, will develop a Regional Emergency Planning Model (REPM) that will enhance interagency communication by designing a framework
for effective disaster response; devise an effective methodology for considering human behavior in emergency situations that can be
adopted and implemented throughout our nation; identify important policy considerations and best practices that must be examined for
effective disaster responses; and disseminate the information to relevant practitioners.
3. Community and Regional Resilience
Initiative -CARRI (Oak Ridge National Laboratory/Mr. Warren C. Edwards) - in progress
CARRI is a regional program with
national implications for how communities and regions prepare for, respond to and recover from catastrophic events. CARRI will
develop the processes and tools with which communities and regions can better prepare to withstand the effects of natural and man-made
disasters. In its first year, CARRI will create a standard for community resilience that is accurate, defensible, welcomed, and applicable
to communities across the region and the nation.
A resilient community anticipates problems, opportunities and the potential
for surprise. It reduces vulnerabilities to development paths, socio-economic conditions and identified threats. It responds
effectively, fairly and legitimately. It recovers rapidly, safely and fairly. In addition to the key disaster management services
that local governments provide, a resilient community recognizes that private sector and non-governmental organizations are critical
components of the fabric of a community and play significant roles in community and regional disaster resilience. CARRI processes
will integrate the full resource base of a community into planning, response, and recovery so that the community can get back on its
feet as quickly as possible.
CARRI is presently working with two partner communities in the southeast: Gulfport, Mississippi andMemphis, Tennessee. A third community partnership will be launched on the southeastern seaboard in fall 2007. These “laboratory”
communities will help CARRI define community resilience and test its emerging resilience framework. Using input from the laboratory
communities, lessons learned from around the nation, and the guidance of ORNL-convened researchers who are experts in the diverse
disciplines that comprise resilience, CARRI will develop a community resilience framework that delineates a process that communities
can work through to become more resilient, and be so recognized. These objective metrics will help communities differentiate themselves
from less-resilient communities and regions resulting in positive economic benefits. As part of developing the community resilience
framework, CARRI will collect and make available practical tools to help communities assess their resiliency status and systematically
take steps towards enhancement.
Once the southeast community programs are completed and the lessons and key attributes are integrated
from these communities and others, CARRI will be available as a national resource for communities and regions that seek to improve
their ability to withstand and recover from a catastrophic event.
4. Resilient Homes (Savannah River National Laboratory/Dr.
John Plodinec) - in progress
The resilience of a community – its ability to rapidly recover from a disruptive event, e.g., a hurricane,
an earthquake, a flood – is critically dependent on the ability of individual homeowners to regain full use of their dwelling quickly. If they are not able to do so, the continued viability of the community is in doubt. In the case of New Orleans after Hurricane
Katrina, the slow pace of rebuilding has severely hampered the overall recovery of the city. After Hurricane Camille, scores
of communities in Mississippi and Louisiana never recovered and were abandoned. There is evidence that the same is occurring
in the wakes of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The purpose of this project is to make community recovery more certain by dramatically
speeding the return of the homeowner to the home.
5. Resilient Forests and Forest Products Industries Summit (Savannah
River National Laboratory/Dr. John Plodinec) - in progress
The forests and forest products industries are important parts of the life
of the southeastern US. The forests make up a majority of the land mass in the region. Over half of the land in the southeastern
US is timberland (and more than that is forested); two-thirds in Georgia and South Carolina. The forests and forest products
industries are mainstays of the economy of the region annually contributing several billion dollars to the economies of each of the
southeastern states. Approximately one in ten workers across the region earn their living through the forests, either directly
or indirectly. The forests play an essential role in maintaining the healthy natural environment that the region enjoys, and
so much of its tourism depends on. Thus, the resiliency of the forests and forest product industries – their ability to quickly
recover from disruptive events – is an important component of the resiliency of the south itself. The purpose of this project
is to convene a Summit is to develop and implement an Action Plan for the forests and forest industries. Throughout the presentations
and breakout sessions, the Summit will focus on two key questions: 1) What should be done (e.g., preventive measures, immediate responses,
and long-term recovery actions) to help forest owners and the forest products industries recover from disruptive events? and 2) How
can forest owners and the forest products industries aid in the overall recovery of areas affected by a disruptive event? Participants will represent the full range of interests – the forest owners; the forest products industries; federal, state and local
governments; interested non-governmental organizations; the environment; and other interested groups. At the conclusion of theSummit, the Steering Committee will finalize the Action Plan based on comments received and the results of the Summit itself. A follow-on Summit is planned for 2010 to evaluate implementation progress.