CAW Hosts Operation Golden Phoenix Tabletop Exercise

On June 9, 2010, The Naval Postgraduate School, (NPS) Center for Asymmetric Warfare (CAW) in conjunction with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) hosted a Tabletop Exercise as part of “Operation Golden Phoenix” (OGP) 2010 Exercise series. Over 170 participants from 80 agencies participated in this Tabletop Exercise. OGP is a series of training events designed to explore the emergency response and management following the detonation of an improvised nuclear device in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The exercise program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology (S&T) Directorate who’s Program Manager, Theresa Lustig, was in attendance at the event.

The Tabletop Exercise was designed to provide training and facilitated discussion on the types of resources, capabilities and subject matter expertise available at various levels of government and from supporting organizations.

David Lamensdorf, President of Safe Environment Engineering and Ron Kimmelman, IT Manager for CAW teamed up for a demonstration on Interoperability technology that is available as a resource to manage information during a crisis of this magnitude. The Integrated Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear and Explosives Program, provides an instantaneous way to share and collaborate CBRNE information across region, state, nation or beyond.

The participants were presented with a scenario, which was developed by the CAW team. One of CAW’s responsibilities is to develop realistic and robust scenarios which assisted in driving discussion among participants.

Participants were then divided into breakout groups such as field level, local government, operational and state, federal and military. The breakout session focused on the issues surrounding emergency response and management during the first 12 hours of the incident. As the exercise progressed, the agencies were provided with scenario updates.

The results of the breakout sessions were briefed back in a panel discussion format that included; field level, local government, operational area, state, federal, military and even Public Information Officers (PIO).

The OGP TTX and Training was designed to stimulate planning activities and initiate preparations for the July 28 OGP-10 Functional Exercise. Events in addition to the Functional Exercise include: Los Angeles County Executive Workshop, Communications Exercise and an After Action Conference.

For more information on Operation Golden Phoenix, contact Alan Jaeger, CAW Program Manager at ajaeger@nps.edu

CAW Asks the Question: How Safe are CA Oil Platforms From an Oil Spill?

After the recent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, there has been a lot of speculation about whether a similar catastrophe could occur off the coast of California. There are currently 27 offshore oil platforms and 5 oil islands operating off California's coast - much less than in the Gulf of Mexico. However, it only takes one similar failure to create an equally devastating environmental and economic crisis. In an effort to start a dialogue about the safety of California offshore platforms, Brendan Applegate, an Exercise Manager at CAW, spoke with a representative of the Minerals Management Service (MMS), who explained the critical differences.

What he found is that there are several significant differences between BP's Deepwater Horizon platform that exploded and sank in the Gulf of Mexico and what is being used here in California that make it unlikely that such an incident would occur here.

During an Oil Platform Security Exercise conducted by CAW in 2008, platform operators from Venoco and Pacific Energy spoke of a "failsafe" mechanism installed at the bottom of the ocean, below the mudline, that would keep oil leaks similar to the one currently spoiling the Gulf from occurring. The Blowout Prevention Valve (BOP) that failed on the Deepwater Horizon platform is significantly different than the Subsurface Safety Valves in use by the majority of platforms off Califonia's coast. These valves are installed upon completion of drilling and the BOP is used as a temporary failsafe during the drilling process.

Only one platform off the California coast is currently conducting drilling operations and utilizing a BOP device. But even this BOP is different than the one that failed in the Gulf. The Deepwater Horizon Platform in the Gulf was a movable semi-submersible platform that utilized a sea-floor level BOP. All platforms off California are permanent facilities, anchored directly to the seafloor, and operate with a BOP at the platform level, which makes it much easier to access, repair, and control in the event of catastrophic equipment failure.

MMS explained that the drilling climate in California is stricter than in the Gulf of Mexico, due to heightened environmental awareness, anti-drilling sentiment, and the presence of multiple “watch dog” organizations. Equipment off California is held to a stricter standard and tested more frequently than in the Gulf, making an incident similar to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill unlikely.

After the Deepwater Horizon incident, MMS continues to exercise its in-place processes to make sure platform equipment is being maintained and inspected to ensure this will not happen in California or again in the Gulf.

CAW continues to pursue training and exercise opportunities with local and regional respnse agencies concerning the safety and security of offshore oil platforms. For more information on the OPLEX exercise series or if you would like to sponsor a research/exercise series, please contact Alan Jaeger at 805-989-1786