WARRP Bulletin March 2011 Page 2

Page 2

Text Box: Develop/refine guidance, plans, and decision frameworks that can be leveraged and transitioned to other parts of the United States and internationally as applicable

Text Box: The Wide Area Resiliency & Recovery Program Kickoff event was held at the Colorado Convention Center in downtown Denver, Colorado on February 16, 2011. The event featured presentations from various program stakeholders, a welcome by the Mayor of Denver, and a Subject Matter Expert symposium in which experts provided an overview of each of the three program scenarios: chemical, biological, and radiological agent releases which threaten Denver and the surrounding region. The event was intended to inform local civilian and military, state, federal, and private partners about WARRP and how this eighteen month program will enhance capabilities for recovering from a catastrophic incident. WARRP follows on the heels of the Interagency Biological Restoration Demonstration (IBRD) Program that took place in the greater Seattle, Washington region between 2007-2010. IBRD aimed to reduce the time and resources necessary to recover and restore urban areas, military installations, and critical infrastructure following a biological incident. WARRP expands upon the lessons learned from IBRD and seeks to build the capacity to manage chemical and radiological incidents in addition to enhancing all hazards management capabilities. WARRP’s goal is to work with interagency partners, including federal /state/local/tribal governments, military, private industry and non-profit organizations, to develop solutions that reduce the time and resources required to recover wide urban areas, military installations, and other critical infrastructure following a catastrophic CBR incident. The event opened with a welcome from Dan Alexander, a Denver Area UASI official and Mr. William Carwile, the FEMA

Text Box: Associate Administrator for Response and Recovery. Both Carwile and Alexander addressed the value of partnership with federal, state and local government and private sector in managing a CBR incident as described in the scenarios. Christian Anschutz, managing director of the Western Development Group and Chairman of the Denver Police Foundation, discussed the significance of economic recovery and resiliency and the benefits of private-public partnership, “no sector can do it alone, the U.S. military cannot always protect, law enforcement cannot always detect and deter, firefighters cannot always mitigate, none of these agencies, despite their commitment to serve, can ensure complete economic recovery.” Chris Russell, DHS Program Manager provided a WARRP Overview as well as background on IBRD. He acknowledged that “it is important to understand where we came from before we can move forward with WARRP.” Russell affirmed the value and the role of the Denver Area UASI, “they are a conglomeration of cities and counties tied together to bolster and give capabilities to regions” and the WARRP program will “develop guidance and templates that can then be given to our UASI partners”. Over 290 attendees from federal, state and local agencies, as well as representatives from non-profits and the private sector, attended. Professional networking was encouraged during breaks between the Program overview and Threat Symposium to give attendees an opportunity to establish connections and develop a habit of partnership. Mayor Bill Vidal emphasized the importance of collaboration in the event of a CBR incident, “cooperation among agencies is paramount to ensure that there is minimal financial

Text Box: hardship and so that the private sector can quickly recover.” Timothy Gablehouse, the President of the Colorado Emergency Preparedness Partnership discussed recovery from the perspective of a small business

Text Box: “Cooperation among agencies is paramount to ensure that there is minimal financial hardship and so that the private sector can quickly recover.” Mayor Bill Vidal

Mayor Bill Vidal

Dan Alexander, Denver UASI

owner, “we need to build upon social assets, understanding and relationships to create resiliency in the community, these are the assets that allow us to recover”.

The Threat Symposium provided attendees with a “CBR 101” style introduction of the various agents, including their background, methods of spread or release, and the adverse health effects on the population. The symposium speakers also reviewed case studies where the process, cost and timeline of decontamination and reoccupation were discussed. During his presentation on Anthrax, Mike Nalipinski from the EPA articulated the importance of state and local agencies in the response to a biological incident, “State environmental and health agencies make the decision whether or not people can return and reoccupy an area”.

During his Chemical Agent Threat presentation, Larry Kaelin, EPA, discussed the exposure of the USS Pursuit to sulfur Mustard and described the collaborative nature of the response effort which included, “EPA, USCG, DoD and local public health.” Kaelin stressed the importance of interagency cooperation during a CBR incident, “it is important to speak with one voice, that way there is