Page 65 Cite

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26559.

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B

Complete List of Project Ideas Identified

Tables B-1 through B-4 include the comprehensive list of project ideas that were brainstormed during Days 1 and 2 of the workshop. Projects in boldface are those that appeared in the high-priority bin listed in Part 1 of this proceedings. These are lists of project ideas that would contribute to increased infrastructure resilience in the Gulf region, to drive further thought and attention. This should not be interpreted as a definitive or authoritative list of projects.

TABLE B-1 Comprehensive List of Project Ideas Brainstormed during Days 1 and 2: Petrochemical Industry Functions

Petrochemical Industry Functions
Hurricane Scenario
Advance coordination of national power restoration priorities
Bury power lines
Conduct remote inspections (drone, satellite)
Create and streamline drone inspection protocols
Develop more Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) education programs to increase the number of truck drivers and lessen supply chain disruptions
Develop short-term waiver programs for CDL hours
Elevate backup power
Elevate or protect chemical processing units required for refining
Identify ways to protect tankers not able to evacuate ship channels
Import electric power
Increase flood mitigation at pump stations
Increase industry-to-government coordination to enhance response
Increase intragovernmental coordination to enhance response (federal-federal, federal-state)
Increase resiliency requirements for storage tanks
Increase secondary containment requirement for fuel tanks
Install permanent and temporary flood protection
Invest in smart tanks

Page 66 Cite

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26559.

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Pass regulations establishing environmental, social, and governance (ESG) mandate for Corporations

Preauthorize an authority to clear waterways and open ports

Preauthorize release from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve

Preauthorize USACE (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers) and USCG (U.S. Coast Guard) authorities to reopen ports

Preplan how to access gasoline sitting at refineries for local use

Prestage generators and resources

Prioritize fuel for first responders

Provide access to nitrogen when shutting down refineries

Require and incentivize backup power for high-priority fuel stations

Treat fuel stations as anchor institutions, prioritizing them for power restoration

Update designs for EV (electric vehicle) charging stations to protect against saltwater intrusion

Use flood sensor networks to map flooded areas

Use solar power at gas stations

Protracted Oil Spill Scenario

Augment BSEE (Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement) to play a bigger role in enforcement of regulations

Build a new skimming test facility

Clearly define and document roles, responsibilities, and authorities of all parties

Conduct a study on oil spill response best practices in other countries

Conduct GIS (geographic information system) mapping of pipeline systems

Conduct R&D into and testing of containment domes and systems

Conduct R&D into assessment of risk in disturbing sediments

Petrochemical Industry Functions

Conduct R&D into improved ability to assess volume and impact of spill

Conduct R&D into skimmers in deep water and heavy seas

Conduct R&D into submarine landslides risk

Conduct R&D into subsurface safety valves

Conduct R&D into the microbe breakdown of oil

Conduct R&D into water column absorbent materials

Conduct tabletop exercises

Develop better, faster public information-sharing campaigns to improve public trust

Page 67 Cite

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26559.

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Develop sensor technology for oil spill detection and conduct related data analysis

Enhance how the Ports work with industry during recovery

Establish multi-company operations technology review boards

Examine the techniques used for containment in other spills

Expand and/or refine the mandated cleanup fund paid for by the petroleum industry

Harden blowout preventers

Implement stricter industry owner permitting requirements

Improve lessons sharing among oil industry companies

Improve oversight of aging and abandoned oil infrastructure

Increase local leadership in response

Invest in advanced technology for containment, plugging

Invest in better debris removal systems subsea

Invest in better platform and anchor design (increase security, redundancy)

Invest in Joint Industry Party (JIP) in oil infrastructure integrity technologies

Invest in new pipeline construction technology to build resilience

Invest in predictive modeling and forecast movement of oil and dispersants

Invest in relief well technology

Model seismic activity to predict where slides might occur; coordinate with the mining industry as appropriate

Put requirements for containment plans and response in place before permitting

Require the responsible party to disclose operational data for 6 months prior to spill

Petrochemical Industry Functions

Review all related authorities and change laws as needed

Review legacy permits and require containment plans where none are in place

TABLE B-2 Comprehensive List of Project Ideas Brainstormed during Days 1 and 2: Other Infrastructure Functions

Other Infrastructure Functions
Hurricane Scenario
Assess and improve prestaged response assets
Assess building codes in light of climate change
Assess compound and cascading impacts of hurricanes on infrastructure

Page 68 Cite

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26559.

×

Build in adaptability during infrastructure repairs

Conduct remote damage assessment, for example, via drones

Conduct satellite sweeps before and after storms to support damage assessment

Create and enhance programs to monitor and test private wells for contamination

Create economic incentives for cell providers to harden and install generators

Deploy and test backup generators to support the water system

Develop a new hoteling system for responders

Develop and compile nationwide infrastructure best practices and make them available

Develop and improve systems for soil water/moisture monitoring

Develop better and more flood monitoring of low-lying roads and railways

Develop designs for electricity infrastructure to withstand high winds pre-disaster, so designs are ready when the time comes to replace or build them

Develop forecasts for impacts and damage

Develop innovative ways to design transportation systems to connect people to societal needs

Develop more effective and efficient ways to remove waterway obstructions from ports

Develop new, more, and better flood and flash flood warning systems

Develop or support programs for rapid deployment of storm surge detectors, pre-permit them and preplan the logistics

Ensure cell tower design can withstand greater than 150-mph winds

Ensure that fiber optic cables run to critical community-based facilities

Evaluate if and when satellite communications are appropriate alternatives

Further develop an alternate renewable power source, for example, solar

Harden, bury, or elevate electrical infrastructure (including distribution facilities, transmission structures, substations, and account for saltwater intrusion when burying them

Identify and map infrastructure systems, and make this information available in a GIS (geographic information system) tool

Identify priority sites for communications restoration, just like jurisdictions do for power restoration

Improve barge fleeting areas

Improve warning systems to critical facilities

Increase education and socialization on the coordination of response authorities

Invest in more and new technology against saltwater intrusion into the water system

Promote follow-up and socialization of the National Disaster Recovery Framework (NDRF)

Page 69 Cite

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26559.

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Promote keeping landlines for backup communications, and modernize them

Promote wireless sensors and staff gauges to measure storm surge

Protect, harden, and/or elevate water infrastructure

Reevaluate and better communicate evacuation plans with clear destinations of where people should go

Separate the internet from its current power source

Set aside fuel for first responders and hospitals

Study impacts of sea level rise (SLR) and climate change on the water system

Support interoperability between wireless providers

Support lowland land grading, especially in vulnerable communities

Transition to 5G with hardened towers and battery backups

Trim trees around electrical wires and water pipes

Use more sensors and other monitoring systems for detecting chemicals in water

Protracted Oil Spill Scenario

Conduct a community needs assessment before cutting services in the wake of declining budgets

Conduct a ports and waterway safety assessment, including appropriate ship rerouting

Conduct R&D into better and more reliable communications and navigation systems

Co-share investments including Operations and Maintenance (O&M) to build up port infrastructure

Develop a better system to evaluate claims for supporting funds

Develop a bigger and better oil company–funded relief fund with a third-party administrator

Develop a call center for offshore information (similar to 311)

Develop a data center for citizen and community data

Develop a new Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and Logistical Staging Area (LSA) with a predesignated, protected, and accessible location

Develop a Strategic Water Reserve

Develop alternative power sources to natural gas

Develop a public education/emergency preparedness campaign, including likely impacts to infrastructure and what actions individual should take, when, and how

Develop or enhance federal assistance programs for local government for infrastructure support in the wake of an oil disaster

Develop renewable power sources for marginalized groups

Expand air traffic control offshore in the Gulf region

Page 70 Cite

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26559.

×

Expand broadband access, starting with coastal areas

Expand the oil company–funded trust fund into a diverse portfolio of support

Fund or partner to develop programs that provide for in-person/hard-copy assistance to residents for program registration, in addition to online registration

Improve the oil company–funded trust fund with better triggers and management

Incorporate long-term spills into emergency plans, especially regional transportation and economic development plans

Increase capacity to scale up communications system support when impacted

Increase environmental intelligence, particularly more ocean observation to support prediction of landslides and oil spills

Increase transparency and information sharing with the media in advance of oil spills

Invest in R&D for oil spill barrier construction

Protect fiber and critical flow lines—bury them or use enhanced rock-dumping methods

Research and plan better ways to back up communications infrastructure and scale up that response

Streamline existing grant programs that support residents

Study impacts of climate change on infrastructure

TABLE B-3 Comprehensive List of Project Ideas Brainstormed during Days 1 and 2: Society’s Needs

Society’s Needs
Hurricane Scenarios
Account for the needs of nomadic populations
Better socialize waterway closures
Build capacity pre-disaster for business continuity planning, especially for small businesses
Check shelter HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) systems
Create incentives for moving out of high-risk areas, including expanding related mitigation grants
Create partnerships between government, community organizations, and industry to develop multipurpose affordable and safe temporary housing solutions
Develop a digital home-to-community network
Develop additional types of “remote” learning options
Develop alternative designs and technologies for anticipating and addressing a foot of water in buildings
Develop better plans to transition to remote learning

Page 71 Cite

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26559.

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Develop disaster education for high schools

Develop incentives for green technology and disaster-resistant building materials

Develop more enforceable liabilities and penalties

Develop programs to prevent small businesses from closing

Enhance distribution of supplies and potable water distribution

Enhance erosion monitoring

Enhance flood and other network sensors to support safe transportation

Enhance hospital evacuation plans, including the transfer of patients prior to storm arrival

Enhance levee motion sensors

Enhance nursing home evacuation plans

Enhance STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) programs

Evaluate and enforce mold codes

Facilitate the completion of applications for assistance by community members

Fund and overhaul Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) flood maps for long-term planning in a changing environment

Identify and monitor vulnerable sewage lines to prioritize maintenance and repair

Improve coordination through the National Business Emergency Operations Center

Improve flood-mapping technology

Improve neighborhood clinic operability during and after events

Improve retention system for flood waters

Incorporate community engagement into planning for communities and schools

Monitor roads and supply lines around schools

Phase out grandfathered houses in flood zones

Plan for blood, critical medical consumables, and storage requirements

Plan for potable water for dialysis centers

Plan for redundant power, for example, generator maintenance, for community support sites

Preidentify fleet asset management locations

Preidentify logistics hubs on high ground

Prepare mobile health-care clinics with locations identified for both fair skies and disasters

Procure fuel trucks to support moving people

Rebuild and repair transportation infrastructure anticipating future floods

Redefine “critical infrastructure” to include schools

Page 72 Cite

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26559.

×

Reevaluate and streamline FEMA processes in general, for example, housing, flood insurance, incentives

Regrade roads with more adaptive materials, for example, porous materials, living streets

Reform National Flood Insurance Program and require everyone to purchase insurance

Review the safety of shelter locations

Safeguard supplies of diapers and formula

Study and improve private-sector supply chains

Support cost-share management for grants

Utilize green technology to support stormwater management

Protracted Oil Spill Scenario

Assess the impacts of landslides

Conduct baseline studies for community health and needs, especially in underserved communities

Conduct exercises with an oil spill scenario with health-care facilities and the community to

support training to manage expectations

Conduct long-term studies on the impacts of oil spills, including comparisons of protracted oil spills versus those similar to Deep Water Horizon

Conduct research into the impact of oil spills on the local population

Conduct research into the impact of oil spills on the shore

Conduct R&D into containment technology

Conduct research on alternative oil response technologies to prevent and/or mitigate adverse impacts from spills

Conduct R&D on the impacts of spill size on the environment

Conduct research on fatigue and the safety of different shift lengths

Create and expand programs to support local industries after disasters

Create baseline studies of how historical events impacted the economy

Decommission risky wells

Develop a better system to enable teachers to have competitive pay and education and economic mobility

Develop a mechanism for systematic research funding

Develop and implement training and education programs to improve economic mobility

Develop fishermen fleets as assets for ecosystem monitoring

Develop plans for the communication of science, including messaging to and awareness for the public

Page 73 Cite

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26559.

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Develop programs that support estuary and wetland preservation and construction

Develop programs to support beach communities intimately connected to fishing

Develop public health monitoring programs ready for immediate deployment at oil spill time

Develop trusted information sources with the community prior to disasters

Ensure availability of safety equipment

Establish co-ops to pool and negotiate for fuel and supplies

Evaluate the Ocean Energy Safety Institute 2.0 program and its benefits

Fund existing and new ecosystem monitoring and detection projects

Have the CISA (Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency) monitor underwater pipelines

Identify the needs of traditionally underserved communities

Improve cleanup coordination, make roles and responsibilities clear

Improve response techniques to reduce fish habitat damage

Increase executive liability for spills

Increase situational awareness for pipelines

Increase transparency of communications

Increase visibility (via websites and media campaigns) on cleanup and restoration activities

Maintain active, continual communication programs with the community

Make mental health services standard for our health systems

Provide Wi-Fi and communication hubs for the community

Regulate shift lengths

Research and review the lawsuit injunction process for new projects, develop new standards

Research compound and cascading impacts of oil spills

Sheen boats in the Houston ship channel

Strengthen the public information system and campaigns

Study the risks of protracted spills versus large and fast spills

Supply battery chargers for personal calls

Sustain funding for sea grants

Use sensors for rapid assessment of oil chemicals

Page 74 Cite

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26559.

×

TABLE B-4 Comprehensive List of Project Ideas Brainstormed during Days 1 and 2: Environmental Protection

Environmental Protection
Hurricane Scenarios
Assess small water management system vulnerabilities
Assess saltwater impact on concrete and steel
Assess, monitor, and report long- and short-term impacts
Build and protect natural protection such as coastal systems, reefs, wetlands, and sea grasses
Build barriers around chemical facilities
Change construction standards beyond the 100-year flood
Conduct rigorous epidemiological studies
Create a sensor network to monitor pollutants
Create or enhance debris management plans
Create or enhance flood protections around superfund sites
Design and implement restoration projects for wetlands and disturbed habitats
Develop a risk matrix, including trigger points for requesting and receiving waivers
Develop alternative first-flood building designs for existing buildings, such as critical infrastructure and private homes
Develop and enhance early warning systems for industry
Develop and enhance saltwater barriers in coastal areas to combat flooding
Develop mechanisms to monitor grids autonomously
Ensure a consistent supply of chlorine
Ensure availability and readiness of sewage overflow post-flooding testing units
Improve access to geospatial data, including the creation of a shared GIS (geographical information system) platform and better coordination of maps with the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency), and other agencies
Improve damage assessments by using LIDAR flyovers and 3-D cameras to estimate debris
Improve geospatial data use and sharing for mitigation and early response
Improve geospatial data, including coastal risk inundation maps, flash flood monitoring, digital elevations, and commercial data (high resolution)
Incentivize industry to prioritize ESG (environmental, social, and governance) framework
Increase USCG (U.S. Coast Guard) inspection of regulated facilities
Invest in infrastructure that supports post-disaster debris management

Page 75 Cite

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26559.

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Invest in natural (green) infrastructure solutions near shore

Invest in secondary containment requirements to capture chemicals

Maximize beneficial use of dredge material

Develop protection systems for wastewater plants against flooding

Require continuous monitoring and reporting of pollutants

Research better mechanisms for transport of water during flood events

Research point source and non-point source pollutants and their intersections with vulnerable populations

Revisit zoning for chemical plants

Store potable water close to populations

Study long-term impacts on living organisms

Protracted Oil Spill Scenario

Add greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions penalties to EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) spill regulations and permitting

Advance and facilitate the inclusion of citizen science and observations

Build oil spill resiliency into restoration projects

Change BOEM (Bureau of Ocean Energy Management) leasing to include cradle-to-grave infrastructure and account for equity

Collect more and better bathymetric information

Conduct epidemiological health studies to assess chronic impacts of pollutants on coastal communities

Conduct R&D on dispersants early use and review the current authorization for use

Conduct R&D on stronger tar ball intervention, detection, and notification, and cleanup Technology

Conduct risk assessments for platform risk and mitigation; use them to inform foundation and anchor design criteria

Conduct surveys of wildlife habitats

Conduct underwater pipeline monitoring for leaks and microfractures

Create numerical, model-based forecasts for landslides

Develop alternative fishing opportunities, for example, oyster aquaculture

Develop and enhance automatic identification system (AIS) and predictive routing for vessel tracking and movement

Develop and enhance methods and tools to measure hydrodynamics and spill rates

Develop measures to track recovery

Develop mechanics for oceanic continuous monitoring, including oil monitoring

Page 76 Cite

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/26559.

×

Develop projects to improve the health of ecosystems to make more resilient coasts and barriers (e.g., land conservation, storm water management, EPA Best Management Practices)

Evaluate the scope of the mudslide threat

Expand use of NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) fish management processes

Identify and monitor natural seeps

Identify endangered species and update regulatory requirements

Improve water column oil absorbents

Improve subsea well caps

Increase applications of remote sensing to monitor the scale of impacts on the air, land, and Water

Increase collaboration among research agencies and add a budget line for this

Increase community resilience by providing mental and physical health support services

Invest in R&D product development of environmentally friendly biodegradable dissolvents and surfactants

Leverage fish hatcheries to reintroduce healthy populations

Locate an offshore command post to manage information and communications during a spill

Put emission capture technology in place

Reassess the fisheries management process to allow sufficient time for recovery

Require the private sector to conduct offset projects

Research the long-term fate and transport of dissolvents and surfactants

Study climate-driven migration of habitats and conditions; account for this during restoration

Understand and identify ways to mitigate impacts on tribes and Indigenous populations reliant on coastal flora and fauna for cultural practices

Use existing vessels mounts for monitoring and to collect baseline data

Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop (2022)

Chapter: Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified

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Complete List of Project Ideas Identified

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Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico: Proceedings of a Workshop (2022)

Chapter: Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified

B Complete List of Project Ideas Identified

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Complete List of Project Ideas Identified