PNWER has organized five critical infrastructure interdependencies exercises over the past four years.  Each exercise was designed by the stakeholders and reflected regional concerns.  For exercise summaries and reports please see the links to the right.

The first Blue Cascades, held in Portland, Oregon in June 2002, was conducted under the auspices of the newly created Pacific Northwest Partnership for Regional Infrastructure Security and sponsored by the U.S. Department of the Navy’s Critical Infrastructure Protection Office, FEMA Region 10, and the Canadian federal government. The exercise centered on raising awareness of interconnections among the region’s critical infrastructures and resulting vulnerabilities associated with largely physical attacks and disruptions.

Blue Cascades II, held in Seattle in September 2004, was sponsored by King County , the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s National Cyber Security Division, Puget Sound Energy, Microsoft, and TransCanada. Blue Cascades II centered on cyber events to meet stakeholder needs to learn more about cyber threats, disruptions, and impacts.

Blue Cascades III was held in Bellevue in March 2006 and was supported by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Navy Region NW, King County, Microsoft, CH2M HILL, Cingular Wireless, Puget Sound Energy, BPA and CTC. Blue Cascades III focused on the response, recovery and restoration after a M9 subduction zone earthquake.

Blue Cascades IV, held in Seattle in January2007, focused on the impact of infrastructure interdependencies that could impede state/provincial, regional, and local emergency and business continuity planning and activities, including delivery of critical services, for response and recovery from an influenza pandemic.  This exercise was sponsored by King County, Washington Mutual, the Canadian Consulate General of Seattle, Bonnevile Power Administration, Microsoft, ESRI, and GCS Research.

Blue Cascades V, the most recent exercise, was held in Seattle in December 2008.  The exercise explored post disaster supply-chain resilience after a catastrophic earthquake, spefically the resumption of food, fuel, and water supplies.  Blue Cascades V was sponsored by Safeway, Inc., King County Office of Emergency Management, Seattle Department of Transportation, AT&T, Virginia Mason Medical Center, Puget Sound Energy, BP Pipelines and Logistics/Olympic Pipeline, and the Pacific NorthWest Economic Region (PNWER).