CISA Publishes Guide on Resilient Power Best Practices for Critical Facilities and Sites

Last week, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) released the Resilient Power Best Practices for Critical Facilities and Sites. This guidebook supports emergency and continuity managers with guidelines, analysis, background material, and recommendations to increase the resilience of backup and emergency power systems during all durations of power outages. Enhancing power resilience can help the U.S. homeland withstand and recover rapidly from deliberate attacks, accidents, natural disasters, as well as unconventional stresses, shocks, and threats to our economy and democratic institutions. 

The document offers guidance on metrics, methods, and technologies to improve the resilience of backup and emergency generation sources, fuel quality and availability, energy storage, and renewable energy. The guide also includes mitigation recommendations for cybersecurity, physical security, and electromagnetic (EM) events. On physical security, for instance, the document cautions that “vandalism and theft can become major issues if there is a long-term power outage. Fuel and generators can become prized objects during power outages and history has shown that desperate people will sometimes use creative and even illegal means to obtain fuel and portable generators” Additionally, the best practices provided in the document are applicable to all durations of power outages at critical infrastructure facilities and sites except for energy related utilities.  

The guidebook was developed by subject matter experts and practitioners from across federal government, state and local governments, non-profits, and private industry. The document’s best practices support the comprehensive, risk-informed Business Continuity and Continuity of Operations (COOP) planning activities as defined in the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) guidance. The best practices cover the following categories: Design, process, and telecommunications, including Planning, Organization, Equipment, Training, and Exercises (POETE). Cybersecurity, physical security, and electromagnetic (EM) security to protect the onsite or backup/emergency power system. Diesel and natural gas emergency and backup power generation systems including both procurement and maintenance considerations. Power transfer systems and microgrids to help ensure resilient power and to optimize the use of power generation sources. Energy storage both to ensure continuous regulated power prior to backup power generation and to increase the power resilience when using renewables. And clean energy solutions that consider cost and resilience with renewable solutions (e.g., solar, wind, fuel cells) as well as small modular reactors (SMRs). Access the full guidebook below.