Electromagnetic Resiliency: Protecting our Built Environment

Dec

One critical aspect of sustainability is to strive for resiliency in the way our cities function. While we endeavor to limit pollution and consume as few natural resources as possible, we must also think about the threats of disasters, both natural and man-made, and design our cities to withstand them.

Threat

One potential risk you may not have been aware of is a massive pulse of electrical magnetic energy. This could be a man-made risk due to Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) weapons, but it also is a risk from our own sun which can release massive pulses of electromagnetic energy that inundate earth. For example, read about the Carrington Event: In 1859, it disrupted early telegraph and electric systems, but in today’s data and electricity driven world, the impact would be catastrophic.

Impact on Infrastructure

How catastrophic one might ask? Several studies have determined that electromagnetic events could shut down the electrical grid for an extended period, even years potentially. Here in the Pacific Northwest, we could experience a collapse of the regional grid. According to one such report by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in 2020, there could be over $1T of damage and could take between 4-10 years for a full recovery. Stop and think about how impactful that would be to our livelihoods, to day-to-day operations of cities and businesses, and generally to day-to-day life.

To understand the magnitude of the impact, it is helpful to know what parts of modern society will be affected during a significant event. For example, an EMP could hit satellites in its path, damaging or destroying them, which will affect navigation and communication systems. As the pulse hits earth, thousands of transformers could be destroyed. Transformers are long-lead specialty items that are time consuming to replace, especially in a surge of need. Many are manufactured outside of the country as described in this report by Janney (Report hosted by the Department of Energy).

The SCADA and other controlling infrastructure systems for electrical, water supply, gas lines and transportation will be impacted as well, effectively shutting down the controlling life-blood of our built environment. The wiring, equipment housing, controlling programing and hardware are all exposed to the damaging effect of an EMP.

Solutions

What to do about it? Studies say that a minimum investment of a few billion dollars could go a long way to procuring back up transformers and protecting the most cost-effective upgrades to our infrastructure’s control systems. While elected officials can push to invest in mitigation efforts at the federal level, major utilities and local officials can start planning for EMP resiliency in our grid locally.

Further Reports & Resources

EMP Shielding Mitigations - Department of Homeland Security August ’22. This document provides best practices for protecting critical infrastructure from EMP events, offering guidance on implementing effective shielding measures.
DOE Electromagnetic Pulse Resilience Action Plan (2017) This action plan outlines the Department of Energy's strategy to enhance the resilience of the electric grid against EMP threats. It emphasizes the importance of understanding vulnerabilities, developing protective measures, and implementing response strategies to mitigate the potential impacts of both natural and man-made electromagnetic events.
EMP attack Threat for Critical National Infrastructure Report April 2008 Estimated that protecting 3000 key high-voltage transformers would cost around $1 billion (2008), with an annual cost of just $0.16 per customer per month for a five-year phased implementation.
The Secure the Grid Coalition (affiliated with DOE advisory) is an ad hoc group of policy, energy, and national security experts, legislators, and industry insiders who are dedicated to strengthening the resilience of America’s electrical grid. The Coalition aims to raise awareness about the national and international threat of grid vulnerability, and encourage the steps needed to neutralize it.
Lights Out by Ted Koppel. https://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/22/books/review/lights-out-by-ted-koppel.html

This blog was written by Matt Elley (AMLI Residential) as part of the Sustainable Development Committee’s ongoing Sustainability Mindset series. For more information on how to join or sponsor the Sustainable Development Committee, email [email protected].