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2011/SOM3/CTI/TPD/006 Session 1

Trade Benefits of Submarine Cable Protection

Submitted by: University of Wollongong

Trade Policy Dialogue on Trade Benefits from Submarine Cable Protection

San Francisco, United States18 September 2011

 

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Trade Benefits of Submarine Cable ProtectionSession 1: “Risks to trade in goods and services and

international financial markets posed by multiple submarine cable disruptions.”

Garry Bowditch CEO, SMART Infrastructure FacilityAPEC Trade Policy Dialogue , San Francisco 18 September 2011

An international leader in applied infrastructure research

An international leader in applied infrastructure research

SMART INFRASTRUCTURE FACILITY

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PURPOSE

Generate understanding of interconnection + interdependencies of infrastructure to drive inter-disciplinary infrastructure research and education

Generate understanding of interconnection + interdependencies of infrastructure to drive inter-disciplinary infrastructure research and education

INFRASTRUCTURE?holistic and integrated approach to infrastructureholistic and integrated approach to infrastructure

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SYSTEMWIDE UNDERSTANDING

Transportationroads

railports / airports

Communicationslandlineswireless

cable

Energyelectric

gasoil

renewable

Waterpotable

wastewater

Interdependencies and Behavior

Source: Critical Infrastructure Interdependencies Modeling: A Survey of U.S. and International Research, Idaho National Laboratory

Electric Grid

Sewer Lines

TransportationNetwork

Communications

Water Lines

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Visualisation - a new language

Global Air Traffic Movement over 24 hrs

Submarine Fibre-Optic Network 2007

Source: Global Marine Systems Ltd

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Map Protection zones

American Embassy (Canberra) cable to Washington 13/03/09:

"Post has identified undersea cables landing in Australia … as critical infrastructure/key resources in Australia whose loss would immediately affect the security of the United States …

The undersea cables such as the Southern Cross undersea link which lands near Sydney is the most obvious direct link …

Losing it would disrupt national security and financial data flows, as well as basic news and information …”

Acknowledged critical infrastructure

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What is critical infrastructure

Those physical facilities, supply chains, information technologies and communication networks which, If destroyed, degraded or rendered unavailable for an extended period, would significantly impact on the social or economic wellbeing of the nation or affect Australia’s ability to conduct national defence and ensure national security.

Critical Infrastructure Resilience Strategy

Foreseeable Risks Unforeseen / Unexpected Risks

Legal requirements Building capacity in organisations

Expand due diligence via information on risks/vulnerabilities

Enhanced adaptative ability

Risk management approach Capturing learnings from incidents & near misses

Sector risk approach Body of knowledge on organisational resilience

(OLD APPROACH) Dealing with complexity

(NEW APPROACH)

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From protection to resilience

• Critical Infrastructure Resilience Strategy, June 2010

• Aim: continued operation of critical infrastructure in the face of all hazards

• Demonstrated shift away from protection to resilience

• Resilience cannot be achieved by either Government or Industry alone

• Partnership required - Trusted Information Sharing Network (TISN) for Critical Infrastructure Resilience

• Analyse & share information forum - TISN Communications Sector Group (CSG)

Challenge of resilient approaches:

• Protection method: Extreme construction and production ‘protection’ standards (expensive)

• Extreme protection & monitoring by Govt &/or industry• Silo approach by either Govt or Industry (secretive)• Narrow view of the infrastructure – i.e. just the cable

Protection or resilience

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80

60

40

20

%

1960 1970 1980 1990 2000Cable faults caused by external aggression demonstrate the impact of human activities

Base data provided by Tyco Telecommunications & Global Marine Systems

Fishing

Anchors

Knowing the expected risks

Strategic, multi-lever, adaptive approach:

• Preventative - concentrate on what causes the majority of problems

• Regulatory approach • Generate awareness or problems• Resilient networks (system view & response)• Collaborative industry & Govt• Strategic maintenance approach

New resilience

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Building capacity• collaboration, partnerships, exercises, research, network

mapping

Enhanced adaptative ability• network resilience, research, simulation & modelling scenarios

Capturing learnings from incidents & near misses• collaboration, info exchange, knowledge management

Body of knowledge on organisational resilience• collaboration, research, info exchange

Dealing with complexity• simulation & modelling, info exchange

Preparing for the unexpected

Wicked problems* defined

"Wicked problem" is a phrase originally used in social planning to describe a problem that is difficult or impossible to solve because of incomplete, contradictory, and changing requirements that are often difficult to recognize.

Moreover, because of complex interdependencies, the effort to solve one aspect of a wicked problem may reveal or create other problems.

* Horst Rittel and Melvin M. Webber formally described the concept of w icked problems in a 1973 treatise, contrasting "w icked" problems w ith relatively "tame," soluble problems in mathematics, chess, or puzzle solving.

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Wicked problems

• The problem is not understood until after the formulation of a solution.

• Wicked problems have no stopping rule.• Solutions to wicked problems are not right

or wrong.• Every wicked problem is essentially novel

and unique.• Every solution to a wicked problem is a 'one

shot operation‘.• Wicked problems have no given alternative

solutions.

Research that is needed

• Systems of systems thinking

• Role of visualisation

• Interdependencies

• Observational data for smart infrastructure

• Impact of regulation

• International benchmarks and exchange of ideas and approaches

• Educational needs

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Provocation

• How should we define the parameters of the problem for submarine cable protection?

• How do we promote international collaboration on research & analysis?

• How do we get the skilled STEM professionals to do the work?

• What is the right balance between resilience, national security, economic efficiency and social acceptability?

• What is the role of Government at a range of scales in helping the agenda?

• How dangerous is the ‘do nothing’ option?

Garry Bowditch CEOSMART Infrastructure Facility+61 2 4221 1241

garry_bowditch@uow.edu.au

http://smart.uow.edu.au

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