Utilizing CEM Planner for Pennsylvania Dam Safety EAPs

Abstract Only - The Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) purchased CEMPlanner™ with an enterprise license. This license allows all government agencies within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania (Commonwealth) to utilize the system at no additional cost. CEMPlanner™ is a continual preparedness system designed to enhance planning and resource management capabilities. A central access point for plans allows every stakeholder to view the most current and up-to-date plan for that entity. This is critical in ensuring that all emergency management personnel are viewing the same information rather than a previous version of the plan. Additionally, the system allows plan owners to set permissions on any specific plan to limit visibility. Although the purpose of this program is to share plans with all levels of emergency management, some plans for security purposes must have limited visibility. In a time of activation, additional access can be given by changing permissions that are entity specific. This is an excellent feature to control access to a specific user.
The planning and revision facet allows for a structured and documented record of development that minimizes user error. Information and functions in the system can never be deleted, meaning that any revised information is logged into the system as versions. Individuals wanting to view a previous version or section of a plan can do so by navigating through the archive of that plan. Multiple entities from different locations can incorporate revisions to the plan by a version control mechanism that limits users from making corrections in the same section of a plan at the same time. This is accomplished by utilizing a checkin/ check-out feature for plan release. All edits to a plan have been simplified because it utilizes MS Word™ as the foundation for the plans. Inundation mapping and other large image files utilize an Attachment Feature. This feature allows users to upload image and shape files that are associated with each plan. After final revisions, the completed plan can be submitted to the plan owner and additional entities electronically for review. This minimizes the time associated with physical documents routed through the approval chain. An individual with signature authority can simply log into his/her account and review the plan in any location with internet access, then digitally sign the plan. Plans can be searched by the dam number, dam name, owner or location. Leveraging CEMPlanner™ as a planning center point maximizes the availability of plans to all levels of government while allowing the individual plan owners to control distribution.
Over the last few years, Dam Safety and PEMA have been conducting awareness and training initiatives to promote the benefits of CEMPlanner™ to dam owners and stakeholders across the Commonwealth. At the local level this is beneficial in providing the most current plans to county and municipal emergency management personnel. Access to these plans is controlled by the plan owner, Dam Safety, and can be shared with local fire support personnel, police departments, and individual facility owners that may be affected by a dam related emergency. For those wearing several hats, this program streamlines the planning and review process by allowing owners of plans to create, review, and maintain plans. As an event becomes larger requiring additional resources, emergency action plans and attached annexes can be shared easily through the system.
Utilizing the system throughout the Commonwealth has not been without challenges, as PEMA aims to include all planning entities. This includes both private and public entities with emergency action plans. CEMPlanner™ is new to many and requires several face-to-face opportunities with stakeholders to fully understand the capabilities and benefits of the system. That being said, CEMPlanner™ will not be implemented overnight and will take time to initially migrate all the plans throughout the Commonwealth into the system. Once the plans are in the system, the plan owner will never have to load the plans again. Currently, we are assessing how the system is being utilized across the Commonwealth and pushed out to each stakeholder. 2 pp.