Regional, Cross-Border Planning: Maine–New Brunswick Action Plan for Infrastructure Protection and Resilience

Critical infrastructure stakeholders in the Canada-U. S. border regions consistently highlight gaps and issues they experience when working cross-border. These arise due to a lack of common terminology, different information-sharing protocols, disparate national policies, and insufficient resources.

In the winter and spring of 2010, key stakeholders from Maine and New Brunswick had an opportunity to network through facilitated regional meetings. Through this process, they developed a potential critical infrastructure protection and resilience framework of action that builds upon current associations, networks, resources, and structures.

The framework serves as a strategic road map for regional stakeholders. Organizations from both the public and private sectors can use it as a tool to improve the protection and resilience of regional critical infrastructure.

This report is the first of four that expand upon the collaboration between The Conference Board of Canada and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to strengthen and facilitate cross-border security.