GovSec 2011New tool to build water infrastructure resiliency
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is set to roll out its new Community-Based Water Resiliency (CBWR) Electronic Tool this spring; the tool is designed to give organizations in charge of critical water infrastructure a way to assess their community’s ability to continue delivering water in the event of service disruptions and enhance resiliency; a major natural disaster or terrorist attack could leave large portions of a state without access to drinking water for months; Matthew Everett from the EPA will be present at the upcoming Government and Security Expo to discuss the EPA’s new initiative; the conference will be held from 29 March to 31 March in Washington, D.C.
pThe Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is set to roll out its new Community-Based Water Resiliency (CBWR) Electronic Tool this spring as part of its broader CBWR initiative.
The tool is designed to give organizations in charge of critical water infrastructure an easy way to assess their community’s ability to continue delivering water in the event of service disruptions as well as ways to enhance resiliency.
In the event of a major natural disaster or terrorist attack, large portions of a state could be without access to drinking water and irrigation supplies for months.
For instance, in California the Sacramento- San Joaquin River Delta provides 76 percent of the state’s water for farming and consumption. But engineers say its levees are not designed to stand up to a major earthquake, which is expected to occur within the next three decades in the earthquake prone region.
If the levees were to burst in during an earthquake or a terrorist attack, much of California would be without water for months, especially arid southern California.
The electronic tool is also accompanied by a “CBWR toolbox,” where local organizations can find more information on available resources.
Matthew Everett, the head of outreach for CWBR initiative at the EPA, will be present at the upcoming Government and Security Expo to discuss the EPA’s new initiative, raise awareness on water independencies, and offer resources to boost resiliency.
The CWBR initiative has two primary goals. The first is to “increase overall community preparedness by raising awareness of water sector interdependencies and enhance integration of water sector into community emergency preparedness and response efforts.”
While the second is to “increase preparedness and resiliency of drinking water and wastewater utilities by delivering tools and information to increase community collaboration and bolster security practices.”
The Government and Security conference will be held from 29 March to 31 March in Washington, D.C. and features Admiral Thad Allen, the former head of the U.S. Coast Guard, as a keynote speaker.
The event is expected to draw more than 4,000 security professionals from around the world.
