By Brett Rosenberg
October 17, 2005

Protecting water infrastructure – drinking water treatment plants, wells, water supplies and the underground distribution systems, as well as wastewater treatment systems- presents a formidable challenge for municipal governments. Terrorism and natural disasters, such as hurricanes, floods and earthquakes can expose a city’s vulnerability when it comes to providing water services to its citizens, and restoring services can be a tremendous expense. Given these systems’ vital roles in city operations and public health, it is extremely critical to a city’s well-being that it assess its vulnerability to service disruption and plan what to do in case of extreme events.

At the 2005 Urban Water Summit, Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez, Chairman of the Urban Water Council, moderated a panel discussion on water system security and vulnerability planning. Distinguished panelists offered their views on the current state of vulnerability assessment and water security planning, and offered advice to mayors seeking to protect critical infrastructure in their cities. Kenneth Thompson, Principal Technologist with CH2M-Hill, and Dr. Jay West of Sandia National Laboratories, described trends in water security assessment and planning, and what is on the horizon for those charged with protecting water infrastructure. Greg Merrill, of the Chlorine Chemistry Council, spoke of how security needs are unique to each city and the role water treatment disinfectants play.

Thompson and West co-presented “Water Security – Progress to Date and Future Trends.” Thompson primarily discussed the current state of water infrastructure security, namely, the fact that there “is no solid vision on the right approach and technology,” and the lack of financial resources available for something so critical. Citing several suspicious events regarding water infrastructure since September 11, 2001, Thompson noted that although most assessments nationwide have been completed, there are still gaping holes in security. Water system assessments and related emergency planning efforts were required by federal law. Thompson stated that “it was probably the smartest thing the federal government did in the Bioterrorism Act.” However, he said, protecting the water distribution systems remains “a black hole of security.” These systems, the pipes and pumping stations that convey clean water to residential, commercial and industrial consumers, remain the most vulnerable aspect of water infrastructure nationwide, according to Thompson.

West offered a variation on the theme by describing the federal government’s activities in expanding contamination monitoring efforts among cities’ water infrastructure. In noting the importance of unattended water safety, that is, the fact that most parts of the water infrastructure are usually unattended, West focused on efforts to monitor water systems for contaminants where people are usually absent. Driven by the responses to a 70-city survey, West discussed Sandia National Laboratories’ work entailing the miniaturization of water monitoring equipment that can quickly and easily detect water system contamination, and software that models contaminant behavior within the system so utility operators can react rapidly and effectively to infrastructure emergencies. Thomson and West suggested that it is up to the city utilities to decide what contaminants to look for, and should dedicate more resources to monitoring and reacting to situations that they feel they are at the most risk for encountering.

Merrill reinforced the subject of water security in his presentation, “Lessons Learned for Water System Security: One Size Does Not Fit All.” Merrill’s presentation focused on recent findings of the Water Security Working Group, which the EPA convened to address active and effective security programs for drinking water and wastewater utilities; develop incentives to encourage broad adoption of active and effective security programs in the water sector; and measures of the performance of water security programs. Merrill backed the other speakers in noting that unique circumstances in every community require specific approaches and resources. He also discussed the roles of the Department of Homeland Security and other federal agencies outside the EPA in developing more secure water infrastructure.