U.S. Drinking Water System Vulnerable to Terrorism, Experts Say
WASHINGTON — A national panel of experts has warned that several components of U.S. drinking water systems are vulnerable to terrorist attacks, according to a U.S. General Accounting Office report released yesterday (see GSN, Aug. 4).
In its report, the GAO warned that U.S. drinking water systems could be the target of several types of terrorist attacks, including attacks using biological and chemical agents. To help water utilities better defend against acts of terrorism, Congress has allocated more than $100 million through fiscal 2004 to conduct vulnerability assessments and to develop security response plans.
A panel of 43 national experts convened by the GAO found that several “key physical assets” of drinking water systems were especially vulnerable to terrorist attacks. One of the components most cited by experts, the report says, was the distribution system — the network of pipes that carry water supplies from treatment plants and storage facilities to individual homes. The distribution system was seen as being especially exposed because of numerous accessibility points and because the addition of a biological, chemical or radiological agent could go undetected until it was too late because water at that point is close to being transferred to consumers, the report says.
In addition to distribution systems, experts also listed source water supplies and utility computer systems as also being susceptible to attack, the report says. It notes, however, that some experts said that source water supplies may be less vulnerable to acts of contamination because of the large amounts of water involved and because the water is treated before being transferred to consumers. Another water system component cited by some experts as a possible terrorist target is the treatment chemicals used at facilities, such as chloride, according to the report.
Who Should Get Security Funding?In addition to determining system vulnerabilities, the expert panel was asked to determine how future federal funding should be allocated to improve security at water utilities throughout the country, according to the report. Almost 90 percent of the experts felt that future funding should be allocated on the basis of vulnerability assessments. Some experts warned, however, that any effort to base funding on perceived risk levels could lead officials to determine that protecting water systems should be low priority, the report says.
The report also says that almost all of the experts on the panel felt that water utilities serving high-density populations should receive very high priority in funding. Experts also said that water utilities serving “critical assets,” such as military bases or key governmental institutions, should also receive high funding priority.
In contrast, “relatively few experts recommended priority for utilities serving rural or isolated populations,” the report says. About 5 percent of the panel believed these systems should be given an increased priority in funding, however, because of a lack of resources.
In a press statement Monday, Senator Jim Jeffords (I-Vt.), ranking minority member on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said that Congress had a “responsibility” to ensure the safety of U.S. drinking water systems.
“This report indicates that our nation’s drinking water supplies remain vulnerable from both man-made and natural disasters. Many of us take safe drinking water for granted, and this report shows that we shouldn’t,” Jeffords said.
