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HEADLINES
Water sector seeks higher priority in disaster recovery
When it comes to recovery from a major disaster, water systems are likely to get higher priority if President Obama accepts last week's recommendation from the National Infrastructure Advisory Council. In the wake of disasters such as hurricanes Katrina and Ike, the 2008 Iowa floods and the 2009 ice storm, leaders of the Water and Wastewater Agency Response Networks (WARNs) now organized in 43 states have said the needs of the water sector continue to slip on the priority ranking of disaster response agencies. It isn't that water systems were unimportant in the response category they were in, says Kevin Morley, AWWA's security and preparedness program manager. "It's more that water systems just got lost in the logjam of requests regarding roads, bridges, traffic control, debris removal, dams and levees." Hence the President's NIAC undertook a study focusing on response and recovery of infrastructure services from major disasters. With Ed Archuleta, president and CEO of El Paso Water Utilities as co-chair, the study group concluded that water services needed to be elevated to its own emergency support function (ESF) under the National Response Framework. The entire council concurred with the study group's recommendation. "Now — if the president accepts this recommendation — water will have its own desk and dedicated staffer in the emergency centers," Morley said, "and won't have to compete for attention with the debris and bridges and roads and all." Another recommendation accepted by the NIAC was adoption of the Best Practices for Water Services Recovery Planning, which includes water services in all disaster/emergency response and recovery training and exercises. What that does is - Allow Homeland Security grants to address auxiliary backup power systems for key water systems sites,
- Include a WARN-focused curriculum in Emergency Management Assistance Compact training programs to improve understanding of WARN system networks and mutual aid and assistance programs, and
- Establish guidelines that will ensure emergency response plans address necessary chlorine transportation for water treatment during an emergency.
In related news, the Water Information Sharing and Analysis Center (WaterISAC) announced a joint webinar on WARNs presented by the US Environmental Protection Agency and the California Water and Wastewater Agency Response Network (CalWARN) on Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2:30-3:30 p.m. ET. The webinar will include - The history of the WARN Program;
- Examples of WARN success stories;
- Tools, training and technical assistance available to develop robust WARNs; and
- The future of WARNs in an all-hazards security environment.
Sign up can be done online. Additional AWWA Resources
Sandy Nance, Managing Editor
Posted: 07/21/2009
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