Critical infrastructure and pipeline security | 04.14.2006 | 10:13:58 | Views: 4927 | ID: April 14 '06: Homeland Security Watch has posted an article about a new Swiss report outlining critical infrastructure protection and cybersecurity policies. The International publication focuses on "national governmental efforts to protect critical infrastructure" and was written by the Center for Security Studies in Zurich, Switzerland. That coincides with the recent release of a Congressional report on US pipeline safety and security. In the report, the authors find that almost "half a million miles of oil and gas transmission pipeline crisscross the United States. While an efficient and fundamentally safe means of transport, many pipelines carry volatile or flammable materials with the potential to cause public injury and environmental damage." The report finds that "federal government and industry representatives suggest that federal pipeline programs have been right on track," but that "questions may be raised concerning the relative pipeline security roles of DHS (Department of Homeland Security)and the DOT (Department of Transportation). ... Congress may wish to asses how the various elements of US pipeline safety and security activity fit together in the nation's overall strategy to protect transportation infrastructure." Homeland Security Watch wrote that some of the other recommendations given by the report included "clarifying federal authority for pipeline security, including inspection and enforcement authority; looking at whether TSA has sufficient resources for pipeline security [while] Senate bill s. 1052 would authorize $2m/year for pipeline security enforcement and inspection."
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