InfoGram

August 14, 2003

NOTE: This InfoGram will be distributed weekly to provide members of the emergency management and response sector with information concerning the protection of their critical infrastructures. It has been prepared by NATEK Incorporated for the Emergency Preparedness and Response Directorate. For further information, contact the Emergency Management and Response - Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EMR-ISAC) at (301) 447-1325 or by email at emr-isac@fema.dhs.gov.

Deterrent Nature of CIP

There are indications American people feel more secure and comfortable in their daily lives. The evidence collected by social scientists suggests that worries about the economy and job security have replaced terrorism as the most significant issues for about half of the nation's population. These researchers believe that concern about terrorism in the United States is at its lowest level since 9/11, despite ongoing activities around the world and the occasional warnings.

The suggestion that citizens are returning to "normality" has set off alarms among terrorism and security experts. Believing that terrorists are patiently waiting for us to lower our guard, these specialists recommend that Americans and their emergency responders combat complacency and avoid compromises in vigilance, alertness, and security. They maintain vigilance, alertness, and security act as a deterrence saying to our adversaries, "don't even try."

Critical infrastructure protection (CIP) also has a deterrent nature. The activities to protect the personnel, physical assets, and communication systems (i.e., critical infrastructures) send important messages "out loud" to domestic and international terrorists. CIP activities that do not divulge the details of protective measures broadcast that criminal action will be futile and not yield the results that terrorists seek. In other words, CIP has an attendant feature of creating the "mindset" among our adversaries: "Don't bother trying."

It can be argued that emergency response departments actively engaged in hazard mitigation (top of the line of CIP) and mission assurance (CIP bottom line) are also telling extremists: "Don't mess with us."

Relationships Promote CIP

Numerous psychologists have written that the quality of our relationships has a positive correlation to our quality of life. Most would agree this applies equally as well to our professional pursuits. It happens frequently enough that the quality of our relationships impacts the quality of our performance. Outstanding professional relationships within a fire/EMS department between and among personnel will usually yield enhanced performance by all. This maxim relates particularly to the discipline of critical infrastructure protection.

The constructive interrelationships and interdependence within departments will make a considerable difference in the implementation of CIP and the degree of commitment to the process and resulting protective measures. The CIPIC proposes that this observation is also true regarding the working relationships among the various emergency response departments in a given area.

Established, favorable relationships among the leadership of all emergency responders in a community will no doubt foster better communication, coordination, and cooperation before, during, and after natural and man-made disasters. The respect and trust derived from these relationships provide assurances that all first response partners can and will perform their assigned functions including the protection of department and local critical infrastructures.

Consequences Assessment Tool Set

The Defense Threat Reduction Agency and the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency developed the Consequences Assessment Tool Set (CATS) to support emergency managers' training, exercises, contingency planning, and logistical planning, as well as to calculate requirements for humanitarian aid and force protection. The CATS package integrates hazard prediction, consequence assessment, and emergency management tools, including the Hazard Prediction and Assessment Capability (HPAC) System, and critical population and infrastructure data within a commercial Geographical Information System.

The Consequences Assessment Tool Set (CATS) features:

• Integrated hazard prediction tools for natural and man-made disasters.
• Effects assessment tools for population and infrastructure.
• Supporting data such as geo-spatial databases.
• Mitigation analysis for varied logistical and medical resource queries.

Recently CATS supported the response to the 9/11 attacks and activities covered by local fire departments and emergency responder personnel. The complete fact sheet on CATS can be viewed at: http://www.dtra.mil/td/acecenter/td_cats_fact.html. For more information, contact the Consequences Assessment Branch at ACEhelp@dtic.mil or by calling (703) 325-6106.

Household Product Site

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) unveiled this week a consumer's guide that provides easy-to-understand information on the potential health effects of more than 2,000 ingredients contained in more than 4,000 common household products. NIH's National Library of Medicine's (NLM) household products database contains information about ingredients collected from public sources such as labels and manufacturers' websites.

Some household products contain substances that can pose health risks if they are ingested, inhaled, or if they come in contact with eyes and skin. The NLM household products database offers consumer friendly language on many of these substances and their potential health effects. The database can be examined at the following link: http://householdproducts.nlm.nih.gov.

This database lets users search by category, such as pesticides, by alphabetical listing or by brand name. The site is similar to "Tox Town," which the NLM released last year to deliver information on toxic chemicals consumers may encounter daily and their environmental risks. More technical information for emergency medical services personnel can be acquired by launching a search for a product or ingredient in TOXNET from the Product Page in the database.