Clean Water Advocacy - News Releases - August 29, 2002
For Immediate Release: August 29, 2002
Contact: Adam Krantz, 202/833-4651, AMSA
EPA Awards Funds to AMSA for Water Sector Security Software
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded funding to AMSA, via a cooperative agreement, to produce two additional versions of the Association’s highly successful Vulnerability Self Assessment Tool for wastewater utilities, VSAT™wastewater. Development work is anticipated to begin immediately on VSAT™water/wastewater for utilities that combine water and wastewater treatment and collection functions and VSAT™water for small-medium sized water utilities. A November release date is anticipated for these VSAT™ vulnerability assessment tools.
On July 23, AMSA released its Vulnerability Self Assessment Tool (VSAT™), which provides wastewater treatment utilities with a comprehensive, intuitive system to analyze their vulnerabilities to both intentional threats and natural disasters. VSAT™wastewater — funded by EPA, and developed by AMSA in collaboration with PA Consulting Group and SCIENTECH, Inc., will continue to be made available free of charge to all public wastewater utilities. While VSAT™wastewater was developed for use and implementation by publicly owned wastewater utility staff and their designees, AMSA is also making the software tool available to other public entities involved in environmental protection, public safety and security. In this regard, complimentary copies of VSAT™wastewater are being made available to governmental and public educational institutions including, but not limited to, the headquarters and regional offices of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, State environmental protection agencies and other State-level entities addressing public safety and security – as well as public educational institutions.
VSAT™wastewater has garnered tremendous interest from many different sectors since its July 23, 2002 release. To date nearly 1,500 copies of the software tool have been distributed to public wastewater utilities and other public entities across the nation. AMSA anticipates that both VSAT™water and VSAT™water/wastewater will garner similar interest and provide a much-needed function in ensuring continued improvement to the security of the nation’s critical water/wastewater infrastructure.
To learn more about these efforts, visit the official VSAT™ web site, www.VSATusers.net. This web site provides user support and will offer software upgrades for downloading as they become available. This site also provides information on new VSAT™ developments as they occur. Information related to VSAT™ initiatives will also be available on AMSA’s web site, www.amsa-cleanwater.org.
AMSA is a national trade association representing over 270 of the nation's public wastewater utilities who are, despite a sharp decline in federal funding, dealing with the expensive challenges of an ailing infrastructure comprised of old, worn pipes and treatment facilities in desperate need of upgrades. These wastewater treatment officials are environmental practitioners dedicated to protecting and improving the nation's public health and its water, and collectively treat and reclaim over 18 billion gallons of wastewater every day.
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