Clean Water Advocacy - Newsroom - AMSA in the News
Tuesday July 16, 2002
AMSA To Release New Vulnerability Assessment Tool for Wastewater Utilities July
23 . . . Introducing VSAT(tm)
Source: Association of Metropolitan Sewerage Agencies
The Association of Metropolitan Sewerage Agencies (AMSA) will release the
Vulnerability Self Assessment Tool (VSAT™) for wastewater utilities, funded by
the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), on July 23.
VSAT™ provides a comprehensive, intuitive system for wastewater utilities
seeking to analyze their vulnerability to both intentional threats and natural
disasters. VSAT™ organizes data, supports vulnerability analyses, documents the
analyses, and presents complex information in an easy-to-understand format for
the full suite of potential utility assets including physical plant, employees,
knowledge base, information technology, and customers. This invaluable software
tool includes reference libraries of both potential threats and security
countermeasures, and provides an enduring method for managing the information
generated by security vulnerability assessments.
Funded by EPA, and developed by AMSA - in collaboration with PA Consulting Group
and SCIENTECH, Inc. - the software will be made available free of charge to all
public wastewater utilities. Training opportunities on VSAT™wastewater are
slated to begin in August 2002. After July 23, user information on VSAT™ will be
available to the software users at www.VSATusers.net. This web site will include
technical support, software upgrades for downloading as they become available,
and a webpage devoted to frequently asked questions regarding VSAT™. AMSA is
also currently in the discussion phase with EPA to develop VSAT™ software for
joint public drinking water-wastewater agencies as well as for small and medium
sized drinking water agencies, which will go far toward helping to further
secure the water/wastewater critical infrastructure sector.
For more information on AMSA's VSAT™ initiative, visit AMSA's web site at
www.amsa-cleanwater.org or call
AMSA at 202/833-2672. Information will also be available on EPA's water security
web site at
http://www.epa.gov/safewater/security.
Contact: Adam Krantz, 202/833-4651