Addressing Port Security
Governor Warner was in Norfolk on Monday, and spoke before a group of business leaders and port officials during a conference hosted by the nonprofit Commonwealth Homeland Security Foundation. He took the opportunity to talk about the need, in a post-9/11 world, for improving security at our nation’s ports.
Though Virginia’s ports are seen as a “national leader when it comes to security improvements,” Governor Warner said additional steps were need to secure all of our ports and related infrastructure because it is “so vital to Virginia and our nation’s economic well-being.”
Here’s why:Eighty percent of the world’s trade travels by water, making ports the linchpin of global commerce. Currently, U.S. ports handle approximately 20 percent of all maritime trade worldwide. Here in Virginia, the Hampton Roads port region is not only a vital commercial center for Virginia, but also for the nation as well. It serves as the home to the APM/Maersk Terminal and the Port of Virginia. The Port of Virginia alone is responsible for 345,000 jobs in Virginia – and generates over $40 billion in business revenues.
Virginia has made good progress in beefing up port security. We’re already working with federal, state, local, military, and private sector partners, and the Port of Virginia has made tremendous progress, including a radioactivity check for all of the containers that leave the Port.
Here’s how Governor Warner said we need to address the threats:
But the terrorists that seek to disrupt and destroy our way of life understand that our economic viability is one of its essential components.
And ports and their infrastructure, the containers and cargo, as well as our broader system of intermodal connectivity, present a tempting target.
And potential weapons could range from everything from basic explosives to sophisticated nuclear, biological, and chemical devices that could shut down the port or wreak havoc at the cargo’s ultimate destination.
We must work together to detect, deter, and disrupt hostile acts before they happen, while also—in the event of an attack—instituting measures that enhance resiliency, response, and rapid recovery.
The solution: greater public-private collaboration, through organizations like the Commonwealth Homeland Security Foundation.
The Foundation’s goal is for Virginia to lead the nation in a new direction for finding resources for homeland security and preparedness. The Foundation will provide the resources for scholarly research that will help improve Virginia’s emergency preparedness programs.This will help us fill gaps where federal or state funds are not available. And it will allow individuals and corporations to contribute, which will in-turn fund projects to make the entire Commonwealth more secure.
Here is the report of the speech by the Daily Press of Newport News:
Warner pushes for improved port security
China can scan all of the containers moving through its ports, he says. Why can’t we?
By Kimball Payne
Seven years after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists attacks, there is still no overarching strategy for protecting international shipping hubs, former Gov. Mark R. Warner told business leaders and port officials Monday during a conference in Norfolk.
“Government has a role to play but it doesn’t always have all the answers,” Warner said. “The idea that we’re going to just wait for federal money alone isn’t going to fix it.”
Warner came to Old Dominion University to help kick off a new fundraising effort designed to bring in private money to encourage port security research and development at cutting-edge technology companies and a handful of Virginia’s colleges and universities.
In the wake of the terrorist attacks, Warner said, federal, state and local officials started patrols and safety procedures with a “hodgepodge of differing missions.”
Warner noted that China is now able to scan 100 percent of the containers moving through its ports.
“If Hong Kong can do it, why can’t we do it here?” Warner asked. “The challenge and the threat of terrorism isn’t going to dry up and go away.”
The fundraising effort will be led by the nonprofit Commonwealth Homeland Security Foundation, with the goal of raising $25 million in private money over the next five years. The foundation will use private donations to fund grants for research and development at technology businesses and colleges, including Old Dominion University, the College of William and Mary, the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech.
The foundation’s president, state Del. L. Scott Lingamfelter, R-Prince William, stressed the need for a more holistic approach to port security that engages private companies.
“Right now there are some good things going on,” Lingamfelter said. “But right now nobody’s getting their arms all the way around it.”
Lingamfelter said he would be touring the state looking to meet with executives and researchers about new approaches to screening the goods that flow through Virginia’s ports. He asked the 70 people at the lunch to grab a pledge card from the center of their tables.
“You can even use credit cards,” he said. “I understand we’ve got a couple days while those things still work.”
Lingamfelter’s quip about the ongoing financial crisis underscores a major hurdle facing any kind of fundraising in the near future. But Lingamfelter said he is confident that ports, railroad companies, shipping companies, retailers and philanthropists will all see the benefit of investing in research.
“You’ve got to have some of that seed corn in place,” he said.