Sailing the Northwest

The Bush Administration apparently thinks so, as the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced their Small Vessel Security Strategy today to help reduce terror risks associated with small boats.  DHS is essentially hoping to institute a Neighborhood-Watch type program among boaters to help fight terrorism.  The full strategy is available on the DHS website.

This strategy came as a result of last year’s National Small Vessel Security Summit which brought together over 300 small boating community stakeholders along with federal, state and government leaders.  The Small Vessel Security Strategy identifies four key risks associated with the potential for terrorist use of small vessels:

1. Domestic use of waterborne improvised explosive devices
2. Conveyance for smuggling weapons into the U.S.
3. Conveyance for smuggling terrorists into the U.S.
4. Waterborne platform for conducting a stand-off attack

The Small Vessel Strategy identifies several safety concerns specific to small vessels that can very easily lead to assumptions about future regulations, restrictions and inspection processes.  These safety concerns include:

1. A longstanding public expectation of totally unregulated access and use of U.S. waterways
2. Limited ability to screen for weapons of mass destruction (WMDs), especially chemical and biological agents
3. Regular operation in close proximity to critical infrastructure and key resources
4. Lack of a centralized access to hull identification and vessel registration data

By engaging the small vessel community, the DHS is hoping to enlist the tens of millions of recreational, fishing and small commercial vessels to help provide “eyes on the water” and identify suspicious activities.

Increased Security on Puget Sound
Today’s announcement by the DHS is the latest focus on maritime security, and comes on the heals of the launch of the $10 million West Coast Maritime pilot program currently underway on Puget Sound.  This program involves the training and arming of harbor patrols with portable radiation detection equipment, as well as the development of radiation detection technologies to help reduce the chance of small vessels being used to transport radiological or nuclear threats.

So what does this mean for the average Puget Sound boater?  We’ll see how the summer plays out as the DHS develops their small vessel implementation plan to put this strategy in action.  Key to this plan is whether small vessels will be viewed more as a problem, or as part of the solution.

However, with any dependence on recreational boaters to report “suspicious activity”, comes the reality of many false alarms.  I would definitely recommend making sure you have all of the Coast Guard required equipmenton your boat just in case you get too close to the Kingston-Edmonds ferry on your next outing.