[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 16]
[House]
[Page 22839]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



       WATER INFRASTRUCTURE SECURITY AND RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT ACT

  (Mr. FORBES asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. FORBES. Mr. Speaker, yesterday an article ran in a Virginia paper 
revealing serious security breaches at a Richmond City drinking water 
plant. A reporter was able to walk right through the front gate and 
wander the site for an hour each day for a week. He and a photographer 
had access to the water supply and the potentially dangerous chemicals 
used to treat it. No one questioned their presence.
  The good news is that this plant appears to be something of an 
anomaly. Similar surprise inspections at neighboring county facilities 
had very different outcomes. But this only makes it clearer that 
Congress must act now to ensure that all our water supplies are safe 
from terrorist threats.
  Yesterday, the Committee on Science approved unanimously the Water 
Infrastructure Security and Research Development Act which would help 
us ensure the long-term safety of the water our constituents drink and 
use every day. It would provide $60 million in grants over the next 5 
years to identify threats and respond to them. Similar legislation is 
moving through the Senate. We should act quickly to give every American 
peace of mind when turning on the tap.




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