(Lloyd’s List – Roger Hailey)
A U.S. senate committee has heard expert testimony on the technical, logistical and financial obstacles confronting Washington’s policy to implement 100% scanning of maritime containers at foreign ports by the delayed deadline of 2014.
The senate committee on commerce, science and transportation was told that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) would need “significant resources for greater manpower and technology – technologies that do not currently exist – and the redesign of many ports”.
That was the message from US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) commissioner Alan Bersin in written testimony to the committee. “Many ports simply do not have one area through which all the cargo passes. There are multiple points of entry and cargo is transhipped – meaning it is moved immediately from vessel to vessel within the port. These ports are not configured to put in place detection equipment or to provide space for secondary inspections. At these ports, scanning 100% of cargo with current systems is unworkable without seriously hindering the flow of shipments or redesigning the ports themselves, which would require huge capital investment,” he said. Read more here.
Showing posts with label Container Scanning. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Container Scanning. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Places $9.1 Million Order for AS&E’s New MobileSearch HE Systems
(AS&E via Reuters/Business Wire)
American Science and Engineering, Inc. (AS&E®) (NASDAQ: ASEI), a leading worldwide supplier of innovative X-ray detection solutions, announced today the receipt of a $9.1 million order from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for multiple MobileSearch™ HE (High-Energy) cargo and vehicle inspection systems equipped with both high-energy transmission and proprietary Z Backscatter™ X-ray imaging for detecting threats and contraband including weapons, explosives, drugs, and currency.
“We are pleased to provide CBP with AS&E`s MobileSearch HE systems to support their counter-drug and anti-terrorism programs,” said Anthony Fabiano, AS&E’s President and CEO. “MobileSearch HE offers flexible and rapid response at seaports, border crossings, and other high threat checkpoints. The system’s combination of technologies offers the unique capability to simultaneously detect both metallic and organic threats in cargo — providing detailed
information about the contents of the cargo.”
This contract was funded by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) for Non-Intrusive Inspection (NII) equipment - enhancing border security by expanding U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) capabilities to scan commercial traffic for contraband through X-ray and other imaging technologies. Read more here.
American Science and Engineering, Inc. (AS&E®) (NASDAQ: ASEI), a leading worldwide supplier of innovative X-ray detection solutions, announced today the receipt of a $9.1 million order from U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for multiple MobileSearch™ HE (High-Energy) cargo and vehicle inspection systems equipped with both high-energy transmission and proprietary Z Backscatter™ X-ray imaging for detecting threats and contraband including weapons, explosives, drugs, and currency.
“We are pleased to provide CBP with AS&E`s MobileSearch HE systems to support their counter-drug and anti-terrorism programs,” said Anthony Fabiano, AS&E’s President and CEO. “MobileSearch HE offers flexible and rapid response at seaports, border crossings, and other high threat checkpoints. The system’s combination of technologies offers the unique capability to simultaneously detect both metallic and organic threats in cargo — providing detailed
information about the contents of the cargo.”
This contract was funded by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) for Non-Intrusive Inspection (NII) equipment - enhancing border security by expanding U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) capabilities to scan commercial traffic for contraband through X-ray and other imaging technologies. Read more here.
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Millions More for Cargo Screening
(NextGov.com – Jill R. Aitoro)
The Homeland Security Department will spend $88 million in Recovery Act funds on scanning technology that will be used to inspect commercial goods crossing U.S. borders. The funds will contribute to eight contracts for nonintrusive inspection equipment that provide fixed and mobile detection capabilities for deployment at and between ports of entry by Customs and Border Control.
Similar equipment already is used to screen all rail traffic headed southbound to Mexico.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act allocated almost $1 billion to CBP and the General Services Administration for port and border security projects, with $100 million dedicated to NII technologies, according to a press release from DHS.
The Homeland Security Department will spend $88 million in Recovery Act funds on scanning technology that will be used to inspect commercial goods crossing U.S. borders. The funds will contribute to eight contracts for nonintrusive inspection equipment that provide fixed and mobile detection capabilities for deployment at and between ports of entry by Customs and Border Control.
Similar equipment already is used to screen all rail traffic headed southbound to Mexico.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act allocated almost $1 billion to CBP and the General Services Administration for port and border security projects, with $100 million dedicated to NII technologies, according to a press release from DHS.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Napolitano: DHS Likely to Miss Cargo Scanning Deadline
(NextGov.com – Juliana Gruenwald, CongressDaily)
In her first hearing before Congress since being confirmed, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano today pledged to make progress in addressing the significant challenges facing the department. But she acknowledged her department is unlikely to meet a 2012 deadline for scanning all U.S.-bound cargo containers in foreign seaports.
“To do 100% scanning requires lots of agreements” with other countries, Napolitano said in response to a question from Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., who said the Bush administration did not push hard enough to meet a deadline it said was not doable. She noted there are many differences between scanning and screening – which does not require a physical examination of the cargo – and said “we’re close to 100% screening.”
But, she added, “my initial review is that the 2012 deadline [for scanning] won’t be reached under the current state of the program.” Republicans had opposed such a deadline, and a minority committee aide disputed DeFazio’s claim that the Bush administration did not work hard enough to meet the 2012 deadline. Read more here.
In her first hearing before Congress since being confirmed, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano today pledged to make progress in addressing the significant challenges facing the department. But she acknowledged her department is unlikely to meet a 2012 deadline for scanning all U.S.-bound cargo containers in foreign seaports.
“To do 100% scanning requires lots of agreements” with other countries, Napolitano said in response to a question from Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., who said the Bush administration did not push hard enough to meet a deadline it said was not doable. She noted there are many differences between scanning and screening – which does not require a physical examination of the cargo – and said “we’re close to 100% screening.”
But, she added, “my initial review is that the 2012 deadline [for scanning] won’t be reached under the current state of the program.” Republicans had opposed such a deadline, and a minority committee aide disputed DeFazio’s claim that the Bush administration did not work hard enough to meet the 2012 deadline. Read more here.
Friday, December 5, 2008
Chertoff Warns About Scan-All, Special Interests
(American Shipper – Erick Kulisch)
U.S. Homeland Secretary Michael Chertoff reiterated Tuesday that overseas scanning of ocean containers makes sense at high-risk ports, depending on space limitations and foreign government cooperation, but that 100% inspections would wreck maritime trade by clogging ports.
"It would be the equivalent of strip-searching every single person who gets on an airplane," he said at a breakfast meeting with reporters sponsored by the Christian Science Monitor. "We could do that, but there wouldn't be an airline system, because no one would fly."
A congressional mandate for 100% scanning overseas by 2012 is unrealistic "because you can't make every other country do that," he said, according to a transcript of the meeting. Read more here.
U.S. Homeland Secretary Michael Chertoff reiterated Tuesday that overseas scanning of ocean containers makes sense at high-risk ports, depending on space limitations and foreign government cooperation, but that 100% inspections would wreck maritime trade by clogging ports.
"It would be the equivalent of strip-searching every single person who gets on an airplane," he said at a breakfast meeting with reporters sponsored by the Christian Science Monitor. "We could do that, but there wouldn't be an airline system, because no one would fly."
A congressional mandate for 100% scanning overseas by 2012 is unrealistic "because you can't make every other country do that," he said, according to a transcript of the meeting. Read more here.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Analyst: Economic Crisis Hastens Need for 10 + 2
(HS Today – Phil Leggiere)
New report argues that economic conditions weaken case for 100 Percent cargo screening mandate
The pursuit of “perfect” 100% screening of all cargo, however well intentioned, may undermine a more realistic technologically and economically feasible focus on identifying and securing truly high-risk cargo, researcher James Jay Carafano of Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, argues in a new report titled Securing Global Supply Chains: 10 Plus 2 Container Security Ruling Needed. Instead, Carafano’s paper urges that the DHS “10 + 2” security initiative be implemented as soon as possible as a far more appropriate strategy for the economic and security situation confronting global shippers and consumers.
Technically called the Importer Security Filing (ISF) and Additional Carrier Requirements, 10 + 2 requires both importers and carriers to submit additional cargo information before the cargo is loaded on U.S.-bound vessels. This rule describes how importers will report 10 additional items of information on cargo shipped to the United States, while the carrier provides two more data sets.
As Carafano explains, “There are about 20 million sea-going shipping containers in the world that make about 200 million trips per year. In one of its first programs to enhance transportation security after 9/11, DHS established the Container Security Initiative (CSI). CSI evaluates data on each container bound for the United States and determines which might represent a potential risk that warrants further investigation. The U.S. works with other countries to inspect the high-risk containers before they are loaded on ships and sent to the United States. This efficient process requires physically scanning 2–3 percent of inbound containers. This has minimal impact of moving global trade, adds a valuable security deterrent, and enables DHS to focus its efforts on the most serious risks.”
The most important additions to the "10 + 2" reporting requirements, according to Carafano, include adding where the materials in the container are from and which conveyer is responsible for packing the container. These data points, he says, are invaluable for identifying potential sources of malicious activities that might attempt to place something harmful or dangerous in a container, for identifying entities that are not known and trusted and subsequently targeting them for inspection. Read more here.
New report argues that economic conditions weaken case for 100 Percent cargo screening mandate
The pursuit of “perfect” 100% screening of all cargo, however well intentioned, may undermine a more realistic technologically and economically feasible focus on identifying and securing truly high-risk cargo, researcher James Jay Carafano of Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, argues in a new report titled Securing Global Supply Chains: 10 Plus 2 Container Security Ruling Needed. Instead, Carafano’s paper urges that the DHS “10 + 2” security initiative be implemented as soon as possible as a far more appropriate strategy for the economic and security situation confronting global shippers and consumers.
Technically called the Importer Security Filing (ISF) and Additional Carrier Requirements, 10 + 2 requires both importers and carriers to submit additional cargo information before the cargo is loaded on U.S.-bound vessels. This rule describes how importers will report 10 additional items of information on cargo shipped to the United States, while the carrier provides two more data sets.
As Carafano explains, “There are about 20 million sea-going shipping containers in the world that make about 200 million trips per year. In one of its first programs to enhance transportation security after 9/11, DHS established the Container Security Initiative (CSI). CSI evaluates data on each container bound for the United States and determines which might represent a potential risk that warrants further investigation. The U.S. works with other countries to inspect the high-risk containers before they are loaded on ships and sent to the United States. This efficient process requires physically scanning 2–3 percent of inbound containers. This has minimal impact of moving global trade, adds a valuable security deterrent, and enables DHS to focus its efforts on the most serious risks.”
The most important additions to the "10 + 2" reporting requirements, according to Carafano, include adding where the materials in the container are from and which conveyer is responsible for packing the container. These data points, he says, are invaluable for identifying potential sources of malicious activities that might attempt to place something harmful or dangerous in a container, for identifying entities that are not known and trusted and subsequently targeting them for inspection. Read more here.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
GAO Says 100% Scanning Threatens Global Cargo Security Efforts
(World Trade Interactive)
A new Government Accountability Office report argues that the statutory requirement for 100% scanning of U.S.-bound container cargo by 2012 could threaten efforts to fashion international supply chain security standards and may actually provide a lower level of security than the current risk management approach.
According to the report, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has been at the forefront of efforts to develop and implement the World Customs Organization’s Safe Framework of Standards to Secure and Facilitate Global Trade. The SAFE Framework in large part internationalizes the concepts first promulgated under CBP’s Container Security Initiative and Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism. As in CSI, the standards in the customs-to-customs pillar of the SAFE Framework state that members should use a risk-management system to target and identify potentially high-risk cargo. Member customs administrations are urged to provide for joint targeting and screening, the use of standardized sets of targeting criteria and compatible communication and information-exchange mechanisms. In addition, as with C-TPAT, the WCO customs-to-business pillar provides that customs administrations should design validation processes for their respective authorized economic operator programs that offer incentives to participating businesses.
Widespread acceptance of the core principles of the SAFE Framework and implementation of its standards could have numerous benefits, the report states.
• the focus of international customs administrations would be shifted from primarily revenue collection to include enhanced security
• cooperation between customs administrations would be strengthened, improving their capability to detect high-risk cargo
• port shopping by terrorists or smugglers looking for seaports with more lax or nonexistent security standards could be reduced
• programs for ensuring that customs administrations are free of corruption could be improved
• CSI-like customs security practices could be implemented at non-CSI foreign seaports and customs administration reform and modernization could be enhanced
• companies could avoid the burden of addressing different sets of requirements as a shipment moves through the supply chain in different countries
However, the report warns, these benefits are being threatened because of the focus on 100% scanning under the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007, which runs counter to the risk management approach employed by the SAFE Framework, CSI and C-TPAT. WCO officials are concerned that 100% scanning could have an adverse impact on several of the organization’s core instruments, which include not only the SAFE Framework but also the Revised Kyoto Convention, an international customs agreement to which the U.S., the European Union and 52 others have acceded. Some countries are reluctant to implement AEO programs since they believe such programs would not be necessary with 100 percent scanning, and some companies are reluctant to join AEO programs since one of the main benefits of membership, a reduced likelihood of examination, would no longer apply if all containers are required to be scanned.
In addition, the report states, CBP, WCO and EU officials assert that 100% scanning may actually provide a lower level of security than existing programs. The risk management approach directs resources to where they are most needed, officials say, whereas 100% scanning directs too many resources to one activity and diminishes the focus on those container shipments that pose the highest risk. Customs officers currently review the scanned images of high-risk containers in a very thorough and detailed manner, one WCO official said, but reviews may not be as thorough if all containers are scanned due simply to the sheer volume of work, leading to a degradation of security. In addition, a European customs official noted, 100% scanning could have a negative impact on the flow of international commerce, which under the 9/11 Act may be grounds for granting a two-year, renewable extension to the 100% scanning requirement at individual seaports.
A new Government Accountability Office report argues that the statutory requirement for 100% scanning of U.S.-bound container cargo by 2012 could threaten efforts to fashion international supply chain security standards and may actually provide a lower level of security than the current risk management approach.
According to the report, U.S. Customs and Border Protection has been at the forefront of efforts to develop and implement the World Customs Organization’s Safe Framework of Standards to Secure and Facilitate Global Trade. The SAFE Framework in large part internationalizes the concepts first promulgated under CBP’s Container Security Initiative and Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism. As in CSI, the standards in the customs-to-customs pillar of the SAFE Framework state that members should use a risk-management system to target and identify potentially high-risk cargo. Member customs administrations are urged to provide for joint targeting and screening, the use of standardized sets of targeting criteria and compatible communication and information-exchange mechanisms. In addition, as with C-TPAT, the WCO customs-to-business pillar provides that customs administrations should design validation processes for their respective authorized economic operator programs that offer incentives to participating businesses.
Widespread acceptance of the core principles of the SAFE Framework and implementation of its standards could have numerous benefits, the report states.
• the focus of international customs administrations would be shifted from primarily revenue collection to include enhanced security
• cooperation between customs administrations would be strengthened, improving their capability to detect high-risk cargo
• port shopping by terrorists or smugglers looking for seaports with more lax or nonexistent security standards could be reduced
• programs for ensuring that customs administrations are free of corruption could be improved
• CSI-like customs security practices could be implemented at non-CSI foreign seaports and customs administration reform and modernization could be enhanced
• companies could avoid the burden of addressing different sets of requirements as a shipment moves through the supply chain in different countries
However, the report warns, these benefits are being threatened because of the focus on 100% scanning under the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007, which runs counter to the risk management approach employed by the SAFE Framework, CSI and C-TPAT. WCO officials are concerned that 100% scanning could have an adverse impact on several of the organization’s core instruments, which include not only the SAFE Framework but also the Revised Kyoto Convention, an international customs agreement to which the U.S., the European Union and 52 others have acceded. Some countries are reluctant to implement AEO programs since they believe such programs would not be necessary with 100 percent scanning, and some companies are reluctant to join AEO programs since one of the main benefits of membership, a reduced likelihood of examination, would no longer apply if all containers are required to be scanned.
In addition, the report states, CBP, WCO and EU officials assert that 100% scanning may actually provide a lower level of security than existing programs. The risk management approach directs resources to where they are most needed, officials say, whereas 100% scanning directs too many resources to one activity and diminishes the focus on those container shipments that pose the highest risk. Customs officers currently review the scanned images of high-risk containers in a very thorough and detailed manner, one WCO official said, but reviews may not be as thorough if all containers are scanned due simply to the sheer volume of work, leading to a degradation of security. In addition, a European customs official noted, 100% scanning could have a negative impact on the flow of international commerce, which under the 9/11 Act may be grounds for granting a two-year, renewable extension to the 100% scanning requirement at individual seaports.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Port Security: Guarding America’s Front Door
An overview of the issue of U.S. port security and the C-TPAT program via the California State University Long Beach Center for International Trade and Transportation.
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