New York State Office of Public Security Director James Kallstrom today announced that an FBI report with recommendations on ways to bolster the security at Indian Point has been submitted to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Entergy, and the Office of Public Security.

Over the last several weeks, the OPS worked with various federal and state agencies including the FBI, NRC, State Office of Emergency Management and NYSERDA to assess long-term security needs at Indian Point. The result of the top-to-bottom overview is an FBI report that includes several recommendations to further shore up security at the site.

Director Kallstrom said, "We have worked diligently with federal and state counter-terrorism experts to complete a top-to- bottom security assessment at Indian Point. At the onset of the review, based on my experience with the FBI, I believed that security at the plant was robust, and our findings do not suggest otherwise. However, we have advanced a series of recommendations to bolster the overall security in light of the events of September 11.

"Entergy has begun to implement a majority of the recommendations in the FBI report, and many of the recommendations that pertain to the NRC are already in process or being taken under advisement," Director Kallstrom said. "The bottom line is, local residents should rest easy knowing that the appropriate measures are in place to safeguard their health and well being and that enhancements are underway and contemplated to protect about any possible terrorist attack."

Barry W. Mawn, Assistant Director in Charge, New York FBI Office, said: "The FBI's participation in the security review conducted by Director Kallstrom stems from its mission to protect the safety of the public. There is no more serious or more critical task of government than to work cooperatively at all levels to accomplish that mission. This report, and the entire effort, is a product of that partnership."

Mr. Mawn continued, "To be truly effective, security measures and procedures must be continually re-examined, re-evaluated and if needed, enhanced. The FBI is fully committed to playing a significant role in this and future security assessments of our critical infrastructure."

Some of the issues addressed in the report include:

• More frequent testing of the security forces at Indian Point, perhaps augmented with the assistance of the FBI; The FBI has offered their trainers to train the Indian Point security force.

• Better integration and coordination among law enforcement agencies with jurisdiction of Indian Point, including security forces at Indian Point 2 and 3; The FBI has agreed to play an active role in coordinating response plans among the various law enforcement agencies and will drill with them periodically.

• In October, Governor Pataki announced the creation of the State Office of Public Security to coordinate and bolster anti- terrorist efforts throughout New York State. The Indian Point security assessment was one of the first steps undertaken by the newly created office.

Among the responsibilities of the office are:

• Review existing policies, protocols and strategies of State agencies designed to detect, respond to and recover from terrorist acts or threats; identify potential shortfalls and implement appropriate revisions and enhancements thereto; undertake periodic drills and simulations designed to assess and practice responses to a terrorist act or threat;
• Identify priorities and coordinate State agency resources for the collection and analysis of information regarding terrorist threats and activities of terrorists throughout the State;
• Coordinate and facilitate information sharing among local, State and Federal law enforcement to ensure appropriate intelligence to assist in the early identification of and response to potential terrorist activities;
• Assess the preparedness of State and local public health systems to respond to terrorists acts, including ensuring early warning systems designed to detect potential threats, determining adequacy and availability of necessary vaccines and pharmaceuticals and hospital capacity;
• Coordinate strategies, protocols and first-responder equipment needs to monitor, detect and respond to and mitigate consequences of a possible biological, chemical or radiological terrorist act or threat;
• Work with State and local agencies as well as private entities, undertake a statewide assessment of the vulnerability of critical infrastructure to terrorist attacks, including nuclear facilities, power plants, telecommunications systems, public roadways, railways, bridges and tunnels, and develop strategies designed to protect them from terrorist attacks; and
• Develop plans to promote immediate recovery from terrorists attacks to ensure rapid restoration of transportation, utilities, critical communications and information systems as well as to contain and remove hazardous materials that might be used in an attack.

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