A two-hour hearing yesterday of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science,
and Transportation on a tsunami warning bill makes it clear that Congress
and the Bush Administration are going to strengthen the nation's warning
system against this natural disaster. Committee Chairman Ted Stevens
(R-AK) and Committee Co-Chairman Daniel Inouye (D-HI) are sponsors of
S. 50, The Tsunami Preparedness Act of 2005, and are likely to put it
on a fast track. The Bush Administration has already announced its proposal
to spend $37.5 million on a warning system over two years, which was
generally favorably reviewed at a House Science Committee hearing last
week (http://www.aip.org/fyi/2005/013.html.)
The congressional, executive branch, and other witnesses at the Senate
hearing were supportive of S. 50, which was introduced by Inouye last
week. The 20-page bill authorizes (but does not appropriate) $35 million
for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for every
year between FY 2006 and 2012, an amount considerably higher than the
Administration's proposal. Section 3 of this bill neatly summarizes
one of the bill's major components: "The Administrator of the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shall operate regional
tsunami detection and warning systems for the Pacific Ocean region and
for the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean, and Gulf of Mexico region that will
provide maximum detection capability for United States coastal tsunami."
The US Geological Survey (USGS) is to provide seismic information to
NOAA. Another section requires deep ocean detection buoy upgrades to
be completed by 2007.
Also important in S. 50 are the provisions of Section 4 for a Tsunami
Hazard Mitigation Program authorizing NOAA "to conduct a community-based
tsunami hazard mitigation program to improve tsunami preparedness of
at-risk areas." A coordinating committee with representatives
from NOAA, USGS, Federal Emergency Management Agency, National Science
Foundation, and affected coastal states and territories will assist
in conducting this effort. Activities are to include inundation mapping,
community outreach and education networks and programs, coordination
programs, training programs, and long-term mitigation measures. Section
5, Tsunami Research Programs, authorizes NOAA in coordination with other
unspecified agencies and academic institutions to "establish
a tsunami research program to develop detection, prediction, communication
and mitigation science and technology that supports tsunami forecasts
and warnings, including advanced sensing techniques, information and
communication technology, data collection, analysis and assessment for
tsunami tracking and numerical forecast modeling. . . ." Also
included in S. 50 are provisions calling for the U.S. to act with international
entities to "develop a fully functional global tsunami warning
system comprised of regional tsunami warning networks. . . ."
S. 50 has broad support in the Senate, with 17 bipartisan cosponsors
across a broad political spectrum from states as diverse as Hawaii,
Alaska and Oregon where the tsunami threat is high, to Minnesota and
Montana. Indicative of the visibility of this issue was the lead testimony
that was given yesterday by Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN)
and Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA) who just returned from last December's
tsunami ravaged area. Also testifying was OSTP Director John Marburger
who visited the area. While his written testimony did not address the
Administration's position on S. 50, Marburger concluded his remarks
saying that the Administration's proposal is consistent with the bill.
His written remarks outlined the impetus behind a significant improvement
in the U.S. tsunami warning system, as he explained that "By
2025 nearly 75 percent of all Americans are expected to live in coastal
counties, many of whom will be in tsunami risk areas."
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