September 27, 2001 — The American Water Works Association (AWWA) issued a statement Wednesday reassuring Americans that the nation's utilities are working to protect water supplies.
"While we have not received any direct threats, water utilities are operating on heightened alert as a general precaution," AWWA said.
The water organization has reissued infrastructure protection materials originally released in May to utility members. In addition, some general guidelines are available on AWWA's web site at http://www.awwa.org.
Major utilities across the nation have risk management and emergency plans in place and are working with their local city officials as part of their emergency preparedness and response teams.
At a national level, water utilities are working together as part of the Critical Infrastructure Protection Advisory Group led by the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies (AMWA).
The American Water Works Association and its 57,000 members work to assure a safe, sufficient supply of drinking water for the people of the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
The group leads efforts to advance the science, technology, consumer awareness, management, conservation, and government policies related to drinking water.
For additional information please visit the web site at www.awwa.org.
