S-EPA
www.epa.gov/nhsrc
technical BRIEF
EPA Recognized for Research on Reducing
Risks to Drinking Water Systems
Threat Ensemble Vulnerability Assessment (TEVA)
among finalists for Edelman Award
On February 7, 2008, the Institute for Operations Research
and the Management Sciences (INFORMS® of Hanover,
MD) announced that a TEVA research project is one of six
finalists vying for this years prestigious Franz Edelman
Award. The project is called "Reducing Security Risks in
American Drinking Water Systems."
Edelman Award Information
This is the thirty-seventh year of the Edelman
competition. Every year, the competition recognizes
outstanding operations research-based projects that
transform companies, entire industries, and people's
lives. Operations research uses advanced analytical
methods to make optimal decisions in order to solve
complex problems. The winner of the award will be
announced in mid-April 2008.
Past Edelman Award finalists include Travelocity; IBM;
Merrill Lynch; the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center;
and Georgia Tech. The winning team for 2007 reduced both patient suffering and health care
costs from the treatment of prostate and breast cancer. The Edelman competition attests to the
contributions of operations research in the profit and nonprofit sectors. It is estimated that the
cumulative dollar benefits from Edelman finalist projects between 1984 and 2006 reached the
$100 billion mark.
I TEVA Research Program
The TEVA research program has focused
on reducing the security risks to drinking water
systems. Addressing this issue is important
because the physical layout of drinking water
systems makes them inherently vulnerable
to terrorist incidents. These incidents could
involve contamination with deadly agents,
resulting in large numbers of casualties and
high economic costs.
In collaboration with the University of
Cincinnati, Sandia National Laboratories,
and Argonne National Laboratory, EPA
has developed the Sensor Placement
|	| Optimization Tool (TEVA-SPOT) to quickly
EPA's National Homeland Security Research
Center (NHSRC) develops products based
on scientific research and technology
evaluations. Our products and expertise
are widely used in preventing, preparing
for, and recovering from public health and
environmental emergencies that arise from
terrorist attacks. Our research and products
address biological, radiological, or chemical
warfare agents that could affect indoor areas,
outdoor areas, or water infrastructures.
NHSRC provides these products, technical
assistance, and expertise in response to
Homeland Security Presidential Directives
(HSPDs) 7 and 9. HSPD 7 designates EPA
as the lead agency for protecting water
resources; HSPD 9 directs EPA to develop
a robust surveillance program to provide
early warning in the event of a terrorist attack.
These HSPDs have led NHSRC to develop
support systems, response plans, and
contingency planning tools to enhance the
safety of water treatment, distribution, and
disposal processes.
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detect contamination incidents and reduce the overall impact of terrorist attacks. The key component
of the project is the TEVA-SPOT software program which uses algorithms to determine the number
and location of sensors needed to support a contamination warning system, a system that integrates
monitoring and surveillance data from multiple detection streams. The location of these online sensors
is optimized to detect contamination incidents in time to mitigate both economic and public health
consequences.
By partnering with member utilities of the American Water Works Association, EPA has made
the TEVA-SPOT software tool available to many of the largest utilities across the country and has
designed contamination warning systems for nine utilities to date. For even the largest municipalities
that serve over a million customers, the tool is capable of running on desktop computers and
achieving results in minutes to hours. Well-designed contamination warning systems may reduce
the health impacts of terrorist attacks by 90 percent and reduce the economic consequences by
billions of dollars.
For more information, visit the NHSRC Web site at www.epa.gov/nhsrc and the TEVA Research
Program site at http://www.epa.gov/nhsrc/water/teva.html.
Principal Investigators: Regan Murray and Robert Janke
Feedback/Questions: Kathy Nickel (513) 569-7955
March 2008
EPAH)0/S-08£>04

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