Critical Releases in Homeland Security: February 4, 2015

From Scope and Method: "The 57 counterterrorism [CT] professionals interviewed for this article came from many different CT fields, in both the public and private sectors. The interviews were conducted using a structured format, and, with one exception, the author interviewed everyone in person. Participants were asked to reflect on their CT professions and their effects on them and to characterize their vocations' unique contributions to the overall CT enterprise. They were also asked to talk about their emotional, psychological, and interpersonal responses to their activities and to attempt to identify enduring effects of their work on themselves as well as on those closest to them, including colleagues, friends, and family. Finally, they described any deeper meanings-- political, scientific, philosophical, spiritual--that this type of work evoked in them."

From the overview: " The DHS FY14-18 Strategic Plan focuses on how we will implement the goals laid out in the 2014 Quadrennial Homeland Security Review. It describes the missions and goals of homeland security, the strategies we use to achieve those goals, and the ways in which we measure our success. It also sets several key, priority efforts under each mission and describes how those priorities will be achieved through the DHS Unity of Effort Initiative. The Homeland Security vision is a homeland that is safe, secure, and resilient against terrorism and other hazards, where American interests, aspirations, and way of life can thrive. This requires the dedication of more than 240,000 employees in jobs that range from aviation and border security to emergency response, from cybersecurity analysis to chemical facility inspections. Our duties are wide-ranging, but our goal is clear -- keeping America safe. The 2014 Quadrennial Homeland Security Review reaffirmed the five-mission structure of DHS: (1) Prevent Terrorism and Enhance Security (2) Secure and Manage our Borders (3) Enforce and Administer Our Immigration Laws (4) Safeguard and Secure Cyberspace; and (5) Strengthen National Preparedness and Resilience."

"The NRC [U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission] continues to see public interest in low concentrations of radioactive material detected off the U.S. West Coast. The material comes from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station's catastrophic and unprecedented accident following the Great Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of March 2011. While the NRC has created this background discussion, more up to date information is available through the links (such as to Japan's Nuclear Regulatory Authority (JNRA)) at the end of this report. While the NRC continues to examine information on this situation, many other Federal and State agencies carry out the environmental monitoring needed to determine any health and safety effects from the Fukushima-based contamination. […] The available evidence continues to lead the NRC and other Federal, State and local governments to conclude the low levels of radiation leaking into the ocean from Fukushima Daiichi fall well short of posing any U.S. health or environmental risk."