Remarks by Secretary Tom Ridge at Port of Los Angeles

Release Date: 06/21/04 00:00:00

Long Beach, Calif.
Port of Los Angeles
June 21, 2004
(Remarks as Prepared)

Thank you for that introduction; it is a pleasure to be with you – here at America’s busiest seaport.

I know that you know how important the entire maritime industry is to the health of our nation’s economy – contributing more than one trillion dollars to the annual GDP.

And ports like this one are the gateway into the vastly interconnected global economy. Ninety-five percent of all international overseas trade moves through our Nation’s ports.

Much of it – $1 billion a day of economic activity – happens right here at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

In addition, more than eight thousand foreign flag vessels make 60,000 port calls annually in our country. And nearly 200 million passengers on cruise ships and ferries travel in and out every year.

You are helping to lead the Nation’s port security effort – in part because of the healthy competition between Los Angeles and Long Beach, but also on account of your unprecedented cooperation when it comes to security.

This port has been involved with the development, implementation, and success of nearly every initiative from point of origin to destination – all the while protecting the vital commerce that passes through these docks and slips every day.

Los Angeles/Long Beach was home to one of the first Maritime Safety and Security Teams; has participated in the pilots for several security initiatives such as the Transportation Worker’s Identity Card; deployed officers overseas, and hosted foreign officials as part of CSI; and have set the standard for partnership with the local community, including 100 C-TPAT accounts with area businesses.

You’ve also served as an important test bed for Operation Safe Commerce.  We are looking forward to the arrival of the first containers under this program in just a few days.

The Department has been proud to partner with you on so many occasions as we layer our port security measures across the nation and around the globe.  But we have been even more proud to watch as these two competing facilities partner with each other to ensure the security of this entire complex.

It’s not difficult to recognize the critical importance of our seaports not only to a thriving economy, but also to a safe and secure homeland.

Behind each ship is a long journey – and a long story – one that can rarely be understood by just observing from the dock.

For instance, shortly after I began serving as the President’s Homeland Security Advisor, I boarded a ship in New Orleans Harbor. The vessel was registered in Singapore; the crew was from India; the cargo was American grain, on its way to Japan!

And that is just the beginning. Nine million containers arrive on those ships into our Nation’s 361 seaports every year – more than 30 percent of them here in Los Angeles and Long Beach.

Once they reach shore, they are stacked and stored in facilities like this…then carried on trains and trucks across the country…and their contents are delivered to warehouses and waiting customers…all across the country.

The story doesn’t end with the ships themselves. To this picture add the critical infrastructure at and around our ports – plants, refineries, warehouses, stockyards and, of course, nearby port communities.

Shipping is a global industry; terrorism is a global problem; and our collective security requires a global solution.

In the past, efforts to secure this vast global industry – both here in America and throughout the world – were isolated, scattered and uncoordinated.

Like other areas of critical vulnerability, we recognized this problem, coordinated with stakeholders and partners, identified best practices, and took specific actions to secure our homeland – and the global economy.

But for the first time ever, through an international effort there will be one world standard for ship and port security. This will help create a culture of security at ports around the world and mandate specific improvements.

I am pleased to announce that as of today, the United States is in full compliance with the requirements of this new standard – just in time to meet the July 1st deadline.

In the past, we have been forced to rely on a patchwork of security procedures. With the implementation of these comprehensive new standards, we will now be able to rely on our international partners.

We will now be better able to harden physical infrastructure, verify the security of individual vessels before they approach a U.S. port, and better restrict access to our port areas.

We will be able to verify the security of individual vessels before they call on a U.S. port…before they can pose a threat.  And those not in compliance may not be allowed to enter our ports.

On top of the standards of the international code, the United States has required vessels and port facilities to conduct vulnerability assessments, submit action plans, and increase security by the same July 1st deadline.

Leading this effort has been the U.S. Coast Guard.  The Coast Guard has received nearly one hundred percent of the security assessments and plans required under this law.

The Coast Guard has reviewed thousands of security plans from ship owners and terminal operators. Some will be obvious to the public, others will remain known only to the professionals charged with safety and security.

You might notice increased identification checks, additional screenings, more canine teams, and higher fences. Behind the scenes, facilities might install surveillance cameras, establish restricted areas, provide additional training, and increase or improve security personnel and patrols.

No plan is one size fits all.  Each was designed to meet the unique security needs of a specific port.

Going forward, The U.S Coast Guard will conduct assessments with teams of experts who simulate terrorist attacks on port facilities – to determine which vulnerabilities still exist and where. Then, they can work with individual ports on additional training and security measures to further solidify our efforts in and around America’s ports.

Thanks to these new standards – and the work of so many of you here today – we now have a robust baseline of security in place for all of our nation’s ports…and a certification program to ensure that foreign flagged vessels docking in U.S. ports have met U.S. generated security requirements.

Of course, these new security standards are just one tool in our worldwide layers of defense.

Those layers begin thousands of miles away…even before a container is loaded or a ship pushes off for the United States…and they continue until we can be sure that our ports, and the people they serve, are safe and secure.

In the time that I have been speaking, more than 100 containers will have entered this port. I’d like to take you along on the voyage of just one of these containers, and explain some of the layered defenses that have been put in place along the way.

The cargo supply chain is a complex system of movements; and security must start long before the container is loaded on to a ship for transport and must be present throughout the supply chain.

From the cutting floor in Thailand to final delivery in the “Heartland,” we are ensuring that security is infused at every step of the process.

24 hours before a container is even loaded onto a cargo vessel, the Department of Homeland Security’s Customs and Border protection unit receives electronic transmission of advance cargo manifests for all U.S. bound containers.

Early reports from industry show that this 24-hour rule is aiding not just security, but productivity.

This advance information is then analyzed by our National Targeting Center, to compare against law enforcement data, the latest threat intelligence and the ships’ history, in order to identify potentially high-risk cargo.

Accurate information at every stage of this process is critical to our overall security.  

Next, Homeland Security officials use advanced technologies and risk analysis to begin our first layers of security far from American shores.

Under the Container Security Initiative, we have placed CBP inspectors at 19 foreign seaports from Vancouver to Rotterdam to Singapore. These officers work alongside our allies to target and screen containers aboard cargo ships headed for the United States.

During a trip across the high seas, information about a container or its contents can be monitored and mapped against possible threats.

The Coast Guard uses this real time information to track high risk vessels, and when necessary, further screen or board potentially threatening ships. These intelligence based actions help prevent problems long before a ship enters our waters.

Once in transit, the next layer is the container itself.  The Department is working closely with industry partners to create a more secure container.

Also, through Operation Safe Commerce, we are testing additional container technology devices and business processes that will help create a smarter, more secure container.

Once a container arrives at our shores, CBP officers thoroughly scan 100% of the high-risk containers using advanced x-ray and radiation screening equipment.  Containers that need further screening are taken to a secure location.

There, the higher-risk shipments are physically inspected for terrorist weapons and contraband prior to being released from the port of entry.

Sometimes, however, regular common sense can be our greatest security tool.  A great example of the effectiveness of our people and programs occurred at a port like this one last summer.

Customs and Border Patrol Agents – using the electronic information they were provided about a ship transiting from China to El Salvador – seized a cache of weapons worth more than $421,000.

The ship was traveling without a permit and the cargo was mis-marked as…frozen trout! Problem was that frozen trout was making the long trip across the Pacific in an un-refrigerated cargo container.

We are increasing security to ensure that our ports remain open, but we must do so while continuing to facilitate the flow of commerce.  

Of course, we cannot do this alone.  In addition to working with foreign governments, we must partner with business to help secure the supply chain.

We do that with our Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism enlists the private sector to help secure the entire supply chain.  To date, more than 6,000 manufacturers, forwarders, brokers, carriers and other key supply chain actors are participating in C-TPAT.

Programs like C-TPAT are helping our industry partners reach a higher degree of security across their entire supply chain.

Those that succeed qualify for time- and money-saving incentives such as "FAST" lane access and reduced inspections.  Traffic World magazine reports that C-TPAT has "drawn some of the strongest praise business has ever heaped on a government program."

As owners and operators, the private sector can play an even larger role in the development and funding of advanced security procedures and technologies.  

Securing our ports and waterways is a team effort – everyone, from local government and private citizens to the international community, plays an important role in ensuring that our waterways remain open for business.

All of these efforts – each and every layer of security – are geared toward finding that critical balance between security, freedom, and prosperity.  We must find a way to keep our ports open to legitimate trade and travelers but closed to terrorists.  I believe we have made significant progress toward that goal.

We've become more confident and more aware.  As you know, homeland security is a national strategy, not a federal one; a worldwide effort, not just an American one.

It's about the integration of a nation and a world -- driven by a philosophy of shared responsibility, shared leadership, and shared accountability – in essence, a renewed commitment to the federalism upon which our nation was founded.

I'm quite grateful for the resolve and responsibility shown by all Americans – especially those of you here today who work hard to protect this country and its citizens.

And I ask that we continue to work together as we have time and again to achieve our dreams and goals – and preserve America as the world’s greatest home for freedom.   Thank you.

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This page was last modified on 06/21/04 00:00:00