Oak Ridge Associated Universities 2006 Annual Report

HIGHLIGHTS
To protect the nation’s cyber and physical infrastructure
in the event of a terrorist attack, ORISE worked directly
with the DHS’s Risk Management Division (RMD)
and Homeland Infrastructure Threat and Risk
Analysis Center (HITRAC) in 2006. Recognized
for its expertise in national security and emergency
management, ORISE provided key personnel to assist
RMD and HITRAC in identifying vulnerabilities and
threats against key infrastructure and resources, such as
food, water, energy, public health, emergency services,
transportation, telecommunications, and the economy.
ORISE was instrumental in the development of RMD’s
Incident Management Plan (expected to be implemented
in early 2007), which provides guidance for DHS
emergency management personnel and first responders
in the event of an emerging or no-notice incident. Photo
courtesy of the U.S. Department of Defense.
In support of DHS’s Preparedness Directorate, ORISE
personnel provided primary support in the development
of the Pandemic Influenza Contingency Plan
mandated by President George W. Bush in his National
Strategy for Pandemic Influenza. Assuming the role
of lead writers, ORISE provided expertise in incident
management and preparedness policy development
and coordinated the administrative oversight of several
working groups responsible for pandemic influenza
planning. Completed in November 2006, the DHS
Pandemic Influenza Contingency Plan specifically
addresses domestic incident management, workforce
protection, stakeholder communication, and continuity
of operations. The plan also provides guidance for all
DHS departments in preparation for and in response to a
pandemic event.
Serving as America’s frontline defense in protecting
our country’s livestock from accidentally or deliberately
introduced foreign animal diseases is the Plum Island
Animal Disease Center, located off the northeastern
tip of New York’s Long Island. A facility managed by
DHS and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA),
Plum Island is the only center of its kind in the country.
In 2004, ORISE began a research participation program
funded by both agencies, allowing students, postdocs,
and visiting scientists to study these diseases with
Plum Island scientists and veterinarians. Two years
later, the program has grown to more than 20 research
participants. Because a single outbreak of foot-andmouth
disease could drastically affect our nation’s
farm economy and export markets, and ultimately
our country’s food supply, researchers are trying to
understand the immune response, resulting in disease
detection and control methods as well as veterinary
treatments and vaccines. Photo by Stephen Ausmus,
courtesy of USDA.
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