Access Control
& Security Systems

A federal port security commission has found that just 2 percent of cargo moving into U.S. seaports was inspected in 2000. The 361 U.S. sea and river ports handle 95 percent of international trade.

"Since Sept. 11, the emphasis has changed, increasingly, to security," David Barnes, spokesman for Transportation Inspector General Kenneth Mead told The Associated Press.

The Senate has approved a bill to strengthen seaport security by upgrading monitoring systems and guaranteeing up to $3.3 billion for security upgrades. The bill, however, has not yet been addressed by the U.S. House of Representatives.

In response, the inspector general will conduct a safety and security survey that will focus on the Coast Guard's container inspection program. It will evaluate the equipment used to carry out HAZMAT inspections; and how the Coast Guard uses information to track, identify and intercept potentially dangerous cargo.

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