SFI put on backburner

SFI put on backburner    The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has abandoned plans to expand its Secure Freight Initiative for scanning all U.S.-bound containers beyond the three small ports participating in the demonstration program, a high-level official said last week.
   The logistical, operational, financial, technical and diplomatic challenges identified at ports in Pakistan, Honduras and the United Kingdom rule out the possibility of replicating the security program at other marine terminals any time soon, Customs and Border Protection Acting Commissioner Jayson Ahern said in a sit-down interview with reporters following remarks at the agency's annual Trade Symposium.
   'As we've seen how the technology performs and model it out to larger ports, we recognize the current technology does not have the throughput capacity necessary to keep the stream of commerce going. So we can logically conclude that's not something we can impose on other countries or on the trade community' at this time, he said.

Ahern

   DHS and component agency Customs and Border Protection have been outspoken opponents of the 100 percent scanning mandate instituted by Congress in 2007 to require all containers to be inspected overseas with non-intrusive technology by mid-2012. Earlier this month, DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano testified the difficulties of establishing a global network of radiation detection and X-ray stations at foreign ports compelled her to waive the deadline for two years, as permitted under the law. Among the difficulties DHS and others have identified is lack of space at terminals to route truck containers to drive-through portals or ways to process transshipment cargo from vessels without causing significant delays in container transportation.

Related News •   DHS rolls back 100% scanning to 2014

   During the past year CBP officials indicated that 100 percent inspections made sense for a handful of high-risk trade lanes where the additional visual data can provide reassurance that inbound cargo is not compromised. The Government Accountability Office recently reported that Napolitano last spring gave CBP the green light to negotiate with other governments for similar SFI projects in strategic ports.
   Ahern, who plans to retire at the end of the month, said even such a small-scale expansion is now off the table for the foreseeable future.
   'There's no current plan to expand the current SFI pilots we have out there. It just doesn't make sense to make an umbrella investment to do 100 percent scanning when you know the technology is not there, the anomaly recognition software is not there and the finance is not there to do it,' he said.
   CBP officials and other experts say imaging containers on a large scale won't be effective until automated systems are developed that can analyze the images, which today are interpreted by law enforcement personnel.
   The news underscores the depth of CBP's animus towards the scan-all approach and how much members of Congress have changed heart on the issue since last year when they opposed any attempts to dilute implementation of the security measure. DHS officials have questioned the feasibility and cost of 100 percent scanning for many years in part because it deviates from their strategy of using multiple layers of cargo security and information-based threat assessments to selectively target containers for inspection.
   The GAO said the SFI pilots never reached the 100 percent goal even though they were set up at low-through put locations designed to optimize results. Depending on the port, about half to four-fifths of cargo was scanned.
   Ahern said CBP continues to engage other governments about the possibility of deploying scanning stations in other trade lanes, but questions remain about whether governments, including the United States, are motivated to move ahead on such an expensive project during difficult economic times.
   'We also need to determine several factors, including is the will of the country there, is there the will in this country and is it the right thing to do?' he said. ' Eric Kulisch