Popular Public Preparedness

The Galileo system is just one development identified by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) that will influence the immediate future of the security industry and the direction of what the OECD calls in a new report "the security economy." The report examines current and emerging security trends and their potential economic implications.

How security is integrated into public spaces was the topic of a symposium held by the American Society of Landscape Architects. Among the examples discussed was the well-known Battery Park City, a 90-acre planned community at the southern tip of Manhattan, which incorporates military fortification strategies and technologies developed by the Army Corps of Engineers. Plans for the Washington Monument, which include about 800 shade and flowering trees that will double as vehicular barriers, were also discussed, as were security design features at the Chicago Federal Plaza. Topics included balancing building security with design, historic preservation, and liability concerns; security design after 9-11; design guidance to reduce potential terrorist attacks; and new standards and technologies. In one paper that discusses balancing building security with other factors, presenters offer tables on important security planning considerations, such as how to harden historic walls without sacrificing original materials and the importance of standoff distance and setback requirements. A document, available via SM Online, provides abstracts of the presentations.