Box 1: September 11th and Access to Information in the United States

      Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, U.S. government and industry began to focus on the possibility that domestic infrastructure may be used as a weapon. Airplanes laden with fuel, functioning as explosive "missiles", were not the only concerns. Nuclear power plants, which were frequently located near large cities, suddenly were viewed as potential targets that could be turned into weapons of mass destruction. Chemical facilities around the United States also were viewed in a different light.
      One of the first steps that many federal and some state agencies took was to remove documents -- and sometimes their entire webpages -- from the Internet. OMB Watch has meticulously documented the information that agencies have removed ( http://www.ombwatch.org/info/2001/access.html). A brief sampling of targeted websites includes those of: the Department of Transportation (pipeline mapping information), the Environmental Protection Agency (risk management plans, see below), the Federal Aviation Administration (enforcement actions), the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (documents on energy facilities), the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (entire web site), the U.S. Geological Survey (reports on water resources), and other federal and state agencies.
      The websites and documents have been removed ostensibly in the name of national security, but without reference to any specific legal authority to do so. Moreover, removing the information has made it more difficult for emergency workers to respond: in some cases, the information that has been removed includes information that ambulances, fire departments, and other emergency response workers had previously accessed while in transit to disasters.
      Any attempt to permanently remove information from public access fails to recognize the value of public scrutiny. Public right-to-know can help improve facility security by contributing to lower quantities of toxic chemicals and less toxic chemicals. It also helps to ensure sound government. Following the abuses of office by the Nixon administration, Congress strengthened FOIA and passed the Sunshine in Government Act and Presidential Records Act.
      To promote public access while also protecting security concerns, the EPA is developing a tiered system of access to information. The details of the process have yet to be finalized. However, in May 2002, the White House conveyed on EPA authority to declare information secret, providing yet another means by which information may be withheld.