Aging Infrastructure Requires National Push for Lifeline Resilience

National Institute of Building Sciences Lifeline Infrastructure Hub to Advance Community Resilience and Recovery after Disasters

WASHINGTON, June 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS) is leading the charge to fortify the nation's resilience to climate-related disasters.

The NIBS Lifeline Infrastructure Hub recently held its inaugural meeting at the National Press Club attended by leaders from 35 organizations, including the White House, Congress, federal agencies, engineering community, business and academia, to assess the state of the nation's lifelines infrastructure resilience.

"Lifeline infrastructure is complicated and complex," said NIBS Interim President & CEO Stephen T. Ayers. "This needs to be a national collaboration across sectors and address multiple hazards. We invite all to join and support this important effort."

In April, the White House issued National Security Memorandum/NSM-22, urging immediate action to address critical national security concerns. The memorandum highlights the essential role of lifeline infrastructure in maintaining national security and calls for enhanced measures to protect and strengthen these vital systems.

"Enhancing our lifeline infrastructure not only protects people and supports our economy, it is also a national security priority," said Caitlin A. Durkovich, with the National Security Council at the White House. "With our nation's generational investment in critical infrastructure, we need to act now and the NIBS Lifeline Infrastructure Hub is a timely and needed effort."

The Lifeline Infrastructure Hub Meeting

During the inaugural Lifeline Infrastructure Hub meeting, NIBS:

• Officially launched the hub, a platform to foster collaboration among lifeline infrastructure (Communications, Electricity, Water and Wastewater, Liquid Fuel & Natural Gas, and Multimodal Transportation) industry experts, stakeholders, and policymakers.
  
  
• Formed a Lifeline Advisory Panel with 23 national leaders to lead and support the effort. The group will be led by Founding Chair Ronald T. Eguchi and Vice Chair Sissy Nikolaou.

Why Supporting Infrastructure and Lifelines is Important

For the past two decades, development of codes and standards to advance design and construction practices of lifeline infrastructure has been overlooked, making communities susceptible to devastating consequences from natural hazards.

From the flow of electricity and transportation to communication and our water supply, these systems often are taken for granted in their seamless operation. View the workshop recap.

About NIBS

National Institute of Building Sciences brings together labor and consumer interests, government representatives, regulatory agencies, and members of the building industry to identify and resolve problems and potential issues in the built environment. NIBS is a non-profit, non-governmental organization. For more information, visit nibs.org or follow @bldgsciences on X, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

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SOURCE National Institute of Building Sciences