Using this downloadable software, water and wastewater utilities can identify the highest risks to mission-critical operations and find the most cost-effective measures to reduce those risks. 

In Version 6.0, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has made significant enhancements to VSAT:

• It is designed to be consistent with the ANSI/AWWA J100-10 Risk Analysis and Management for Critical Asset Protection (RAMCAP®) Standard for Risk and Resilience Management of Water and Wastewater Systems. To meet this standard, VSAT 6.0 includes quantitative risk and resilience metrics, asset prioritization, and a new threat category to assess interdependencies.

• VSAT Version 6.0 complies with the water sector risk assessment standard and can offer liability protection under the Department of Homeland Security’s Support Anti-Terrorism by Fostering Effective Technologies (SAFETY) Act program. 

• VSAT Version 6.0 is easier to use. To assist small systems and new users in building an assessment, VSAT now includes a New Analysis Wizard with abbreviated lists and default assignments for common utility assets, countermeasures, and threats. Plus, data from earlier assessments made with SEMS (Security and Emergency Management System) can be imported directly into VSAT.

EPA strongly encourages drinking water and wastewater utility owners and operators to use VSAT Version 6.0 to conduct or update an all-hazards risk assessment.

System requirements

In order to download the software, users must first register with their business email address. Updates and correspondence related to tool are then provided via email. To run VSAT 6.0, the following minimum system hardware and software requirements must be met:

• Microsoft Windows XP, Windows 7, or Windows 8.1
• 1024 x 768 pixels minimum screen resolution
• Microsoft Word® 2003 and Excel® 2003 or later (necessary to generate reports)