Portland applies for grant to arm piers with cameras Federal funds would cover added waterfront security

PORTLAND – Portland Harbor could soon have surveillance cameras from one end of its waterfront to the other if it receives a grant from the U.S. Maritime Administration.

The city has applied for a grant of nearly $1 million to buy night-vision cameras for piers on the waterfront, said Portland Transportation Director Jeffrey Monroe.

Cameras are already located in strategic spots in the port, but Monroe declined to specify their locations.

“You’ve got somebody covering the waterfront at all times,” Monroe said.

“It really enhances your capabilities for security quite dramatically,” he said.

Monroe, U.S. Rep. John Baldacci, and Portland city officials toured the port Tuesday aboard the Portland fireboat.

The grant money would come from a $93 million federal fund created for security upgrades after the Sept. 11 attacks.

Grant requests already total $171 million, but Monroe said he is confident Portland’s will be accepted.

The grant would be in addition to previously approved programs that are funneling hundreds of millions of dollars into the nation’s ports.

Last week, Congress approved a bill that would require federal identification for longshoremen and the development of ways to make shipping containers tamperproof.

It also would require foreign vessels to notify ports of their arrival 96 hours in advance.

Baldacci, a Democratic member of the House Transportation Committee, said the Senate is reviewing the bill and should take action by July 4.

“People are doing things that are foreign to us and we have to be better prepared than we have been,” Baldacci said.

Baldacci said security in a harbor such as Portland is vital. Portland handles large volumes of petroleum products and cargo, and is busy with cruise ships, ferries, fishing boats and recreational vessels.

He said the tour provided information that needs to be known in Washington.

“This is not a sleepy seaport,” he said. “This a very concentrated working waterfront that needs to be protected.”

Monroe said the city is also exploring equipment options that could detect compounds such as explosives, radiation, and chemical and biological agents.

Monroe said those kinds of tools would be used primarily for international cruise ships and ferries.