KRITIS Umbrella Act
The Federal Government wants to improve Germany’s preparedness for disasters and security threats. To this end, the Federal Cabinet has now adopted a draft law to strengthen the resilience of critical infrastructure, the so-called KRITIS Umbrella Act.
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Critical infrastructure supplies electricity in Germany and is to be protected more effectively in the future.
Photo: imago images/imagebroker/Lilly
Water, electricity, food, public transport and many other essential goods and services are supplied through critical infrastructure (KRITIS) in Germany. It form the basis of a functional society, which is why it is all the more important to protect such critical infrastructure.
To this end, the Federal Cabinet has now adopted a draft law for strengthening the resilience of critical infrastructure: the KRITIS Umbrella Act. The law defines the legal framework for protecting critical infrastructure. It covers all conceivable risks from natural forces or human activity, such as storms, human error or sabotage.
Boosting Germany's resilience to crises
Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser believes that Russia’s aggression in Europe, acts of sabotage, terrorist attacks, and natural disasters such as the Ahrtal flooding, show that Germany needs to increase its preparedness for crises and catastrophes. “This is why our law for the protection of critical infrastructure is designed to boost Germany's resilience to crises,” the Federal Minister of the Interior explained, adding that the law provided for “greater protection of entities that are vital to ensuring that we are all supplied with things such as water, food, electricity and telecommunication”.
With this law, the Federal Government is improving physical protection of critical infrastructure and therefore of supply security in Germany and Europe. Regulations and structures that apply nationwide and across all sectors are introduced for the first time to boost resilience, and they apply in addition to the rules regarding cyber-security of critical infrastructure.
These are the key points of the law:
- Nationwide identification of critical infrastructure
- Introduction of disruption monitoring
- Preparation of risk analyses of operators by the state
- Minimum requirements for resilience measures to be taken by operators
The draft law provides for the implementation of a project listed in the coalition agreement and of the EU Directive on the resilience of critical entities.