BACKGROUND
* FEMA and the National Weather Service (NWS) have partnered to operate the All-Hazards Emergency Message Collection System, also known as “HazCollect,” for the purpose of automatically relaying “Non-weather Emergency Messages” (NWEMs).
* By using HazCollect as an additional method for public warning, alerting authorities are able to send their messages through the NWS family of dissemination services, greatly increasing the number of alerting channels and enhancing the likelihood of timely receipt by the public.

NWS DISSEMINATION SERVICES ACCESSED THROUGH HAZCOLLECT
* NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) is a nationwide network of radio stations including 1000 transmitters covering all 50 states, adjacent coastal waters, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the U.S. Pacific Territories.
* Other NWS dissemination systems include the NOAA Weather Wire Service (NWWS), Emergency Managers Weather Information Network (EMWIN), NOAAPORT, NWS Websites, internet feeds, and others.
* Radio and television broadcasters, and other Emergency Alert System (EAS) participants, generally monitor the NWS as an alternate source, providing backup for alerts delivered to the EAS via other methods.







IPAWS AND HAZCOLLECT
* The IPAWS Profile specification was developed and adopted by FEMA to maintain and ensure compatibility with alert dissemination system requirements, including the HazCollect system.
* Private sector software providers continue to develop tools that alerting officials can acquire to compose and transmit public alerts to HazCollect through the IPAWS Open Platform for Emergency Networks (IPAWS-OPEN).  
* IPAWS-OPEN converts public alerts intended for HazCollect to a format that is compatible with international meteorological standards.
* HazCollect routes valid NWEMs through a gateway to the NWS dissemination services.

ACCESS REQUIREMENTS
* Government organizations responsible for public alerting that wish to utilize HazCollect must first acquire the necessary authoring software.
* A Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) governing system security must be executed with FEMA to establish an IPAWS account.  Further information is provided on the IPAWS website.
* Once an IPAWS account has been established, the organization must apply to the National Weather Service for HazCollect access. See:
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/os/hazcollect
For more information: http://www.fema.gov/emergency/ipaws/
To contact the IPAWS Project Management Office: ipaws@dhs.gov 
1/3/2012