What We Don’t See in Yakima Is Good For Our Safety

It's called critical infrastructure and it's likely you won't find map to show you where the infrastructure in located in Yakima County. Security is the number one reason why important sites and systems aren't located on maps or online.

The move to protect sensitive areas started after 9/11

The term critical infrastructure is defined by the Patriot Act of 2001 as “systems and assets, whether physical or virtual, so vital to the United
States that the incapacity or destruction of such systems and assets would have a
debilitating impact on security, national economic security, national public health or
safety, or any combination of those matters”.

Yakima city officials say Yakima follows the same rules as other cities

Dave Brown the Yakima City Water and Irrigation Manager says they have the same concerns in Yakima as other city officials do in other small and larger cities in the United States. Even Google maps and other online maps blur images to protect specific areas.
All the blurring and hiding of specific areas of Yakima and other cities around the nation is a result of attacks of 9/11.
The blurring and omission of certain areas is all about safety and not providing tip sheets and maps for terrorists who want to do harm.

City officials want to keep systems free of any danger

City and county officials say they're concerned about someone doing something to systems that could impact power, water or other important services in Yakima and other cities and counties.  Any act like that would be considered an act of terrorism and could impact thousands of lives.