Experts Consider “Dirty Bomb” Threat

Experts met in Slovakia yesterday to consider potential acts of terrorism involving radiological “dirty bombs” and countermeasures to the threat, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Oct. 13).

The University of Georgia, the Russian Academy of Sciences and the Slovak Nuclear Regulatory Authority organized the two-day forum.

“Nuclear weapons … remain reasonably secure from terrorist access, but radiological material is readily available in large quantities throughout the world,” the organizers said in a statement.

Such material could be combined with conventional explosives to create a “dirty bomb” that would release radioactive material upon detonation.  Sources for the material could include medical or industrial radioactive isotopes and nuclear waste stored in unsecured sites in former Eastern Bloc countries or developing nations, AP reported.

Terrorists using a radiological weapon could expose people to radiation and incite panic.  “These repercussions have not yet been adequately studied and assessed,” organizers said (Associated Press, Oct. 23).

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