Global Security Newswire

The U.S. government is unprepared to decontaminate an area hit by a radiological or low-level nuclear strike, says a report published yesterday by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (see GSN, Jan. 28).

Most state and local governments would fall back on federal authorities to help coordinate recovery efforts -- specifically "analysis and cleanup" -- beyond the immediate aftermath of an attack involving a radiological "dirty bomb" or crude nuclear device. The Federal Emergency Management Administration, though, has failed to prepare a legally mandated national disaster recovery strategy, forcing various federal agencies to rely on "limited direction" to develop independent recovery plans, congressional investigators found.

While the Energy Department and Environmental Protection Agency are experienced in treating relatively small areas contaminated by radiation, their lack of preparations for applying their expertise in a larger-scale event might ultimately raise the cost of an attack and the amount of time needed to recover, the analysis states.

U.S. laboratories lack sufficient equipment to test large numbers of samples taken from an attack site for radiation, a shortcoming that could hinder cleanup efforts, according to the report. In addition, it remains unclear where authorities would transfer contaminated materials removed from an attack site, the authors wrote.

City and state officials surveyed by the office emphasized the importance of a national disaster recovery strategy that would address potential gaps on readiness.

"All but three cities wanted additional guidance, for example, on monitoring radioactivity levels, cleanup standards and management of radioactive waste," the report states. "Most cities wanted more interaction with federal agencies and joint exercising to test recovery preparedness."

The United Kingdom can serve as an example for strategies on recovery from a radiological incident, investigators said. British authorities have already prepared a national recovery guide, performed a major recovery drill and issued a handbook on radiation events (U.S. Government Accountability Office release, Sept. 14).

Meanwhile, the U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration has taken various measures under its Global Threat Reduction Initiative aimed at preventing and preparing for radiological and nuclear attacks, an official said yesterday.

"These include eliminating unwanted sources, hardening kits for specific irradiators, facility wide voluntary security enhancements, specialized training courses for security and law enforcement personnel, and table top exercises for first responders,” NNSA Associate Assistant Deputy Administrator Ken Sheely said in congressional testimony (U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration release, Sept. 14).