Global Security Newswire

The U.S. Energy Department is weighing using a small section of the Idaho National Laboratory as a test site where U.S. first responders could practice responding to possible nuclear or radiological "dirty bomb" strikes, the Idaho Falls Post Register reported today (see GSN, July 9).

The department has issued a report on the test site's possible effect on the environment.

Three sectors within the 890-square-mile Idaho National Laboratory are being considered to host the site. Two candidates are not far from Test Area North and the third is close to the Radioactive Waste Management Complex.

Energy Department spokesman Tim Jackson said none of the considered areas is untouched. One site has been cleared, one houses a parking lot and another holds a gravel pit.

Emergency response drills would involve some radioactive substances to allow personnel to train in use of radiation sensors and to test the technology, Jackson said.

The department believes exposure to radiation by laboratory personnel and responders participating in the drills would fall well short of normal allowed radiation limits (Sven Berg, Idaho Falls Post Register, Aug. 11).