Re: DOE Secretary addresses "Dirty Bombs"

[Muckerheide <muckerheide@attbi.com>]

Who are the staff that get the Secretary to make such ignorant statements!?

And why do the knowledgeable people keep silent? (Sins of omission!?)



Regards, Jim





on 9/16/02 1:49 PM, Susan L Gawarecki at loc@icx.net wrote:



> Energy Secretary Abraham Calls for International Conference to Counter

> the Threat of  "Dirty Bombs"

> http://www.energy.gov/HQPress/releases02/seppr/pr02186_v.htm

> 

> VIENNA, AUSTRIA – Speaking before the Forty-Sixth General Conference of

> the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) today, Energy Secretary

> Spencer Abraham called for an international conference to address the

> threat posed by the potential misuse of radiological materials to

> construct Radiological Dispersal Devices (RDDs), often referred to as

> “dirty bombs.” 

> 

> A dirty bomb contains radioactive material, but does not use that

> material to produce a nuclear explosion, as is the case with a nuclear

> weapon. Dirty bombs are constructed of conventional explosives and

> radioactive material and are designed to disperse that radioactive

> material. Such weapons are ideal for terrorists because of their

> relative simplicity and the widespread availability of suitable

> radioactive material in medical isotopes, radiography sources, and power

> sources used in remote areas.

> 

> “Although these dirty bombs are not comparable to nuclear weapons in

> destructiveness, they are far easier to assemble and employ,” said

> Abraham. “While the physical destruction they would cause is comparable

> to conventional explosives, the disruption caused by widespread

> contamination is far greater. And it is disruption that terrorists

> seek.” In addition to the psychological disruption, use of a dirty bomb

> could have significant economic consequences.

> 

> Abraham’s call for an international conference builds on several earlier

> U.S. initiatives, some taken jointly with the Russian Federation and the

> IAEA. In May 2002, Secretary Abraham and his Russian counterpart,

> Minister of Atomic Energy Aleksandr Rumyantsev, agreed to work

> cooperatively to secure radioactive sources in Russia. Under this

> agreement the United States has worked with Russia to identify the

> specific sources of greatest concern, has committed $1 million for

> security upgrades at the largest radiological repository in Russia,

> reached agreement on upgrades at several other high priority sites, and

> began discussion on material consolidation.

> 

> Building on this agreement, in June 2002, the United States, Russia, and

> the IAEA established a tripartite working group on “Securing and

> Managing Radioactive Sources.” This working group will “develop a

> coordinated and proactive strategy to locate, recover, secure and

> recycle orphan sources throughout the Former Soviet Union.” It

> represents the first concerted international response to the threat

> posed by vulnerable radioactive sources in the non-Russian states of the

> Former Soviet Union. Under this initiative contracts were signed in

> August with Georgia for upgrading security for at-risk sources. In

> parallel with these foreign efforts, the U.S. Department of Energy and

> Nuclear Regulatory Commission are examining areas in which Federal

> resources should be directed to improve protection against radiological

> dispersal devices.

> 

> Plans found in Afghan bunkers revealed in detail the interest of al

> Qaeda in radiological dispersal devices (RDDs, or “dirty bombs”). The

> discovery of these plans demonstrates the importance of incorporating

> radiological dispersal devices into the world’s nonproliferation and

> counterterrorism strategy.

> 

> Under Abraham’s proposal, the United States would work closely with the

> IAEA to make the proposed conference a reality. As Abraham has noted

> elsewhere, “Safeguarding weapons usable material should always be the

> highest priority of the IAEA. But the organization also needs to seek

> ways to formally expand its scope to deal with dangers posed by lower

> grade nuclear materials. The international community must do more, and

> the IAEA is the best and most appropriate vehicle for marshalling our

> collective resources.”

> 

> The IAEA has the technical expertise to help states respond

> appropriately to this problem. The conference the United States proposes

> would help states understand the need to draw on that expertise to

> develop appropriate national standards for accounting for and tracking

> radiological materials.

> 

> Media Contact:   

> Jeanne Lopatto, 202/586-4940

> Corry Schiermeyer, 202/586-5806

> 

> Release No. PR-02-186

> Release Date: September 16, 2002 



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