Florida's Gamma Scanners and Weigh Station Monitoring Program

["Walter Cofer" <cofer@NETTALLY.COM>]

To clarify several issues regarding the new gamma scanners used in Florida, I provide the following:

 

There were two, not 22, gamma scanners purchased by the FL Dept. of Ag. and Consumer Services, though I have been told that two more may be obtained.  The U.S. Customs Service operates two more scanners in FL, and the two agencies cooperate and coordinate their surveillence efforts.

 

The crews operating the scanners are well trained and knowledgeable, and are very safety conscious, as they demonstrated during a recent inspection I participated in.   They establish a posted barricade around the perimeter of their set up and contionuously monitor the area both visually and with survey meters.  They have become quite skilled in interpreting the digital displays created by the scanner, much as physicians become skilled in interpreting x-rays, PET scans, and diagnostic scans, or industrial radiographers become skilled in interpreting radiographs of welds.  They told us about two recent successful operations: the discovery of a load of Nokia cell phones valued at ~$1M that had been stolen from a Colorado warehouse, and the detection of an expensive printer that was being smuggled into the state to avoid payment of ~$150K in state taxes.  I can't think of any brreed of dog capable of distinguishing being legit and stolen cell phones, or between taxed and untaxe

d goods. The FDACS RSO told me that their operations had prevented an estimated $16M in lost tax revenue, which certainly sounds like a good return on the investment.  This doesn't take into account the number of  smuggling attempts that the scanners may have averted now that the word is out.  The additional security the devices provide is difficult to measure, but is certainly of value.

 

The crews do not scan the vehicle drivers; in fact, they ae not allowed to scan the vehicle's driver compartment at all - the scans are limited to the cargo section of the vehicle. 

 

One driver was convinced that his load of produce had been damaged by the irradation, but the crew was armed with data from the FDA showing that the dose from the scanner was way too low to cause any damage, and they sent him on his way.

 

As for Florida's old weigh station monitoring program, I am happy to report that it has fallen by the wayside (pardon the pun).  The program began shortly after the Co-60 contaminated table leg incident in the mid-1980's (another long story).  The powers-that-were decided that placing radiation monitors at all of the state's ag. weigh stations would be a good way to detect incoming shipments of illegal radiation.  The program was flawed from the start, but that didn't keep it from surviving for over a decade.  The monitors were subject to numerous false alarms from RF, lightning strikes, etc., and the main thing they detected was unregulated NORM shipments, such as bananas.  The weigh station operators came to hate them, so they would turn them off, turn them away from the road, ignore the alarms, or disable them altogether.  My bureau wasn't crazy about them either, because we wasted a lot of time responding to false alarms and to keeping the monitors calibrated, training t

he operators, visiting the stations, etc.   Another problem that arose was the installation of rolling weight scales, which allows truck weights to be performed without the vehicles ever stopping.  This meant that if the radiation motitor alarmed, the truck was already well down the highway and would have to be chased down (which didn't happen).  We wound up removing the monitors from the stations that had rolling scales, which only left the stations at the less traveled roads, which defeated the purpose of the program.

 

I was put in charge of the program in the mid-1990s and immediately wrote a report proposing its elimination, but since it was established in the Florida Statutes, I was told that it wasn't a battle worth waging.  Fortunately, our current bureau chief, Bill Passetti, who had also been responsible for the weigh station monitors before becoming chief, was able to kill off the out-moded program.  Anyone who was tried to eliminate an established government program knows that doing so is never a small accomplishment, even when it is a small program. 

 

So there you have it - gamma scanners are in and weigh station monitors are out.  I think its an improvement on both counts.

 

Walter Cofer

Florida Bureau of Radiation Control

Tallahassee, FL

 

 

 

 



-----Original Message-----

From: owner-radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu [mailto:owner-radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu]On Behalf Of Jim Hardeman

Sent: Friday, July 18, 2003 4:19 PM

To: obbugg@dmvs.ga.gov; joseroze@netvision.net.il; crispy_bird@YAHOO.COM; motnivas@YAHOO.COM

Cc: radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu

Subject: Re: New Florida security system scans semi-trucks





I just hope they get the dogs, vehicle driver, etc. out of the way before they X-ray the truck!

 

By the way, Bruce, what ever happened to the weigh-station radiation monitoring system Florida used to have? Isn't it still operational?

 

Jim Hardeman

Jim_Hardeman@dnr.state.ga.us



>>> Jose Julio Rozental <joseroze@netvision.net.il> 7/18/2003 10:48:59 >>>

"Also on hand was one of four teams of dogs specially trained in the

detection of illegal cargo. The dogs have nearly equaled the machines in

stops made, said USDA Deputy Secretary Jim Moseley."



comment:

Defense in depth:  give to dogs a chance of only few days more and the cost

is much less than $1 million



Jose Julio Rozental

joseroze@netvision.net.il

Israel





----- Original Message -----

From: "M Nivas" <motnivas@YAHOO.COM>

To: "John Jacobus" <crispy_bird@YAHOO.COM>

Cc: <radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu>

Sent: Friday, July 18, 2003 3:35 PM

Subject: Re: New Florida security system scans semi-trucks





> John,

>

> I think that ths produce would be "preserved" after

> scanning!

>

> Tom

>

>

> --- John Jacobus <crispy_bird@YAHOO.COM> wrote:

> > Okay.  Here we go.

> >

> > Can anyone tell me how you can detect illegal or

> > diseased produce with x-rays?  I doubt there is much

> > difference in density between fresh and rotten

> > tomatoes.

> >

> > --- Bruce Bugg <obbugg@dmvs.ga.gov> wrote:

> > > This is the mobile VACIS similar to what Customs

> > > uses at the Ports

> > >

> > > Thursday, July 17, 2003

> > >

> > > New Florida security system scans semi-trucks

> > >

> > . . .

> > >

> > > Gamma ray imaging machines scan semi-trucks as

> > they

> > > pass through inspection stations. The X-ray is

> > > capable of detecting illegal or diseased produce,

> > as

> > > well as drugs, stolen goods and other possible

> > > threats to homeland security.

> > . . .



>

>



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