CBR Weapons and WMD Terrorism News- January 14, 2008

Tucson [Arizona] firm forms joint venture to detect biological threats
“A Tucson-based biotech company is teaming with a Maryland firm to create devices they say will quickly detect biological threats. Tucson's BioVigilant Systems Inc. will provide Rockville, Md.-based Innovative Biosensors Inc. with its hardware that detects biological agents. Innovative Biosensors, in turn, will provide collection and biological-identification products. The federal government, since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks has pushed local authorities to detect the presence of biological weapons, such as anthrax. However, no contract yet exists for the new, joint venture.” (Arizona Daily Star, 14jan08, Jack Gillum)
http://www.azstarnet.com/allheadlines/220433

Idaho Technology, Inc. Plague And Tularemia Detection Kits Receive FDA [U.S. Food and Drug Administration] Clearance
“Idaho Technology, Inc. (ITI), a molecular biology instrumentation and reagents business in Salt Lake City, Utah, is proud to announce clearance from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for marketing of two new biothreat detection kits, the JBAIDS [Joint Biological Agent Identification and Diagnostic System] Plague and JBAIDS Tularemia Detection Kits. Both kits utilize real-time PCR [polymerase chain reaction] technology to identify the causative agents of plague (Yersinia pestis) and tularemia (Francisella tularensis).” (Medical Design Online,
14Jan08)
http://www.medicaldesignonline.com/content/news/article.asp?docid=%7B03DCCC1D-4FA5-4CD8-9E79-4B899F683035%7D&VNETCOOKIE=NO

U.S. attorney's office accused of anthrax case leaks
“Attorneys for the former Army physician who was branded a ‘person of interest’ in the deadly 2001 anthrax mailings named three federal officials Friday who they said leaked investigative details that harmed their client. The physician, Steven J. Hatfill, has not been charged with a crime and maintains his innocence. Hatfill is suing the FBI, the Justice Department and a handful of present and former law enforcement officials.
He alleges that the leaks were illegal, damaged his reputation and violated his right to privacy. ‘We have identified three of the leakers who were previously anonymous,’ one of Hatfill's attorneys, Mark A.Grannis, said near the outset of a sparsely attended hearing in federal court. ‘Some of the most damaging information leaked in this case [came] straight out of the U.S. attorney's office.’” (Los Angeles Times, 12Jan08, David Willman) http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-anthrax12jan12,1,5104105.story?coll=la-news-a_section

Clinton calls for funds to bio program
“Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton called on President Bush this week to commit funds to a federal program known as BioWatch, an initiative to deploy bioweapons sensors to detect the airborne release of biological warfare agents. Clinton cited news reports indicating that city officials have ‘faced resistance’ from the Bush administration in deploying the sensors, which cost roughly $100,000 each.” (Metro New York, 11Jan08, Joshua Rhett
Miller)
http://ny.metro.us/metro/local/article/Clinton_calls_for_funds_to_bio_program/11386.html

UK-Russia diplomatic row worsens
“A diplomatic row between Russia and the UK has intensified after Britain reopened two regional cultural offices, defying a Moscow order to shut them. Russia accused Britain of ‘intentional provocation’ and said it would refuse new visas to British Council staff. The UK ambassador, who was summoned by the Russian foreign ministry, said the offices will remain open. They were ordered to shut last month in a continuing dispute over ex-KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko's death in London.” (BBC News, 14Jan08) http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7186718.stm

EPA [U.S. Environmental Protection Agency] grant makes for a better environment
“The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) has awarded nearly $700,000 to Dionysios Dionysiou and coworkers to study processes used to purify drinking water. The USEPA awarded the grant of $698,689 to the University of Cincinnati to establish a baseline understanding of how toxins produced by cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) can be changed by exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light, a process used to disinfect drinking water. The research will be critical to developing cost-efficient UV technologies to treat water contaminated by such toxins. Dionysiou is also investigating treatment of algae-contaminated water specifically using sunlight and an environmentally friendly catalyst. ‘Some of the cyanobacterial toxins are even more toxic than the venom produced by many poisonous snakes,’ says Dionysiou, associate professor of environmental engineering. ‘These toxins have even been included in the list of chemical or biological warfare agents.’” (Nanowerk, 12Jan08, University of Cincinnati) http://www.nanowerk.com/news/newsid=4029.php

Trying to Get Ahead of the Herd
“In the race to build a national defense against chemical and biological weapons, Annapolis-based PharmAthene is putting its money on an unlikely horse. Or goat, actually, one with unique properties to enable researchers' development of a drug that would foil the neurological effects of chemical weapons. PharmAthene has a herd of 200 of the animals at its research facility in Canada. Now it wants to add another, at the USDA [U.S. Department of Agriculture]'s Beltsville Agricultural Research Center in Prince George's County [Maryland]. […] PharmAthene has found an ally in Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (D-Md.) for its plans to expand its goat herd. A House-Senate conference committee this week could consider a measure Cardin inserted in the federal farm bill that would permit the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center to lease space to a nongovernmental agency. […] PharmAthene executives said their firm was not far behind in the race to produce drugs to battle chemical weapons and [also] anthrax.” (Washington Post, 14Jan08, Anita Huslin) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/13/AR2008011302330.html

Army unveils new name, sniffer vehicle for WMD school
“The U.S. Army's school for fighting chemical threats unveiled a new name Friday to reflect a broader focus on weapons of mass destruction. The U.S. Army Chemical School formally changed its name to the Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear School. Brig. Gen. Thomas Spoehr, chief of the Army Chemical Corps, acknowledged that ‘the name is a mouthful’ but said it reflects the increased importance of combating WMDs and the fact the school, has trained in those areas for years. […] Spoehr also showed off the school's new $6.5 million sniffer tank, a Stryker armored vehicle specially adapted for WMD reconnaissance that the general described as a huge advance over the predecessor Fox.” (Belleville News Democrat; 11Jan08; Marcus Kabel, AP) http://www.bnd.com/404/story/225167.html

Nuclear [and other WMD] Nonproliferation: DOE [U.S. Department of Energy]'s Program to Assist Weapons Scientists in Russia and Other Countries Needs to Be Reassessed
“To address concerns about unemployed or underemployed Soviet-era weapons scientists in Russia and other countries, the Department of Energy (DOE) established the Initiatives for Proliferation Prevention (IPP) program in 1994 to engage former Soviet weapons scientists in non-military work in the short term and create private sector jobs for these scientists in the long term. GAO assessed (1) DOE's reported accomplishments for the IPP program, (2) DOE's exit strategy for the program, and (3) the extent to which the program has experienced annual carryovers of unspent funds and the reasons for any such carryovers. To address these issues, GAO analyzed DOE policies, plans, and budgets and interviewed key program officials and representatives from 22 Russian and Ukrainian institutes. DOE has overstated accomplishments for the 2 critical measures it uses to assess the IPP program's progress and performance--the number of scientists receiving DOE support and the number of long-term, private sector jobs created.” (U.S. Government Accountability Office, 11Jan08 [Report dated 12Dec07])
http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d08189.pdf

S[outh] Korea's incoming government denies it may join US-led security program targeting N[orth[ Korea
“South Korea's incoming government denied a local media report Saturday that it is considering participating in a U.S.-led program aimed at stopping the spread of weapons of mass destruction by countries such as North Korea. The Chosun Ilbo newspaper reported the incoming government of President-elect Lee Myung-bak was weighing a Foreign Ministry suggestion that the country should consider becoming a full member of the Proliferation Security Initiative, or PSI, which calls for stopping and searching ships suspected of carrying weapons of mass destruction. […] South Korea has only been an observer to the PSI program and Seoul has so far balked at U.S. requests to become a full member. The liberal-led government has said it does not want to provoke North Korea, which views the PSI program as a U.S. attempt to overthrow the communist regime.” (The China Post, 12Jan08, AP) http://www.chinapost.com.tw/headlines/2008/01/12/51695/SKorea's-incoming.htm

George Mason’s biodefense program is designed to educate the next generation of biodefense and biosecurity professionals. By combining a foundation in the biological sciences with a focus on policy analysis, it is the first program of its kind in the United States to offer a broad field of study in the defense against biological threats and other weapons of mass destruction. The risks posed by biological threats have increased substantially in recent years due to globalization, advances in science and technology, and the changing nature of conflict and security. As the United States embarks on a range of ambitious efforts to enhance its biosecurity, there is a greater need than ever to instill a strong intersection of knowledge of policy, science and technology across the national security community. The nature of the problem defines the nature of the solution: interdisciplinary, interagency, intergovernmental, and international. The Biodefense program at George Mason University is unique in this approach. If your career choice requires you to further your knowledge of biological warfare and bioterrorism, counterterrorism, WMD non-proliferation, homeland security, emergency planning and preparedness, or global health, we encourage you to apply. The department offers an MS and a PhD in biodefense.

Please visit http://pia.gmu.edu/grad/biod/ for more information.

CNS ChemBio-WMD Terrorism News is prepared by the Chemical and Biological Weapons Nonproliferation Program of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies in order to bring timely and focused information to researchers and policymakers interested in the fields of chemical, biological, and radiological weapons nonproliferation and WMD terrorism.

ChemBio Weapons and WMD Terrorism News- January 9, 2008

New York Presses To Deploy More Bioweapons Sensors

“[New York] City officials last month quietly activated some of the nation's newest generation of early warning sensors to detect a biological attack, turning on a limited number of filing-cabinet-size air filters in sensitive, high-volume areas of Manhattan. But city officials say their effort to expand the program has run into surprising resistance from the White House, which is not widely deploying the machines. Five years ago, officials here note, the Bush administration was prodding local authorities to move faster to detect the use of biological weapons and pouring billions into biosecurity-related initiatives. New York's leaders now say the administration's enthusiasm and sense of urgency has flagged in its final year in office.” (Washington Post, 09Jan08; Spencer S. Hsu) http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/08/AR2008010803892.html?hpid=topnews

Will ‘NIMBY’ Syndrome Kill N.C. [North Carolina]’s Chances for Bioterror Lab?

“Tuesday’s news that the Granville County [North Carolina] Board of Commissioners has pulled support for building a bioterrorism lab near Butner is bad news for the project. The NIMBY syndrome – as in ‘not in my back yard’ – will chill local and state efforts to win the $450 million project and the hundreds of scientific research jobs that go with it. However, […] federal officials are at fault for not helping to allay people’s concerns about the project. ‘Homeland Security is not talking to people, not answering their questions,’ local resident John Monroe [said]. Have concerns about the project? Go to our Web site, said Homeland Security. Poor communication about what exactly the project is – and how dangerous it could be – could very well throw North Carolina’s extensive recruitment efforts into turmoil.” (WRAL LocalTechWire.com, 09Jan08, Rick Smith)
http://www.localtechwire.com/business/local_tech_wire/opinion/blogpost/2275140/

Lab electrician contends firing was retaliatory

“A former electrician at Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Hamilton [Montana] is alleging that he was fired last spring after lodging complaints about safety breaches at the research facility, which is building a lab to study dangerous diseases such as Ebola. The matter goes before a federal administrative judge in Missoula today for a two-day hearing to determine if managers fired the man as punishment for being a whistle-blower. Rick Hurley, a licensed master electrician who has worked for the federal government for more than 20 years, filed a whistle-blower complaint in March 2006. The National Institutes of Health, which ultimately oversees the lab, issued a statement Monday saying officials investigated all of Hurley's complaints regarding electrical safety at the lab and found them baseless. […] At issue in today's hearing is not whether Hurley's allegations are true, but if the lab was right to fire him and whether managers did so in retaliation for his allegations. The hearing is a result of Hurley's appealing his April 2007 termination.” (Billings Gazette, 07Jan08, Jennifer McKee) http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2008/01/08/news/state/24-electrician.txt

The growing number of immunocompromised

“It's estimated that about 10 million people in the United States (3.6 percent of the population) are immunocompromised. But that's likely an underestimate because it only includes those with HIV/AIDS (diagnosed and undiagnosed), organ transplant recipients, and cancer patients; there's a sizable population that takes immunosuppressive drugs for other disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease. This is a concern because while modern medicine allows many immunocompromised individuals to live longer, they're at an increased risk for acquiring and spreading infections to others. […] Agents of bioterrorism such as smallpox also pose a great risk to the immunocompromised, who are ineligible for the smallpox vaccine because it contains an active (although weakened) virus that could cause a deadly adverse reaction.”
(Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, 07Jan08, Laura H. Kahn) http://www.thebulletin.org/columns/laura-kahn/20080107.html

Oregon commission reopens public testimony on Umatilla waste

“In response to a lawsuit, the Oregon Environmental Quality Commission voted Tuesday to reopen public comment on the disposal of secondary waste from the destruction of aging chemical weapons stored at the Umatilla Chemical Depot near Hermiston. The waste includes plastic protective suits used by workers and contaminated carbon filters from the incinerators used to destroy the stockpile of Cold War chemical weapons at the Army depot in Eastern Oregon. The Government Accountability Project, based in Washington, D.C., won a ruling in April in Multnomah County Circuit Court in Portland ordering the state to review the ‘best available technology’
for disposing of secondary waste.” (OregonLive.com, 08Jan08, AP) http://www.oregonlive.com/newsflash/index.ssf?/base/news-22/1199832242189460.xml&storylist=orlocal

Army Corps hopes to resume chemical munitions dig

“The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is awaiting a safety board's approval to resume digging for buried chemical munitions near American University [Washington, D.C.]. Army Corps officials say they stopped digging in early December after the discovery of a shell that was configured to explode. Project manager Dan Noble says it's only the second explosively configured munition found in 15 years of digging for World War I munitions buried in the area. In a meeting with nearby residents late Tuesday, officials said the shell did not have a fuse attached, making the chance of an explosion highly unlikely. The Army operated a chemical warfare station at the university to develop and test weapons during the war. Munitions were buried behind the campus when the Army left decades ago.” (Examiner.com, 09Jan08)
http://www.examiner.com/a-1146999~Army_Corps_hopes_to_resume_chemical_munitions_dig.html

Feds, farm groups working to improve security of high-risk farm chemicals

“The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is working to make the screening process regarding chemical security regulations more appropriate for farmers. The department recently announced a delay that exempts farmers and other agricultural facilities from having to complete the vulnerability screening, which has caused some confusion about who should complete the screening and who is exempt. The screening will help DHS determine if it needs to follow up with individuals to do further vulnerability assessments, according to a university report. ‘The system that is in place for chemical manufacturing, refining and distribution plants is not ideal for farm operations,’ says Purdue University Extension Disaster Education Network communication specialist and field staff liaison Steve Cain. ‘The U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN) and farm organizations will work with the department to help develop a system more appropriate for agriculture.’” (Agriculture Online, 09Jan08) http://www.agriculture.com/ag/story.jhtml?storyid=/templatedata/ag/story/data/1199892909300.xml

Poison sent to councillor 'strong enough to kill'

“The poison in a vodka bottle sent to a Blackburn [U.K.] councillor as part of a campaign for Scottish independence was strong enough to kill him, a court heard. Wayne Cook, 45, is on trial at the court charged with two counts of using noxious substances or things to cause harm and intimidate, under anti-terrorism legislation. The unemployed father-of-three is accused of sending a miniature bottle of vodka filled with caustic soda to Darwen councillor John Wright in April 2007 while another parcel with the same contents was posted to a Scottish journalist, Myra Philp. […] It is alleged that the parcels were sent as part of a campaign by the Scottish National Liberation Army (SNLA) to force the British Government out of Scotland. Cook denies the charges.” (Blackburn Citizen, 09Jan08, Telegraph Newsdesk) http://www.blackburncitizen.co.uk/news/newsheadlines/display.var.1953786.0.poison_sent_to_councillor_strong_enought_to_kill.php

Congress Calls for Outside Look at Radiation Detectors

“The omnibus spending bill passed late last year by Congress has placed additional hurdles in front of the Homeland Security Department’s drive to roll out next-generation radiation detectors at U.S. ports, including demanding an outside scientific evaluation of the technology. The new requirements are just the latest development in a more than yearlong battle between the Government Accountability Office, lawmakers and DHS officials over the efficacy of the new technology and the way in which the department has tested it. The new detectors, called Advanced Spectroscopic Portal monitors (or ASPs), are designed to not only detect radiation but to identify the nature of its source, eliminating the need for time-consuming secondary inspections to determine whether the material is innocuous or dangerous. A number of mundane items regularly shipped into the United States, including ceramic tiles and bananas, contain radioactive isotopes that can set off the radiation detectors.” (Global Security Newswire, 09Jan08, Jon Fox)
http://www.nti.org/d_newswire/issues/2008_1_9.html#65053A68

Press candidates on threat of nuclear terrorism, two say

“Voters should press the presidential candidates to say what they would do, if elected, to prevent terrorists from carrying out a nuclear attack in the U.S., an expert on nuclear terrorism and the daughter of a victim of the Sept. 11 attacks said Tuesday. Michael Hurley, a counter terrorism advisor to the Nuclear Threat Initiative and a senior staff member to the
911 Commission, and Carie Lemack, founder of Families of September 11, commended efforts since the 2001 attacks to avoid a promised al-Qaida-led nuclear attack on the nation, but they said more can be done.” (Arkansas News Bureau, 09Jan08, Rob Moritz) http://www.arkansasnews.com/archive/2008/01/09/News/344767.html

CNS ChemBio-WMD Terrorism News is prepared by the Chemical and Biological Weapons Nonproliferation Program of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies in order to bring timely and focused information to researchers and policymakers interested in the fields of chemical, biological, and radiological weapons nonproliferation and WMD terrorism.

For more information and resources on CBW and WMD terrorism, visit the web page of the Center for Nonproliferation Studies, at http://cns.miis.edu/research/cbw/index.htm