Biochemical Attack: Necessary Government Response

Governments play a significant role in mitigating the proliferation and use of chemical weapons and biological toxins. By firmly adhering and enforcing the protocols of the Chemical Weapons Convention, governments can create an international mindset that reproaches those who even attempt to use such weapons. With this situation in place, access to hazardous materials will greatly decrease, and the threat of attack will accordingly diminish.

However, in the situation that a chemical attack occurs, whether it is large scale or localized, all levels of government should be readily equipped to mitigate the crisis.

Realizing the central government offices will be presumably the first level of government to learn about the development or occurrence of a chemical attack, the first level of response should accordingly be relegated to them. In this stage of response, the co-primary objectives are informing and isolating. Informing is the most critical aspect of these two and necessitates continuing and direct communication with officials in the affected region(s). After informing these officials of the problem, the immediately following goal is isolation of the toxin. Essentially, this goal strives to ensure that the toxins do not spread beyond the "boundaries" of its current region. National government officials should seek to effectively quarantine the afflicted region through airport 'locks', or closing off of airports, roadway blockades, and aerial monitoring of the situation. This, on a national level, is ranked relatively higher than rectifying the core of the situation insofar as governments operate using a utilitarian-based decision calculus; this ideology dictates serving the needs of the greatest number to the greatest degree. Using this system, a national government can maintain political and social equilibrium, without jeopardizing forward progress.

Despite these advantages, citizens might in these circumstances feel discarded by the national government; to mitigate this, the local government (both regional and township) should immediately seek to maintain a constant stream of news and update information to its denizens. Secondly, or concurrently if possible, local and regional government official should seek to ascertain the near exact location of the chemical attack's origin, or source point. This information should be then immediately forwarded to national government officials for their use in researching the causal factors and causal agents associated with the chemical attack. In terms of direct local aid, regional governments must seek to maintain relative order and keep denizens within their individual homes and/or offices so as to limit any infected individuals from further spreading the virulent. Then, through coordinated proceedings, the regional and national government should work so as to chemically or physically offset the potency of the released toxin(s). They can do this by releasing a counter chemical to achieve a neutralization of sorts, or physically contain the origin toxic specimen within a holding device.

This is one disaster though, that must, to achieve greatest holistic success, be prevented from ever occurring. It is up to national governments in cooperation with not only each other, but also regional authorities to ensure compliance with chemical weapons protocols and civilian readiness for such a situation.

Sources Consulted

Sources

  • "EU Prepares Response to Biological or Chemical Terrorist Attack." European Public Health Alliance. 3 Mar. 2005. 19 Feb. 2006 <http://www.epha.org/a/1692>.
  • Marrs, Timothy, Robert L. Maynard,  and Fredrick R. Sidell. Chemical Warfare Agents: Toxicology and Treatment. 1996.
  • Staten, Clark L. "Emergency Response to Chemical/Biological Terrorist Incidents." Emergency. 07 Aug. 1997. Emergency Response and Research Institute. 24 Feb. 2006 <http://www.emergency.com/cbwlesn1.htm>.