Friday, November 10, 2006

Bioterrorism and Agroterrorism

With actual battles in Iraq and Afghanistan plus shadow operations all over the world it is easy to forget that places like grandpa's farm could easily become the next scene in the War on Terrorism.

Think about it for a second, most Americans take their food for granted but without the plethora of food the American economy and culture would nose-dive overnight. The average farm is right off the road and the only security is a barbed wire fence meant more to mark property than defend against intruders. What better target for terrorists? A simple spraying of bacteria on a vegetable could kill dozens of people and frighten many more before the infection could be traced back to ground zero. One shot into a cow could cause a pandemic that would rival the worse of Britain's mad cow outbreaks.

There are two very good articles which I recommend reading on this subject. Bioterrorism and the Food Supply is a general overlook while Responding to the Threat of Agricultural Bioterrorism deals with what could be done after an attack and how to prepare for one using geospatial technology.

Category: War on Terrorism

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