Blue Water Bridge Authority photo New this week in the Journal of Homeland Security The 25% Challenge: Speeding Up Cross-Border Traffic in Southeastern Michigan, by Douglas Doan, describes how a public-private partnership met and exceeded Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge’s goal to reduce cross-border transit times 25% in southeastern Michigan within one year. Doan at the time worked for DHS’s Office of the Private Sector. The bridge and tunnel owners came up with shared metrics and innovative methods to speed crossings without expensive new infrastructure.

International News

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Iran Buries Nuclear Plants (London Telegraph) “Iran has expanded its underground nuclear facilities and covered them with a 25ft protective layer of earth and concrete,” claims “David Albright, a former United Nations weapons inspector who now works for the Institute for Science and International Security in Washington,” reports the London Telegraph. Albright says “that the images showed that the Iranians were developing nuclear facilities, built underground to protect them from possible air strikes.” [View article]

Nations Split Over Iran’s Uranium Enrichment Plans (Yahoo! News; Taipei (Taiwan) Times; Malaysia Star) Britain’s “Prime Minister Tony Blair has said it was time for the world to ‘send a clear and united message’ to Iran to stop its disputed nuclear work and support for terrorism,” reports Agence France-Presse. Blair said “that Iran was in the news headlines because ‘they are in breach of their international obligations and not cooperating properly with’ the UN nuclear watchdog.” He “declared that it was ‘perfectly sensible’ for US President George W. Bush or any US president not to rule out military action.… The Russian newspaper Kommersant said Tuesday that talks under way in Moscow” have “Russia opposing future sanctions against Iran in the Security Council,” but the Taipei Times reports that Russia has called on Iran “to halt all uranium enrichment activities.” And “some Arabs, mainly outside the Gulf, are positively enthusiastic about Iran’s programme, even if it acquires nuclear weapons, if only because it would be a poke in the eye or a counterweight to Israel and the United States,” reports Reuters. “Others, especially in countries closest to Iran, are wary of any threat to the status quo and the instability it might bring.” [View AFP article] [View Taipei Times article] [View Reuters article]

A Crime Wave From U.S. Deportees (International Herald Tribune) “Ten years after a change in U.S. immigration law paved the way for mass deportations, Central American countries say they cannot cope with the criminal mayhem being inflicted by tens of thousands of gang members who have been sent back to their native lands,” reports the Boston Globe. “Between 1998 and 2004, the United States deported more than 34,000 criminals to El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, according to Department of Homeland Security statistics.… Today, ‘maras,’ or youth street gangs, boast 100,000 members in Central America … The maras have links to an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 members in more than 30 U.S. states, according to the FBI. With their role in trafficking people, illicit drugs, and weapons into the United States, the maras pose a transnational threat that sets them apart from other street gangs. The United States is aggressively pursuing maras by using racketeering statutes once employed against the Mafia.” [View article]

Iraqi Sunni Leader Declares Jihad on Foreign Terrorists (London Telegraph) Sheikh Osama Jadaan “has become the first of the Sunni tribal leaders to declare war on the terrorists to whom, until now, they have given safe haven,” reports the London Telegraph. His “armed followers claim to have arrested and killed 300 would-be jihadis entering from Syria, many bound for service as suicide bombers with Abu Musab al Zarqawi, the leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq. ‘I am doing this job because the foreign terrorists kill the civilians,’ said Sheikh Jadaan, 52, at his heavily guarded villa. ‘… This is to restore the reputation of jihad.’” [View article]

Egypt Breaks Up Terrorist Ring (Assyrian Intl. News Network) “Egypt’s interior ministry says it has broken up what it describes as [an] underground terrorist group,” reports the British Broadcasting Corporation. “Officials say the group intended to carry out attacks on a number of Coptic Christian leaders and tourist targets, as well as a gas pipeline.” [View article]

Europe Takes Harder Line With Terror Suspects (New York Times) “The troubled debate within Western democracies over how to weigh security against basic freedoms has only grown and spread, as the legal tools for dealing with terrorism suspects multiply,” reports the International Herald Tribune. “… many European governments, including some that had criticized the United States for its antiterrorism measures, have been extending their own surveillance and prosecution powers.” [View article]

Al-Zawahiri Deepens Rifts Among Islamic Radicals (Washington Post) A close look at the “speeches and writings, and interviews with several longtime associates in radical Islamic circles” of al-Qaeda deputy leader Ayman al-Zawahiri suggest “fear of losing his ideological grip over a revolutionary movement he has nurtured for 40 years,” reports the Washington Post. New al-Qaeda “leaders such as Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in Iraq have emerged as potential rivals who follow their own script.… a growing rivalry has developed between Zawahiri and … Zarqawi.” [View article] [View Focus on al-Zarqawi]

New Canadian ID Card May Not Be Needed for U.S. Travel (Toronto Globe and Mail) Canada’s “Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day said Wednesday [that] travel across the Canada-U.S. border may still be possible with just a driver’s licence and birth certificate even after the United States introduces the use of secure border cards,” reports the Globe and Mail. Day “said he has received assurances from … U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff that current documentation will still stand once a controversial U.S. border plan is enacted. However, he said, Canadians and Americans opting to travel under the older identification requirements may face longer delays at the border and could have to line up separately from those using more secure forms of ID, like a passport or the planned U.S. secure border card.” [View article]

First Bosnian Terror Case Goes to Court (Southeast Europe Online) “A Bosnian court has accepted terrorism charges filed by prosecutors last Wednesday against three young men arrested late last year—the first-ever terrorism charges in the country,” reports ISN Security Watch. [View article]

Are Terrorists Recruiting ‘White Muslims’? (Seattle Times) “According to classified intelligence documents, terrorists have been working to recruit non-Arab sympathizers—so-called ‘white Muslims’ with Western features who theoretically could more easily blend into European cities and execute attacks,” reports the Associated Press. But “authorities had no concrete evidence that recruitment efforts are widespread.” [View article]

Workers build a new aqueduct; U.S. Army photo by Staff Sgt. Robert R. Ramon

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National News

Immigration Raids Target Employers (CNN) “Federal immigration authorities rounded up more than 1,000 illegal immigrants at dozens of sites and charged nine individuals of” IFCO Systems, which “employed them,” reports CNN. “Seven current and former managers of” the company “were arrested and charged.… Customs officials said agents made more than a thousand arrests in nearly 40 locations.” [View article]

Immigration Backlash: More Call to Get Tough on Illegals (USA Today) “Recent demonstrations demanding that immigration laws be eased are fueling new interest in states far from the U.S.-Mexican border in groups that support stricter immigration enforcement,” reports USA Today. “Membership in organizations in Tennessee, Illinois, Oregon and other states is growing. The Minuteman Project that deploys volunteers along the border to help prevent illegal immigration is forming official chapters across the nation. Hundreds of people attended a rally this week in Kansas City, Mo., demanding tighter immigration controls. About 400 signed up to join the Mid-America Immigration Reform Coalition, which supports tougher immigration laws … The rally was a response to marches that drew thousands of people calling for illegal immigrants to be allowed to stay in the country.” [View article]

Airports Leery of Traveler Registry (USA Today) “Of the USA’s busiest airports,” only Orlando, FL, “has signed up for” the Registered Traveler program, “a much-vaunted program to speed travelers through checkpoints, while at least a half-dozen others are balking at an idea that they say won’t work,” reports USA Today. “… The Transportation Security Administration plans to start approving Registered Traveler programs at airports on June 20 at a time when airports fear long security lines will delay summer travelers.” [View article]

Chinese Man Admits Plot to Import Missiles to U.S. (New Zealand Herald) “A Chinese national living in Southern California admitted [yesterday to] trying to arrange the sale from China to the United States of 200 shoulder-fired missiles that can be used to bring down airplanes,” reports Reuters. “Chao Tung Wu, 51, pleaded guilty in Los Angeles federal court to conspiring to import the missiles for a buyer who turned out to be an undercover FBI agent.” [View article]

Antiterror Laws Harm the World’s Vulnerable (Christian Science Monitor) “If the US mission is to promote global freedom, we must support those who have stood up to oppression,” writes Frederick Barton in the Christian Science Monitor. “But the strengthening of antiterrorism immigration laws, through the USA Patriot Act and Real ID Acts, has expanded the definition of ‘terrorist’ so that two or more people who cause significant property damage or injury could be considered a terrorist organization. The laws also make providing material support to any such organization a reason to be barred. The cause or purpose of the organization is not taken into consideration, nor is the amount of support or whether it was provided under duress.… The definition of terrorism is now too broadly and indiscriminately applied.” Barton is senior adviser and codirector of the Post-Conflict Reconstruction Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and former UN Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees. [View commentary]

Bonuses Help Natl. Guard Refill Its Ranks (Washington Post) “The Army National Guard, which has suffered a severe three-year recruiting slump, has begun to reel in soldiers in record numbers, aided in part by a new initiative that pays Guard members $2,000 for each person they enlist,” reports the Washington Post. The Army Guard has “signed up more than 26,000 soldiers in the first five months of fiscal 2006, exceeding its target by 7 percent in its best performance in 13 years.” [View article]

RFID Tags Not Safe From Attack (Silicon.com) “In tests, generation one standard” radio-frequency identification “tags and readers were unable to function after they were overloaded with data, researchers at Edith Cowan University in Perth [Australia] said in a report published this month,” reports CNet. “Academics in the Scissec research group … warned: ‘Vulnerabilities in the newer UHF style of RFID tags have been found and are of concern for anyone trying to implement a RFID system that would have mission critical or human life issues involved in it.’” [View article]

Avian Flu Concerns Push Bans on Drugs for Animals (Christian Science Monitor) “Finding alternatives to antibiotics has become more urgent as concerns grow that their use in farm animals builds up resistance in bacteria, ultimately creating new ‘super bugs’ that can defy the antibiotics used to treat humans,” reports the Christian Science Monitor. “For this reason, groups such as the American Medical Association and World Health Organization have opposed the use of antibiotics in healthy livestock for some time. Last month, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) proposed a prohibition on antiviral drug use in farm animals, saying that practice could lessen the drugs’ effectiveness against avian flu.… the FDA has not demanded less use of antibiotics in livestock. But the industry has begun to act on its own. Earlier this year, four major chicken producers told USA Today that they had voluntarily reduced their use of antibiotics.” [View article]

Government Won’t Require Birth Date in Animal Tracking System (USA Today) “A livestock tracking system planned by” the Agriculture Department “will not include the age of animals, despite the key role age has played in mad cow disease investigations” because the “officials say they don’t want to overburden ranchers and can track most birth dates,” reports the Associated Press. “Critics said the omission could make the system worthless.… The age of infected cattle may indicate whether the safeguard is working. So far, infected cattle in the U.S. appear to have been born before the feed restrictions took effect.” The system, which includes tracking pigs and chickens as well as other diseases, was created in 2004, and the department “has already spent $84 million on it. Earlier this month, Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns promised it would be in place by 2009.” The system’s “goal is to allow authorities, within 48 hours after a disease is discovered, to pinpoint a single animal’s movements. Industry groups are collecting and keeping the data, which the government intends to tap when there is an outbreak.” [View article][View Focus on Mad Cow Disease]

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Federal News

US-VISIT Chief Wants Tougher Border Security (Federal Computer Week) “Jim Williams, director of the U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT) program, … would want border guards to be able to read PASS cards from 30 feet away through radio frequency identification chips embedded in the cards,” reports Federal Computer Week. People Access Security Service (PASS) cards would be an alternative to a passport for U.S. travelers returning from Canada or Mexico. He “also believes [that] drivers should be required to provide a biometric means of identification, such as a thumbprint or iris scan, when they reach a border crossing.” [View article]

New Intelligence Office Gives Progress Report (Washington Post) “The 16 agencies in the U.S. intelligence community are ‘taking a bit more direction’ from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, created last year to oversee and coordinate their work,” the deputy director, “Gen. Michael V. Hayden, said,” reports the Washington Post. Congress created the office, now directed “by John D. Negroponte, to be the president’s principal intelligence adviser.… charged with supervising the intelligence budget, ensuring that agencies coordinate their activities and share information, and ensuring that reports to policymakers and Congress are objective and timely.… Hayden said the office is coordinating the various agencies, not sending orders down.” [View article]

FEMA IT Only Partway Ready for Hurricane Season (Federal Computer Week; Government Computer News) “The Federal Emergency Management Agency will have a new information system for tracking the movement of ice, water and other supplies into storm-damaged regions in time for the next hurricane season, which begins June 1,” reports Federal Computer Week. “But other communications and information processing systems that the agency needs will not be in place because of funding problems and insufficient time to review new systems.” FEMA’s “IT shortcomings contributed to the federal government’s failures in responding to Hurricane Katrina, according to a new report from Homeland Security Department inspector general Richard Skinner,” states Government Computer News. [View FCW article] [View GCN article] [View report]

National Archives Will End Secret Agreements (Washington Post) “The National Archives will no longer enter into secret agreements with federal agencies that want to withdraw records from public access on Archives shelves and will do more to disclose when documents are removed for national security reasons,” reports the Washington Post. “The new policy cannot guarantee full disclosure, however, because in some cases federal regulations limit the Archives’ ability to reveal which agency is reviewing records and why.” [View article]

Feds Need to Share Sensitive but Unclassified Terrorism-Related Info, Says GAO “The nation still lacks the governmentwide policies and processes that Congress called for to provide a framework for guiding and integrating the myriad of ongoing efforts to improve the sharing of terrorism-related information critical to protecting our homeland,” according to the Government Accountability Office. “… each agency determines what designations to apply to the sensitive but unclassified information it develops or shares,” and “most agencies do not have limits on who and how many employees have authority to make designations, nor do they have policies for providing training to employees on making designations or performing periodic reviews.” [View abstract]

DHS Seeks Ways to Protect Airliners From Missiles (Government Executive) “The Homeland Security Department is looking into alternative systems to protect commercial airliners from the threat of shoulder-fired missiles,” reports Government Executive. DHS last week issued a solicitation for help in evaluating systems to defend against man-portable air defense systems. The department already has a program to adapt military technology for use on commercial jets. The new “solicitation specifically seeks other kinds of technology.” [View article]

E-Passports Successfully Tested (Federal Computer Week) The U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT) program successfully “tested e-passports and e-passport readers at San Francisco International Airport from Jan. 15 to April 15,” reports Federal Computer Week. “… The test processed 1,938 e-passports. The United States, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore participated.” [View article] [View Focus on US-VISIT]

DHS Dumps British-Owned Security Firm (Fox News) The Homeland Security Department has decided not to renew a contract with “a British-based security firm that was contracted to protect the buildings where U.S. domestic security policy is formed,” as well as “30 nuclear power plants, a number of Army bases and some nuclear weapons facilities,” reports Fox News. DHS had received complaints about Wackenhut, and the company’s “recent troubles were highlighted by the fact that it is foreign-owned.” [View article]

TSA Curriculum Trains Police to Spot Terrorist Activity The Transportation Security Administration has commissioned the Counterterrorism Division of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center to create a training program that will help state, local, and municipal police officers to identify potential terrorist-related planning activities. The training program focuses especially on commercial vehicles. [View press release]

DHS Finds Fault With TSA IT Management Program (Federal Computer Week) “Once considered a model for performance-based contacting, the Transportation Security Administration’s massive Information Technology Managed Services” was criticized in a February report by the Homeland Security Department Inspector General, according to Federal Computer Week. The report “details the failures of the $1 billion contract with Unisys to provide telecommunications, IT infrastructure and managed services at 429 airports, 21 field offices and TSA’s Transportation Security Operations Center.” [View article] [View report]

DHS Still Gearing Up Response to Cyber-Threats (Government Computer News) “The nation faces a real threat to its critical infrastructure while the Homeland Security Department still struggles to develop the systems needed to assess and respond to those risks, the department’s head of cybersecurity said” Monday, reports Government Computer News. “‘We believe there is a significant cyber-risk in this country,’ Andy Purdy, acting director of the National Cyber Security Division, said at the 2006 International Conference on Network Security, being held in Reston, Va. ‘We can take no solace from the fact that we haven’t seen the attacks yet.’ As the lead agency for IT security, DHS is the point of contact for collaboration with the IT industry in the development of a risk management plan as part of the national infrastructure protection plan.” [View article]

NRC Issues Lessons Learned From 2005 Hurricane Season The Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s task force to evaluate lessons learned from last year’s hurricane season recommended improved diversity and reliability of emergency communications equipment based on the loss of land-line and most cellular communications during Hurricane Katrina. This and 12 other lessons are in the report. [View press release] [View report]

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State and Local News

Minutemen Tell Bush: Build a Fence or We Will (Yahoo! News) “Minuteman border watch leader Chris Simcox has a message for President Bush: Build new security fencing along the border with Mexico or private citizens will,” reports the Associated Press. Bush must “deploy military reserves and the National Guard to the Arizona border by May 25. Or, Simcox said, by the Memorial Day weekend Minuteman Civil Defense Corps volunteers and supporters will break ground to start erecting fencing privately.” [View article]

States Create Patchwork of Immigration Policies (Salt Lake Tribune) “As Congress remains mired in political fights over comprehensive immigration reform, states across the nation have passed or are proposing their own solutions to an influx of undocumented immigrants. Without federal action, some observers fear [that] America may become a checkerboard of states welcoming or restricting immigrants,” reports the Salt Lake Tribune. [View article]

Alabama Seeks to Supplant Red Cross (New York Times) “Frustrated with the performance of the American Red Cross, Alabama’s” Governor Bob Riley “has asked Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff for the federal aid necessary to let the state assume primary responsibility for operating its own emergency shelters in disasters,” reports the New York Times. “The move comes after months of criticism of the Red Cross, inspired by what even the organization’s own leaders acknowledge was its inadequate response to Hurricane Katrina last year.” [View article]

California Is Not Ready for a Flu Crisis (Los Angeles Times) California has “nowhere near the capacity to treat the hundreds of thousands of people who might need medical care should a pandemic flu strike,” reports the Los Angeles Times. According to health officials, “a pandemic would quickly overwhelm the healthcare system, which lacks sufficient beds, medical staff and equipment.” [View article]

Many Rural Maryland Health Workers Would Stay Home During a Pandemic (USA Today) “Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel surveyed 308 public health workers in … three rural Maryland counties” and found that 46.2% “would be unlikely to report for work during a pandemic,” reports USA Today. Fewer “than a third believe they would play an important role in the health agency during a local outbreak. That factor was the strongest influence on an employee’s willingness to work.… The results may not hold true for health departments in big cities or other regions.” [View article]

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Private-Sector News

Small Businesses Split Over Immigration Reform (Phoenix Business Journal) “The most powerful group representing small businesses is sitting on the sidelines,” reports the Phoenix Business Journal. “… Members of the National Federation of Independent Business are divided over immigration reform. While 86 percent think it should be a high priority, they’re evenly split over the key issue of whether illegal immigrants should be given a chance to earn U.S. citizenship.” [View article]

MIT Simulates Bird Flu Outbreak, Business Disruption (Computerworld) The H5N1 influenza virus is “a serious threat to enterprises and to the entire global economy, according to a recent avian flu ‘business disruption simulation’ conducted by” the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s “Center for Transportation and Logistics,” reports InfoWorld. “The day-long exercise near the MIT campus in Cambridge, Mass., used real business continuity experts from Arnold Communications Inc., EMC Corp. and Intel Corp.” [View article]

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Education

The Homeland Security Institute lists these education programs as a service to readers who may be interested; it does not endorse them or their courses.

Foundation for the Defense of Democracies Undergraduate Fellowship (29 July–13 August, Tel Aviv, Israel; 7-10 January 2007, Washington, DC) The foundation is seeking qualified candidates with a distinguished record of academic achievement and campus leadership to join the undergraduate fellowship program. Fellows will have an opportunity to hear from academics, politicians, intelligence and military officials, and diplomats from Israel, Jordan, India, Turkey, and the United States. [View course website]

Upcoming Events

New Events (After two weeks, new events will be moved to the list below, in chronological order) 22nd Annual Energy Security Council Conference (2-4 May; Houston) This year’s conference theme is “Security Compliance and Trends.” Presentations will cover avian flu, maritime regulation updates, air security, and more. [View conference website] IEEE Intelligence and Security Informatics 2006 (23-24 May; San Diego) Sponsored by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the conference will be co-located with the 7th Annual National Conference on Digital Government Research. [View conference website] Society for Risk Analysis (3-6 December; Baltimore) This year’s conference theme is “Risk Analysis in a Dynamic World: Making a Difference.” The society’s annual meeting brings together nearly 1,000 international scientists and practitioners from a wide range of disciplines who share an interest in risk analysis, representing academia, government, industry, non-governmental organizations, private firms, and themselves. [View conference website]

April

Hospital Management of Chemical, Biological, Radiological/Nuclear, and Explosive Incidents (24-28 April; Aberdeen, MD) This course is designed for hospital-based medical professionals, including physicians, nurses, dentists, paramedical professionals, hospital administrators, medical planners, and others who plan, conduct, or have responsibility for hospital management of mass-casualty incidents or terrorism preparedness. Classroom instruction, scenarios, and tabletop exercises will equip military and civilian professionals with skills, knowledge, and information resources to carry out the full spectrum of healthcare-facility responsibilities required by a chemical, biological, radiological/nuclear, explosive, or other mass-casualty event. [View conference website]

Washington, DC, Summit on Pandemic Response (28 April; Washington, DC) City officials hope that this summit at Gallaudet University on pandemic influenza will draw hundreds of people from the city’s business, health care, education, and religious communities and continue the city’s preparation for a potential outbreak. Those interested in attending should call the Washington, DC, Health Department at (202) 442-9195.

May

4th Annual Homeland Security Contracting Opportunities Conference (11-12 May; Washington, DC) To bridge the gap between the government’s needs and the private sector’s ability to deliver goods and services, the Bureau of National Affairs presents this conference. Topics include “Top Priorities for DHS and the Private Sector,” “Homeland Security Spending Outlook,” regional requirements, “Small Business Contracting Opportunities,” and “Roles and Requirements of U.S. Armed Forces.” [View conference website]

June

2006 Techno Security Conference (4-7 June; Myrtle Beach, SC) The conference will bring together private industry, government and law enforcement decision makers, and technical enthusiasts in the fields of information and network security, digital forensics, incident response, operational and physical security, auditing, and cyber-crime. Eight simultaneous tracks will feature interactive high-intensity training sessions, hands-on labs, and opportunities for professional certification and networking. Topics will include homeland security; wireless security; web hacking; contingency planning; vulnerability assessments; incident response; computer, personal digital assistant, and enterprise forensics; password recovery and disk-wiping tools; intrusion prevention; Internet investigation techniques; street smarts for investigators; biometrics; and steganography. [View conference website]

Homeland Port Security Conference (7 June; New York) This conference sponsored by the U.S. Naval Institute will feature senior U.S. Navy and Coast Guard officers, as well as civilian, political, and business leaders, thrust into real-time simulations of simultaneous terrorist attacks against key maritime assets in the United States, requiring panelists to identify critical issues and challenges:

• Lessons learned: How do agencies disseminate unclassified information?
• Communication logistics during emergencies: Is everyone on the same page?
• Command and control: Who’s in charge in a layered-response scenario?
• Secure shipping: How do we monitor and secure the supply chain?
• Terrorist attacks on commerce and energy: What are the financial implications?

Terrorism Research Symposium (12-13 June; Denver) Law enforcement officials who deal with terrorism in their states, cities, and communities will learn what works to prevent and respond to terrorism. The conference is hosted by the National Institute of Justice’s International Center. Panelists will discuss research findings about common issues and invite state and local officials to describe their challenges and experiences in interactive, dynamic sessions. [View conference website]

Explosives Detection Conference (12-16 June; Miami) This conference, sponsored by the Combating Terrorism Technology Support Office Technical Support Working Group, focuses on large vehicle bomb detection, short-range detection, canines, and suicide bomber detection. Attendance is by invitation only. To request an invitation, register on the website. There is no fee for the conference. For further information, email detection_conference@bah.com. The registration deadline is 5 June. [View conference website; enter code TSW73414]

July

4th TICS and TIMs Symposium (11-13 July; Richmond, VA) Scentczar’s symposium will provide an overview of perceived threats, equipment requirements, and tools for identifying, defending against, and remediating incidents involving toxic industrial chemicals and toxic industrial materials. [View conference website]

INFORMS Military Applications Society (24-26 July; Mystic, CT) The Military Applications Society, a technical arm of the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences, will hold a conference with the theme “Homeland Security for the 21st Century.” [Register online]

September

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Calls for Papers

New Calls for Papers Society for Risk Analysis (3-6 December; Baltimore) This year’s conference theme is “Risk Analysis in a Dynamic World: Making a Difference.” The deadline for submitting abstract, symposia, and workshop proposals is 1 June. [View conference website]