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B>By John Allen

I>Vice President, Transportation Sector

attelle Memorial Institute

It comes as no surprise that the events of Sept. 11, 2001, put considerable public attention on the dangers and vulnerabilities associated with hazardous materials movements. While many people may ask what hazmat transport has to do with airplanes hitting buildings, terrorists slipping across borders with explosives or shoe bombs, the straightforward answer is their weapons.

Whether terrorists use airplane fuel, black powder, glycol or hexamine, all are composed of a variety of hazardous materials that are readily found in 49 CFR and hazmat guidebooks. Even more disconcerting is that these otherwise essential commodities would be truck-borne in all likelihood at some point in their terrorist distribution.

For years we’ve read about the damage associated with accidental hazmat spills. Less frequently we’ve experienced isolated terrorist attacks using hazardous materials — as in the bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City. But we now face what may be the largest concerted terrorist campaign ever experienced by the U.S., and it is likely that hazardous materials will be utilized by the perpetrators at every step of the way.

The most feared scenario would be to commandeer a truck loaded with a high-hazard chemical and drive it to a critical infrastructure or large population center.

Fortunately, there are a number of counter-strategies that the trucking industry and the federal government have partnered on, including the recently initiated Hazmat Transportation Safety & Security Operational Test. This research project is designing, installing and evaluating a suite of technologies — most of which are currently used in one fashion or another by the trucking industry — to ascertain their security applications in four high-hazard scenarios.

The objective is to determine if off-the-shelf technologies can be integrated in a way that eliminates vulnerabilities, provides deterrence and, quite possibly, increases the productivity of hazmat transportation.

he project is to be completed in 18 months.

With the national psyche focused on enhancing security at any cost, it may come as a great surprise to many to hear that almost every aspect of the research methodology evaluates productivity measures. The research team, which includes the American Transportation Research Institute and the research sponsors, led by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, recognize that the surface transportation network is an open system, and that the trucking industry is one of the most complex sectors of the U.S. economy.

Without the support of the industry and its suppliers, future hazmat security measures will face an uphill battle for broad consideration and implementation. Consequently, the hazmat operational test is built on a solid consortium of public- and private-sector stakeholders that recognize that security and efficiency are not mutually exclusive goals.

In addition to Battelle and ATRI, the project team includes the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, Transportation Security Services International and several world-class technology providers. An external industry stakeholder review group, led by the Dangerous Goods Advisory Council, is providing a broad hazmat industry perspective.

At the end of the day, the research itself should identify the systems, technologies and protocols that offer the greatest promise. To ensure that good research doesn’t become a dusty tome on a bookshelf, we need to have continuous input and critical review from the hazmat transportation industry itself. If we’re successful, the terrorist swill have one less weapon in their arsenal, and the hazmat industry will continue to play a most vital role in our nation’s prosperity.

To submit comments, questions or ideas on the HazMat Transportation Safety & Security Operational Test, please visit our project Web site at safehazmat.com.

The writer is the project manager of the FMCSA-sponsored national Hazmat Safety & Security Operational Test. Battelle Memorial Institute, Columbus, Ohio, develops technology and applications for transportation, government and private industries.

This story appeared in the May 12 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.

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