Threat of bioweapons 'over-rated'

Almost 50% of the participants in a recent instant poll believe that biological weapons will cause the greatest threat to international security over the next five years

Despite the almost daily announcements of death due to conventional weaponry in Iraq, almost 50% of the participants in a recent instant poll believe that biological weapons will cause the greatest threat to international security over the next five years.

The poll, sponsored by the Science Advisory Board, found that the level of concern expressed over the hazards of conventional (eg, pipe bomb) weapons matched that displayed over the dangers of nuclear weapons - each receiving 20% of the 1171 votes.

Only 11% of respondents are worried about the destabilising impact of chemical weapons.

Although chemical weapons are probably easier to produce than nuclear and biological weapons, the threat of biological weapons has been used successfully to terrorise civilian populations in recent years.

"Despite scientists' concerns, biological weapons are not as common, accessible, and available as chemical weapons," notes Tamara Zemlo, director of the Science Advisory Board.

In fact, transforming biological agents into potent tools of destruction requires a tremendous amount of scientific expertise.

Some of the hurdles would-be terrorists face include determining the correct concentration of the agent in the delivery system, identifying the different ways the delivery system could degrade the agent's potency, and calculating the correct dosage to incapacitate or kill human or animal targets.

Furthermore, biological agents (for the most part) are extremely sensitive to sunlight, humidity, pollutants, temperature, and oxygen levels.

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