US Congress shifts away from 100pc container screening

THE US Congress is reportedly shifting its attitude on 100 per cent scanning of US-bound containers at overseas ports by 2012, increasingly seeing the mandate as impractical and ineffective.

At a House Appropriations Homeland Security Subcommittee hearing last week, several lawmakers agreed with security officials that the challenges and expense of implementing such a regime outweighs any gains, reports American Shipper.

It has been clear that the sheer scale and the technical and diplomatic complexity of the project made this target hard to meet, said committee chairman David Price, a North Carolina Democrat.

Criticism follows testimony last month by DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano that significant technical, political, legal, environmental and funding challenges make the 2012 deadline too difficult to meet.

Acting commissioner of customs Jayson Ahern agrees and said Customs and Border Protection has long opposed 100 per cent inspection, preferring instead targeted inspections of high-risk containers by foreign customs authorities at 58 key ports, supply chain security partnerships with industry, and radiation detection machines at the outbound gates of US ports.

According to Mr Ahern, the risk of the maritime transportation system being used to deliver a nuclear or radiological device for an attack is relatively low, mainly because there are so many handoffs, delays, mix ups and other uncertainties throughout the supply chain that terrorists are likely to want a more predictable method for transporting what may be their one and only weapon.

Source: Portnews