Information Research Paper on Civil Support Teams
Little is known about the National Guards Civil Support Teams. They are
National Guard units that support civil authorities in responding to events were WMD’s are suspected, whether it be hostile use of various chemicals, accidental chemical spills, radiological sources or any one of numerous biological events. Liza Porteus Viana (2012) notes, “The National Guard’s Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Teams are known as some of the most effective first responders when it comes to a potential chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear or enhanced improvised explosive event.” The mission of the Civil Support team according to NGR 500-3 is, “to support civil authorities at a domestic CBRNE incident site by identifying CBRNE agents/substances, assessing current and projected consequences, advising on response measures, and assisting with requests for additional support.” (p. 2) I believe that the Civil Support Team is a very important asset in home land defense and as a CBRNE soldier we should be more aware of their history and capabilities.
History of Civil Support Teams
The first ten CST’s were created in 1998 because it was believed that the United
States had to improve its homeland terrorism defenses. These were placed in the states with the largest populations to cut down on response times in emergencies. Congress has since then authorized 57 CST’s. Each state has at least one with some of the bigger states having two. They can also be found in some of the U.S. territories such as
Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
In fiscal year 2011, Civil Support Teams deployed to support civil authorities a total of 128 times. They were depl...
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...nown agents.
Conclusion
I believe that as a CBRNE soldier it is very important that we know and understand what the Civil Support Team does and how they operate. This can be done by understanding what their purpose and mission are. You can also understand the Civil Support Team by knowing what personnel and equipment they have and use to complete their missions. The Civil Support Team is a high value asset used against the fight on terror and in homeland defense. More information on the Civil Support Team can be found in AGR 500-3.
References
Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Defense (2012, July 02) Report No.
DODIG-2012-12
National Guard Bureau (2006, Jan 12). Weapons of Mass Destruction Civil Support Team
Management. AGR 500-3
Porteus-Viana, Liza (2012, May 14 ). Guards WMD CST can respond faster than other federal assets. WWW.hstoday.us
The Technical Escort Unit (TEU) now provides the Department of Defense and other federal agencies to include the Secret Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation with an immediate response capability for chemical and biological warfare material. Its mission is to provide a global response for escorting, packaging, detection, rendering-safe, disposing, sampling, analytics, and remediation missions. This does not only include chemical weapons for which it was originally created, but now incorporates biological weapons, state sponsored laboratories, small independent laboratories and small non-weaponized radioactive materials. Most recently, they have been task organized to assist Brigade Combat Teams (BCT) as a force multiplier; the objective of this is to give the Battle Field Commander instant on the ground intelligence regarding Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear (CBRN) hazards within their Area of Operations (AO). With this new mission with the BCT, the TEU is becoming an expeditionary force.
It has been identified that there have been many improvements and benefits of effective services available for individuals and being able to effectively solve any problems that may arise. To add to this there has been an increased understanding and trust between agencies and professionals. It leads to enhanced and improved outcomes for service users and services are easily accessible and always available. This also helps to strengthen support and promotes mutual encouragement and the exchange of ideas between staff.
Cobb. (2014). Lecture E on support. Personal Collection of R. Cobb, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC.
"List of U.S. States and Territories by Area." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia, 16 Sept. 2011. Web. 19 Sept. 2011. .
...uch information as possible before going into a conflict. The ability to get to know your enemy and figure out the scheme of maneuver is impressive.
According to Major General Lowenberg in The Role of the National Guard in National Defense and Homeland Security (2005...
Protecting the United States from Nuclear Weapons of Mass Destruction through the National Missile Defense Program
serve, to reduce the incidence and fear of crime, to enhance public safety when working
Central Intelligance Agency. (2008, Auguest 21). CIA World Fact Book: America. Retrieved September 11, 2008, from World Fact Book: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/us.html
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Providing advocacy and support to survivors and their allies through a coordinated community response effort” (Think S.A.F.E).
than100 are heard by the supreme court per year. There are other countries that only have one
The Office of Homeland Security has many functions that it will perform to ensure the safety of the...
the United States, it is decided by each state as to whether they will allow it. Today, 31
Search and Rescue is an imperative team to have in each city where there emergency service is. It doesn’t have to be working every day, but a team must be chosen. This SAR team must have all the qualifications required, if not the team will have limitations. A team assigned for a place must be suitable for whatever the disaster that has occurred.