This paper explores a brief overview of a chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) decontamination primarily in reference to military operations. Decontamination refers to the removal of hazardous material from individuals, equipment, and locations. Additional topics covered include decontamination concepts, purpose of decontamination, methods of decontamination, and levels of decontamination. Decontamination Overview Decontamination or decon simply put is the reduction or removal of contaminants from individuals, equipment and locations. Decon is also used to restrict the spread of contamination to other areas. Rapid physical removal of agents from a contaminated person is the most important action in decon. Physical removal includes scraping or blotting off visible agent from the skin, removing clothing, use of adsorbents to soak up the agent, and flushing or showering with large quantities of water (SBCCOM, 2000). Once contained to only the known affected area, decon teams can enter and properly remove and dispose of the contaminant waste. Contaminants can come in multiple forms such as solid, liquid, and gases. The solid form often comes in a fine dust (FM 3-5, 1993). An example of this would be anthrax which was used in a bioterrorism plot in 2001 by being sent through the U.S. postal service. Liquid contaminants can come in varying levels of thickness or can also be a mist of small droplets of liquid being suspended in the air. Contaminants in the form of gas oftentimes travel with more ease due to wind factors in the area. This can also cause the release of gas contaminants to be less predictable and more difficult to control. Decon Concepts Field Manuals 3-5 and 3-11 provide guidance for d... ... middle of paper ... ...n: Immediate, operational, and thorough as well as an explanation and key points for each. This paper should allow the reader to understand the uses of decon, key points in reference to the concepts of decon, and fundamental parts of the levels of decon. References Ernest H. Braue Jr, Charles H. Boardman, Orr and Charles G. Hurst (n.d.), Decontamination of Chemical Casualties, Retrieved 18 May 2014 from http://www.hsdl.org/?view&did=18072 Guidelines for Mass Casualty Decontamination during a Terrorist Chemical Agent Incident (2000), The Air University, Retrieved 18 May 2014 from http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/army/sbccom_decon.pdf United States (1993). NBC Decontamination: Field Manual 3-5, Washington, DC: Headquarters, Dept. of the Army United States (2006). CBRN Decontamination: Field Manual 3-11.5, Washington, DC: Headquarters, Dept. of the Army
In 1998, the company conducted a voluntary partial cleanup of contaminated soils under The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. The process involved excavation and transportation to an off site of about 8,000 cubic yards of the depleted uranium and copper contaminated soil. The cleanup stopped at the end of 1998 when the company decided that the standards set could not be met without excavating a significant amount of material.
B”Heller, C.E (1984). Leavenworth papers No 10. Chemical warfare in world war I. Combat studies institute”.
Each Special Operations Force group is assigned two specialized Chemical, Biological, Radiological (CBRN) units to perform reconnaissance and decontamination operations. The Special Operations Chemical Response Detachment (CRD) is responsible for conducting chemical reconnaissance in secrecy, ...
Before the CDTF was built Soldiers had live toxic training, but it had to be conducted outdoors as it represented the most effective training. Since 1973 the use of training with live chemical agents stops due to environmental concerns and low safety regulations (Unknown, 2011). In 1981the US Army Chemical School (USACMLS) plan and develop a training facility to be used indoors and safer for the environment and the Soldiers. The construction of the new training facility was 14.9 million dollars and it was finished in 1986 at Fort McClellan, Alabama. (Unknown, Transition Force, United States Army Garrison-FT McClellan, Alabama) The first chemical class to utilize the new CDTF was on March 1987. Thus started the age of Chemical (Unknown, 2011) Soldier’s being able to have assurance that their equipment is more than capable of protecting them in a chemical attack. Many allied nations have used and received training from our CDTF but no other like Germany. In 1988, Germany’s decontamination trai...
in proper manner resulting in a chemical and thermal burn hazard for law enforcement, clean up
One of the biggest and longest lasting environmental impacts of the detonation of the atomic bomb is the radiation contaminations that are left over. These contaminations spread into water, air, animals, soil and into the atmosphere. What’s worse is that these contaminations have materials that have very long half-life meaning that their radiation effects do not decay quickly. “Many of the substances released, including plutonium, uranium, strontium, cesium, benzene, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), mercury and cyanide, are carcinogenic and/or mutagenic and remain hazardous for thousands, some for hundreds of thousands, of year” (The Effects of nuclear weapons). The spread of these contaminates will cause significant health risks to animals ca...
Headquarters, Department of the Army (31 August 2007), FM 3-05.132 Army Special Operations Forces Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Operations,
...ontamination methods and permit training people in radiological safety and decon procedure. When the troops of operation crossroads returned to Pearl Harbor many of them became sick the doctors could not figure out why. Some of them died a slow death from the radiation that they were exposed to during the operation.
Because of various limitations, one cannot prepare for every type of release, however, the plan can be written to address those releases that can most likely occur. Regardless, hazardous materials response plans must be designed to minimize hazards to human health and the resulting environment during the intentional or accidental release of a hazardous material. The plan should be written under the authority permitted b...
Contamination of Water and Air. Urbanization enhances the proliferation of industries, automobiles, and agricultural practices. Most toxic air contaminants are produced as we endeavor to fuel our homes, automobiles, factories, energy production facilities, and might also be discovered in indoor cleansing mixtures, and construction supplies. Furthermore, pollutants found in gasoline, dry cleaning services, and paint thinners and strippers; some concentrations are presumed to cause cancers, or elevate other serious health risks. As a consequence these noxious air contaminants can be deposited in soils and water sources allowing them to be taken in by plants or swallowed by animals....
Different administrators choose different methods of waste disposal which can depend on the size of the hospital and the available systems of waste disposal in the area. Whichever way of waste disposal that a hospital administrator chooses, He/she should consider the environment implications of the same. Neriz Alicia & Ramis (2014) ascertain that: Biomedical waste is capable of inflicting injuries to both the healthcare worker and the patient or anyone around
Until 10 years ago, air pollution was thought to be just an urban or local problem until it was discovered that the pollutants could move across continents and oceans. Air pollution is the fundamental factor that causes greenhouse gases, hence climate change and global warming. Air pollutants are the waste products generated from industrial and other processes. They usually come in gases, though aerosols (particles suspended in air, emitted as or formed by transformatio...
Hazardous materials are in almost every community placing everyone at some level of contact with various chemicals almost daily as they exist throughout the community and in our households. Chemicals are used for a variety of purposes such as in the water purification process, by farmers to produce a higher crop yield and are used in households and almost every business. Not all chemicals are hazardous but most pose some level of risk to people...
Air pollution is when a poisonous or harmful substance is released into the air. There are many forms of pollution but air is one of them, it only occurs when dust, harmful gases or smoke enters into the atmosphere and makes it hard for species like plants, animals and humans to live in a difficult situation because of the dirty air. Air Pollution is classified in two sections, invisible air pollution and visible air pollution.. Hence any substance that makes it difficult for the living things that need the atmosphere is air pollution. Humans have been undergoing air pollution ever since the industrial revolution.
Where used cleaning cloths, pot scrubs etc. shall be cleaned and sanitised or they shall be disposed of after use in order to ensure that they are not a source of contamination. (Unsure)