Protecting Indoor Environments From CBR Attack

In the effort to protect indoor environments against terrorist attacks using airborne chemical, biological or radiological (CBR) agents, the strongest defense is a good offense, which can be summed up in three words: Proactive Planning and Preparation. Having a good understanding of what CBR agents are most likely to be used and how they might impact the indoor environment and people living and working in those environments is also important.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the biological agents of greatest concern are anthrax, smallpox, plague, tularemia, botulism and viral hemorrhagic fevers. These agents can be easily disseminated or transmitted from person to person; may result in high mortality rates and have the potential for major public health impact; may cause public panic and social disruption; and require special action to protect public health.

Among the chemicals weapons that might pose a threat are nerve agents, such as VX; sarin, tabun and soman; vesicants or blistering agents, such as sulfur mustard; and other toxic chemicals, such as cyanide and ricin.

Potential terrorist attacks may include a small radiological dispersion device with a limited range of impact such as a dirty bomb or a conventional nuclear weapon that would impact a wide area.

While there are some general similarities and differences for each building type, effective planning and preparation requires knowing the specific capabilities and limitations of your building and customizing plans to fit your particular building's type, function and specific design characteristics. It also requires developing a clear and comprehensive response plan if an attack should occur, including:

• Layers of defense both for the short term and the long term to prevent a release of CBR agents in the building or its HVAC system and to prevent agents released outdoors from being drawn into the building

• What to do when planning and preparing

• Do no harm - in other words, what not to do when planning and preparing

• What do during an attack, which can vary depending on whether the release of CBR agents is indoors or outdoors

• Educating and communicating with building occupants before, during and after an attack

Moving forward, building planners, designers, owners and facility managers will need to pay greater attention to designing and operating buildings to be more secure. The articles in this section, which may be accessed from the navigation menu to the right of this page, provide a general overview of how to proactively plan and prepare along with fact sheets about the chemical and biological agents of most concern.  This section also provides a three-part series that reviews the status of indoor air quality in Lower Manhattan two year after the collapse of the World Trade Center Towers on September 11, 2001.