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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Robert Gould, MD, Physicians For Social Responsibility, 311 Douglass, San Francisco, CA 94114, 408-972-7299, rmgould1@yahoo.com and Patrice M Sutton, MPH, Public Health Institute, California Department of Health Services, Occupational Health Branch, 1515 Clay Street, Suite 1901, Oakland, CA 94612.
The proliferation of nuclear weapons and related technologies over the past half-century has resulted in the wide distribution of vast quantities of nuclear weapons and fissile and other radioactive materials throughout the world. Non-state actors could acquire a nuclear weapon by: (1) stealing or gaining control of a weapon already made by a nation with nuclear weapons; or (2) stealing, or otherwise illegally acquiring, military or civilian weapons-usable fissile material and fabricating an explosive device for detonating it. According to U.S. Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham, “The theft of only a very small quantity of highly enriched uranium or plutonium ... would be enough for a crude but potentially devastating nuclear weapon". The potential use of nuclear or radiologic weapons by terrorists, which is linked to the global complex of nuclear weapons and power facilities, expands the existing threat of nuclear weapons to new actors. Prevention measures need to move well beyond law enforcement and military action, with the strengthening of stable, long-term global mechanisms to safeguard nuclear weapons and materials. At the same time, concrete plans need to be developed to eliminate all nuclear weapons.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: War, Radiation
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.