JUST DO IT: U.S. Sen. Edward J. Markey is Pushing to Have all Cargo Scanned

Original article from Boston Herald, April 9, 2014, by Erin Smith, Kathryn Breen.

Nuke threat too real to ignore.

Markey warns that only five percent of U.S.-bound cargo containers are scanned

April 09–In an exclusive interview with Boston Herald Radio, U.S. Sen. Edward J. Markey yesterday brushed off critics who claim it’s too costly to scan U.S.-bound cargo ships for weapons of mass destruction.

“The argument is that the technology doesn’t exist and that it’s too expensive. Of course, that was the same argument that was used to stop the screening of cargo that goes onto passenger planes,” Markey told “Trending Now” hosts Joe Battenfeld and Adriana Cohen. “They fought for years, and finally my amendment passed, which requires all that cargo to be screened. Otherwise, how ridiculous is it to take off our shoes and the bomb could be in the cargo.”

Markey said Massport started using technology to screen for nuclear weapons voluntarily in 2004, so the capability exists and should be required for all incoming container ships.

Markey’s radio interview follows his warning in yesterday’s Herald that only 5 percent of U.S.-bound cargo containers are scanned to prevent terrorist attacks.

Markey’s 2007 legislation to require the scans was delayed by a two-year waiver enacted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. That waiver expires this summer, and Markey is hopeful the agency will not renew it.

Homeland Security officials have not responded to requests for comment.

Markey warned, “An attack at a U.S. port that was nuclear could cause tens of thousands of deaths and a massive global disruption in trade with estimated costs ranging from $45 billion upwards to a trillion dollars.”

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