Canada's radioactive problem

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Readers of this blog may know that I am not one to (over)hype the terrorist threat. It is what it is, and it is serious, but it is not as the fearmongers would have us believe it is. Regardless, this -- this isn't good:

At least 76 radioactive devices -- several of which could be used in a terrorist attack -- have gone missing in Canada over the last five years, newly compiled figures show.

They're stolen from cars, disappear from construction sites, fall off trucks and generally go astray at an alarming pace.

The Canadian Press has compiled a database showing the rate at which these widely used devices vanish, often for days, sometimes without a trace.

It chronicles dozens of thefts and mishaps involving hazardous equipment employed daily in tasks ranging from oil-well measurements to pioneering medical research.

Thirty-five of these were nabbed by thieves. Three others were found in a roadside ditch, a garbage landfill and a farmer's field.

And at last count dozens were still missing.

A danger, of course, is that these "devices" could "be used to craft a crude radioactive explosion, or dirty bomb," by those who wish us harm. Sure, that threat can be overhyped, too, but it is, I think, a genuine one. Given that Canada is fighting the war in Afghanistan, it is not unreasonable to think that Canada could be a target. Or these devices and materials would find their way into the hands of terrorists for use in the U.S., say, or elsewhere.

This is not just an embarrassment for Canada, it's an appalling case of irresponsibility. One would think that guarding such devices and materials would be a top priority of our national security establishment. Now, however, one wonders.