Domestic Weapons of Mass Destruction: Populations at Risk from U.S. Chemical Facilities Releases

Investigator:

Susan L. Cutter

Data on chemical facilities and relevant populations will be compiled for this study, specifically: (1) chemical facilities within the nation’s 132 metropolitan areas will be characterized based on their threat potential as defined in Section 550 of the DHS Appropriations Act of 2007, and (2) geographic extent of the risk-shed for each facility using a worst-case scenario of a chemical release. These empirical data will be integrated into theoretical models of expected behavioral responses to populations at risk in an effort to spatially model the likely responses within the nation’s urban areas. A proof-of-concept for this approach will be tested in Charleston and Columbia, SC.

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