NEW SCANNING TECHNOLOGY TO BODY IS ON ATLANTIC CITY AIRPORT;-

Atlantic City
International Airport is scheduled to get full-body scanners early
next year, an airport spokesman said Tuesday.The scanners allow government security personnel to search
passengers for non-metallic weapons such as plastic explosives that
they might try to conceal in their clothing. They are used in
conjunction with metal detectors and other security measures.









  But the scanners are unpopular with some travelers who consider
them an invasion of privacy and a potential health risk. Some New
Jersey lawmakers are calling on Congress to re-examine the
technology.







   A CBS News poll this month found that 81 percent of Americans
support the use of the digital body scans used at airports. But
some people have objected to the intrusion. In one example, a San
Diego man refused to undergo the invasive scan or allow
Transportation Security Administration screeners to pat him
down.







     The TSA has employed a combination of security measures —
including canine teams, chemical testing for explosives and
passenger observation — to identify possible security threats at
airports.







Atlantic City International Airport is working with the TSA on
the details about the new body scans, including making room for
them in the airport’s screening lines, airport security spokesman
Kevin Rehmann said.







              “We’re in discussions now with the TSA. We want to ensure (the
scans) won’t cause any inconvenience,” he said. “But having said
that, TSA is introducing these things across the country. They may
be the technology of the future.”







       The airport was one of the first in the country last year to
employ Exit Lane Security Portals, smart doors that prevent
arriving passengers from returning to the terminal from baggage
claim.







Body scanners are being introduced at most commercial airports
in the United States. About 450 scanners have been installed at 68
airports. The TSA uses two types of imaging scanners: millimeter
wave and backscatter. The latter uses a mild form of radiation.







          State Sen. Diane B. Allen, R-Burlington, sponsored a resolution
this week asking President Barack Obama to examine the safety of
backscatter scanners.







“The risk to an individual is small. But there is a concern with
children or frequent fliers — certainly pilots — pregnant women or
patients who have had radiation treatments,” Allen said.










CNN reported that several pilots’ unions have urged their
members not to subject themselves to the scans for health reasons.
The TSA says both the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the
Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory deemed the
radiation dose emitted by the scanners to be safe.







“For people who can’t take the radiation, the only option is to
submit to a pat down that is really beyond the pale,” Allen said.
“I mean, women are really complaining about this pat down.”







The TSA said people can request to be seated during the pat down
or ask to be searched in a private room.







Allen said the idea of scanners capturing images of virtually
naked passengers — including children — is troubling.







“Taking pictures of someone’s naked body is a big question.
Particularly when it comes to children. I think that’s beyond what
we should be doing,” she said.







Like countless other New Jersey residents, Allen said she will
be flying this month to visit family over the Thanksgiving holiday.
She said she is not looking forward to the new security
procedures.







“I’ll be in the air a lot over the next two weeks. I’m sure I’ll
have to endure those intrusive pat downs,” she said.







Sen. Jeff Van Drew, D-Cape May, Cumberland, Atlantic, said he
supports reviewing the new security measure.







“It’s a bipartisan effort. They make a significant argument,”
Van Drew said. “At the very least, this deserves to be very
carefully reviewed.”







Van Drew, a Dennis Township dentist by occupation, said the
radiation dose emitted in dental X-rays is minuscule but still
requires certain precautions to be taken for both the patient and
staff. Using X-rays for non-medical applications raises concerns,
he said.







“We need to do whatever we can to secure our borders and
airports. But there is a line, and the points they make about
people who are frequent fliers — or about personal freedoms — are
valid,” he said.