Skip to content. Skip to navigation
Personal tools
Home → News Media → FAZD Center News Service archives → FAZD Center selected to make presentation at HSPD-9 Update
Document Actions

FAZD Center selected to make presentation at HSPD-9 Update

The FAZD Center's director, Dr. Neville P. Clarke, made a presentation at the HSPD-9 Update in December. The audience included Dr. Tom McGinn, director of Food, Agriculture and Veterinary Defense for the DHS Office of Health Affairs.

During the presentation, Dr. Clarke outlined the FAZD Center's accomplishments for Fiscal Year 2007 as they correspond to aspects of HSPD-9:

Awareness and Warning

  • Integrated system to support threat assessment and evaluation of options
  • Interstate transportation model for cattle and swine (with the National Center for Food Protection and Defense)
  • Risk assessment for foreign animal and zoonotic disease (with NCFPD)

Vulnerability Assessments

  • RVF epidemiologic and economic impact assessment for National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center
  • Assessment of impact of FMD (foot and mouth disease) outbreak in feedlots – Texas
  • National model of FMD and other diseases

Mitigation Strategies (Prevention)

  • Vaccines for Rift Valley fever and avian influenza
  • Antiviral protection against FMD (with Plum Island Animal Disease Center)
  • Commercialization of RVF vaccine – MP-12
  • Integrated platforms for unknown or attenuated disease agent characterization (agent characterization)

Response Planning and Recovery (Detection)

  • Rapid detection tests for FMD, AI and RVF
  • Models and databases to assess consequences of prevention and intervention
  • State guidance concerning critical food and agriculture assets (with NCFPD)
  • Lessons learned from U.K. FMD outbreak of 2007

Outreach and Professional Development

  • Avian influenza training for early responders
  • Stakeholder workshops on mass animal mortality
  • Awards and recognition for the FAZD Center's DHS Scholars and Fellows

The FAZD Center is among 13 organizations from the DHS Science and Technology Directorate and DHS agencies that were selected to make presentations at the 2007 update.

HSPD-9 is the homeland security presidential directive that recognizes the vulnerability of U.S. agriculture and food systems to diseases, pests and poisonous agents. It instructs the U.S. government to devise the best possible defense against an intentional attack that could result in catastrophic damage to public health or the national economy.