Port security

Beyond X-rays - the new inspection tools to thwart smugglers

Criminals who want to smuggle dangerous or illegal substances into Europe could soon find themselves foiled by a new set of high-tech anti-smuggling tools including an electronic sniffer dog and a machine that fires part of an atom at shipping containers.

The shipping industry is key to Europe’s economy, with 3.8 billion tonnes of cargo loaded and unloaded at European Union ports per year. But it is facing a growing security risk as smugglers transport everything from drugs and explosives to counterfeit goods via the sea.

Now, a group of scientists are developing a set of inspection technologies that can check containers for illegal substances, radioactive material, weapons and chemical warfare agents. They can even spot if stowaways are concealed among the contents.

‘The idea came about because customs officials need to check an ever-increasing number of containers – for this they need to check them fast without opening them,’ explained Guillaume Sannié of France’s Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA).

He coordinates the EU-funded C-BORD project, which is developing five tools for custom agents to inspect containers by building on technologies that are already in use, expanding their scope and developing new methods.