Iowans talk with other states about agriterrorism

Iowa’s Homeland Security Advisor and Agriculture Secretary are wrapping up a two-day conference in Des Moines today that’s dealt with agri-terrorism threats. Ag Secretary Patty Judge says they’re discussing ways to react to a problem. She says seven states surrounding Iowa were invited to attend and talk about dealing with an emergency. Judge says one of the big issues is the impact on transportation. She says they’re talking about what would happen if they had to embargo traffic across the state of Iowa. Judge says it’s an important issue for Iowa too — and cites the dairy operation in the state as an example.She says most of the milk in northeast Iowa is taken to Wisconsin for processing, and they’re discussing what might happen if the border were closed. Judge says there are a lot of questions like that they’re trying to work out. She says they’re trying to think ahead to develop a plan where the states can work together. She says each state tends to think about things within their own borders, but in a catastrophic event, they would have to think regionally. Judge says they hope they don’t have to ever implement the plans, but want to have them in place before they’re needed.