Clinton drug initiative to use CargoSearch

17 Jun 2002

The drug initiative outlined by President Clinton in his Jan. 28 State of the Union address includes a commitment to purchasing and deploying advanced security technologies. The U.S. Customs Service has begun installing advanced x-ray equipment called CargoSearch at border checkpoints. CargoSearch, a product of American Science and Engineering, uses a proprietary backscatter x-ray technology that can detect low-density organic materials such as drugs or explosives in sealed containers while meeting President Clinton's criteria that drug interdiction efforts not interfere with legal commerce and trade movement. CargoSearch allows customs agents to screen a tractor-trailer truck in 8 to 10 minutes.