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The Journal Of Conventional Weapons Destruction Issue 21.3 (2017), Cisr Jmu

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Editorial: IEDs and IMAS

Feature: Physical Security and Stockpile Management

in the SPOTLIGHT: Colombia

Field Notes

Research and Development

The Collaborative Ordnance Data Repository (Cord): 2018 Upgrades, Roly Evans

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The Collaborative ORDnance Data Repository (CORD) has been in existence since 2015. It is a database of over 5,000 entries detailing a wide range of explosive ordnance. The database is used extensively as a means of identifying munitions by those working in the field of humanitarian mine action, but also by others. Users range from mine clearance operators in Sri Lanka, police bomb disposal teams in Florida or Abu Dhabi, human rights advocates in Washington, D.C., to journalists in London. CORD is not intended as a detailed database. It is intended as a simple online ordnance identification guide with limited …

The Journal Of Conventional Weapons Destruction Issue 21.2 (2017), Cisr Jmu

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Feature: The Evolving Nature of Survey | Special Report: 21st Century Survey in Eastern Ukraine and the use of Technology in Insecure Environments | Spotlight: Southeast Asia | Field Notes | Research and Development

Interpreting Submunition Fragmentation Marks On Hard Surfaces For The Survey Of Cluster Munition Strikes, Roly Evans

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Submunition fragmentation can produce distinct patterns on hard surfaces that can assist in establishing if a cluster munition has been used. This article will review some of the submunition fragmentation impact patterns seen in current and former conflict zones around the world. It will also underline the risks of misidentifying such patterns and the need to corroborate them with associated evidence such as the submunition fragmentation itself. Trying to accurately identify evidence of cluster munition strikes is an important skill, not just for those surveying contamination for subsequent clearance, but also for journalists and human rights advocates seeking to document …

Military-Ngo Partnerships: Lessons Learned For The 8th Theater Sustainment Command's Hma Mission In Vietnam, Shawn Kadleck, Richard Calvin

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In August 2016, U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC) Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) and medical personnel executed the first phase of a four-year mission in support of Vietnam. The goal of this mission is to develop indigenous, International Mine Action Standards (IMAS) Level 3 certified instructors for the recently established Vietnam National Mine Action Center (VNMAC). USARPAC partnered with Golden West Humanitarian Foundation, an NGO that runs mine action operations around the world. Golden West provided insight and recommendations on equipment purchases, curriculum development, and other aspects of program development as it related to EOD tasks. As USARPAC looks toward the future, …

Social Inclusion Of Marginalized Communities: Mine Action In Laos, Tina Kalamar

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

A complex array of factors including gender, age, disability, ethnicity, geographical location, language, religious affiliation, and economic and educational status are enabling or constraining social inclusion of people in different contexts. This paper presents a case study that illustrates how mine action can both contribute to and benefit from greater social inclusion.

Addressing The Explosive Hazard Threat In Northern Syria: Risk Education On Landmines, Uxo, Booby Traps, And Ieds, Louise Skilling, Marysia Zapasnik

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Explosive hazards pose a great threat to civilians in Syria. A rapid return of displaced people usually occurs as soon as an area is declared newly taken. During this period, there is limited medical and explosive clearance capacity although there are high risks from explosive hazards, including booby traps and improvised explosive devices (IED) specifically targeting civilians in their homes. This article focuses on addressing the threat of explosive hazards in northern Syria and draws on risk education material designed by humanitarian mine action

Mediawiki: Supporting Imsma Documentation, Dionysia Kontotasiou, Olivier Cottray

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Over the last few years, wikis have arisen as powerful tools for collaborative documentation on the internet. The Encyclopedia Wikipedia has become a reference, and the power of community editing in a wiki allows people all over the world to contribute their knowledge. Use of a wiki for software documentation provides an effective collaboration tool as information can be easily fed into the system. Certain wiki implementations, such as MediaWiki, are project-oriented and include functionalities such as automatic page versioning, easy navigation, simple search mechanisms, as well as online, offline, and mobile usage.

Using Mobile Geographic Information Systems To Improve Operational Efficiency, Data Reliability, And Access In Mine Action, Paul Rittenhouse, Lindsay Aldrich

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The inherently complex field of mine action, with its many political, financial, and physical considerations, is also a spatial, data-driven field; and as a result, geographic information systems (GIS) stand to play a major role. Spatial data can help address questions such as: Where are the hazardous areas and what has been cleared or cancelled? Where have teams already surveyed? Where should they go next? How many square meters have been cleared? Due to the complexities surrounding assigning tasks and prioritization, standard operating procedures (SOP), quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) and database design, GIS often gets limited to high-level planning, database …

21st Century Survey In Eastern Ukraine And The Use Of Technology In Insecure Environments, Nick Torbet, Patrick Thompson

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The conflation of humanitarian and military spheres has long been a feature of modern conflict, restricting access to areas in which the need for humanitarian assistance is greatest. However, the advent of mobile technology has provided novel opportunities to circumvent old problems. In Ukraine, The HALO Trust’s (HALO) ability to conduct nontechnical survey is restricted in certain areas, and the security environment means this is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future. Nevertheless, HALO pioneered a number of techniques that allowed for systematic assessments of the region, painting a general picture of contamination that will facilitate pro-active non-technical survey once …

Catholic Relief Services: Information And Communication Technology In Monitoring And Evaluation, Nguyen Tuan Phong, Ta Thi Hai Yen

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In February 2015, Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Vietnam initiated a new project to support the reintegration and rehabilitation of survivors of accidents involving landmines and explosive remnants of war (ERW). With funding from the Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement in the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs (PM/WRA), CRS’ Access and Reintegration (A&R) project takes a comprehensive approach to serving the needs of 3,219 survivors of landmines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) in Quang Binh and Quang Tri provinces. Through collaboration with the Government of Vietnam’s provincial Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs (DOLISA), CRS provides survivors …

Mine Detecting Rats Make An Impact In Cambodia, Cynthia Fast, Håvard Bach, Paul Mccarthy, Christophe Cox

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Despite decades of national and international mine action efforts, Cambodia remains littered with landmines. The casualty rates are among the world’s highest, and there is considerable socioeconomic damage from landmines and other explosive remnants of war (ERW). Cambodia has established the goal to clear all known minefields by 2025. To achieve this, funding must be secured, and land release rates must be increased. This can only be achieved by taking advantage of available resources and improving land release methodology.

Mine Action In Burma: Building Trust And Incremental Gains, Greg Crowther, Josephine Dresner, Michael Aaron

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Burma has long been known to be heavily contaminated by landmines and explosive remnants of war (ERW), with 3,693 casualties reported since 1999.1 The area is a complex and dynamic environment for humanitarian organizations, with multiple overlapping and interlinked conflicts between a number of disparate Ethnic Armed Organizations (EAO) and the Burmese Armed Forces, fought over several decades. In this context, international humanitarian mine action (HMA) operators have not been able to provide any form of technical response; there is currently no mine action coordination center, no agreed national standards, and no demarcation, technical survey, or clearance operations recognized by …

An Apt Demining Machine, Andy Smith

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

This paper introduces a new machine for use in support of humanitarian mine action. Developed under the EU FP7- TIRAMISU R&D initiative, the machine is reliable, easy to deploy, and has a low cost of ownership. It is designed to withstand anti-personnel (AP) mine detonations as it drives over an area preparing it for manual demining. Small and highly maneuverable, it can climb steeper inclines than other machines and drive over roads to deploy without an expensive transporter. With dual driver controls, it can be remotely controlled when working in hazardous areas. This article describes how it is appropriate and …

From The Director, Ken Rutherford

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

This June, the Center for International Stabilization and Recovery (CISR) partnered with Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) to facilitate the Southeast Asia Cluster Munition Remnants Survey (CMRS) Workshop in Washington, D.C. This two-day event, hosted by the Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement in the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs (PM/WRA), brought together a number of organizations working in Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam to discuss best practices in CMRS in the region.

From The Director, Cisr Jmu

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

As we endeavor to make The Journal a forum of information and ideas for the conventional weapons destruction community, we look at the threat improvised explosive devices (IED) pose in countries around the world. Increasingly, humanitarian organizations are widening their scope to account for the prevalence of IEDs. The need for clear communication across humanitarian mine action and counter-IED (C-IED) operational lines is evident.

The Journal Of Conventional Weapons Destruction Issue 21.1 (2017), Cisr Jmu

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Feature: Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) and Pressure Plate IED's

Spotlight: Bosnia and Herzegovina 2- years later

Field Notes

Research and Development

Bosnia And Herzegovina: Itf Enhancing Human Security Perspective 20 Years After The Conflict, Gregor Sancanin

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

ITF Enhancing Human Security has worked in Southeast Europe’s post-conflict countries since 1998. In states affected by the break-up of Yugoslavia such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, ITF works to support the country’s fulfillment of the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention (APMBC).

Improvised Explosive Devices (Ied): A Humanitarian Mine Action Perspective, Robert Keeley

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Readers of this Journal need no schooling in the acceleration of the use of improvised explosive devices (IED) over the last 20 years. However, what has become obvious in the last few years is the degree to which the spheres of counter-IED (C-IED) and humanitarian mine action (HMA) now overlap. Danish Demining Group (DDG), for example, recently calculated that an estimated 67 percent of the countries where DDG is present also have an IED problem. In countries such as Afghanistan, IEDs are now the major cause of explosive-related casualties among the general population, the very constituents nongovernment organizations (NGO) and …

Mag: Clearing Improvised Landmines In Iraq, Chris Loughran, Sean Sutton

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

MAG’s recent experience in the Middle East has shown that clearing improvised landmines can be achieved even in the most complex humanitarian contexts. It is imperative that detail and specificity is given to discussions on improvised devices if we are to avoid negative repercussions for the safety of beneficiaries and humanitarian workers.

The Early Years Of Demining In Bosnia And Herzegovina: Transfer To National Ownership, Ian Mansfield

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

After the signing of the Dayton Peace Accords on 14 December 1995, the newly formed Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina requested that the United Nations set up and manage a mine clearance program. However, it soon became clear that the government should take responsibility and ownership of the program.

The war in Bosnia and Herzegovina took place between April 1992 and October 1995. While the causes of the war and what happened are extremely complicated, Bosnian Serbs encircled Sarajevo and imposed a blockade, while ‘ethnic cleansing’ operations were undertaken by all sides in towns and villages throughout …

Do No Harm: The Challenge Of Protecting Civilians From The Ied Threat In South-Central Somalia, Abigail Jones

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In many countries, improvised explosive devices (IED), including improvised landmines, now constitute more of a threat to civilians than factory-manufactured landmines and other conventional weapons. The Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor 2016 reported that the total number of casualties from victim-operated IEDs, which act in a similar manner to anti-personnel mines, increased from 1,075 in 2014 to 1,331 in 2015, the highest annual total of IED casualties recorded since 1999. In response to this, humanitarian mine action organizations are expanding their scope of activities to include IED awareness for civilians either as a stand-alone activity or by integrating messages on …

World War Ii Coastal Minefields In The United Kingdom, Roly Evans

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

While not widely appreciated today, there were once 1,997 minefields in the United Kingdom containing between 338,500–350,000 landmines. If you were to walk today on a beach suitable for amphibious landing on either the south or east coasts of the United Kingdom, chances are that you would be walking on a former 1940s minefield. This article briefly explores the story of the United Kingdom’s coastal minefields, from their hasty installation through their costly clearance. Many of the lessons from this period remain relevant today, as countries seek to apply land release principles to reduce the risk of explosive contamination to …

Effects Of Weather On Detection Of Landmines By Giant African Pouched Rats, Ian Mclean, Rebecca Sargisson

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Although APOPO has trained mine detection rats for many years, no published data exist on how weather parameters relate to detection accuracy. Using data taken during routine training, we show that there was little relationship between the detection success of rats and rainfall but find that rates decreased, on average, with increasing temperatures and increased with higher humidities. Individual rats vary in terms of sensitivity to temperature in that

Developing A Hyperspectral Non-Technical Survey For Minefields Via Uav And Helicopter, Milan Bajic, Tamara Ivelja, Anna Brook

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The main topic discussed in this paper is the research, development, and implementation of hyperspectral remote sensing technology in humanitarian mine action (HMA), mainly for non-technical survey (NTS) from aerial platforms. NTS should be conducted to determine whether landmines or unexploded ordnance (UXO) exist in considered areas and whether clearance is needed and if so, in what scope. The availability of the hyperspectral sensors (2011–2012) that are suitable for use with multi-engine unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) enabled the development of systems for HMA. While large and costly airborne hyperspectral systems have been available for over two decades, they had little …