Bahrain may have to invest in expensive state-of-the-art radiation detection technology for its ports if it is to continue to export goods to the US.

This comes after US senators passed a key legislation to safeguard their country from the threat of nuclear devices hidden inside shipping containers.

Last week, the US Congress and senate both passed a bill to enact tougher checks on air and sea cargo entering their country, fulfilling major recommendations of the 9/11 Commission.

The bill sets a five-year goal of scanning all container ships for nuclear devices before they leave foreign ports and US President George W Bush has already indicated he will sign the bill into law.

Critics of the measure - which could require implementing the new procedures at more than 600 ports around the world where ships leave for the US - say such a sweeping measure is a disproportionate response to the threat faced.

However, yesterday the man in charge of safeguarding the marine environment of the Gulf backed the move, saying any expense and inconvenience paled into insignificance when public safety was an issue.

Bahrain-based Marine Emergency Mutual Aid Centre (Memac) director Captain Abdul Munem Al Janahi is in charge of disaster-planning for Gulf waters and counts the formulation of a plan to deal with any accident at Iran's nascent nuclear facilities among his responsibilities.

"The trouble with new technology is that it is expensive, but I think this particular detection equipment is a must. I am not an expert on security, but you must have these devices - the expense is not too great when you weigh the cost against your safety," he said.

Captain Al Janahi also said it was time the region stepped up its maritime security checks. "In this region sometimes people are reluctant to stop ships. In some cases a ship would have to be stopped by the coastguard, then transferred to the police and then transferred to the courts. I think we are weak on the processes. We need experience, which we are lacking in this region and I know the US has offered to host workshops on these issues," he added.

The volume of cargo passing through the shallow waters of the Gulf has increased exponentially in recent years as the region enjoys an economic boom and some have raised fears that stringent screening of every single US-bound container would dramatically slow cargo transit times.

However, yesterday a spokesman for Bahrain Investment Wharf (BIW) - the ambitious development currently under-construction in Hidd which will feature a 900,000sqm logistics park featuring container storage - said he expected Bahraini businesses to take any new rules in their stride.

"To be very honest everything new is a bit shocking in the beginning but with a lot of dynamic movement from the private and the public sector these requirements can be accommodated," said BIW marketing executive Ahmed Al Dailami.

"It is not the only requirement that we are facing - we face a lot of daily requirements that pop up and people are dynamic enough to be able to cope with these and not have them interrupt their daily work patterns or the way they run the business.

"Bahraini business that are international will be aware of such changes within the market- other industries face it on a daily basis and it's just up to people to be able to deal with it," he added.- TradeArabia News Service