CDP passes biosafety inspection

The CDP’s Chemical, Ordnance, Biological, and Radiological Training Facility (COBRATF) recently passed an inspection conducted by the Department of Homeland Security’s Compliance Assurance Program Office.

The office provides oversight of the COBRATF’s Biological Material Lab, ensuring treaty compliance, biosafety, and agent and toxin security, among other things.

During the site inspection, there were no major findings by the DHS team, which is not expected to visit again until the fall of 2026.

This inspection is one of six external compliance or validation inspections the COBRATF receives annually or biannually, due to the nature of its activities. Included are compliance inspections by experts from the Department of Defense and others.

In a typical year, the COBRATF trains up to 2,500 civilian first responders to detect and safely operate in environments with chemical, biological and nuclear materials. It offers the only civilian training in the nation featuring live chemical agents and biological materials such as ricin (Ricin A Chain) and anthrax (Bacillus anthracis delta Sterne), which increases responders’ confidence to deal with hazardous substances in real-world incidents.