Command Study 14, Chapter 1. The Role of Nonmilitary Defense Page: 19
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programs. Indeed our studies indicate that an effective civil de-
fense program could increase the number of persons surviving a
determined Soviet nuclear attack in the 1 970 period by tens of
millions, at a total investment cost to the Federal Government
of about $3-1/2 billion.
An effective civil defense program requires two major ele-
ments: A nationwide system of fallout shelters, properly equipped
and provisioned, to protect our population from the fallout effects
of a nuclear attack; and planning and organization of the capabilities
essential to the effective use of this system, including the ability to
carry out essential postattack emergency operations.
As the operational arm of the Nation's nonmilitary defense system, civil
defense from time to time undergoes revisions in order to adapt to revised
weapons technology, but the essential elements and requirements of the nation-
al survival program are consistent. Based upon current knowledge of nuclear
weapons, their effects and capabilities, the National Civil Defense Program
emphasizes, as the key component of survival, the provision of a nationwide
system of fallout shelters, equipped and stocked for the minimum purpose of
shielding the nation's population against the radiation effects of a nuclear at-
tack. Numerous studies and analyses by the Department of Defense and various
contracting organizations concerning possible nuclear attack patterns on the
United States demonstrates that fallout shelters can save more lives than any
other feasible protective measure and that the number of persons saved will
decrease only slightly as the power and number of weapons increase. Although
provision of adequate fallout shelter is the principal component of the civil de-
fense survival program, national guidelines also provide for balanced comple-
mentary systems necessary for achieving the greatest possible protection for
the population under all emergency conditions. Fully developed systems of
alert and warning, communications, radiological monitoring, and damage
assessment are basic to the effective operation of the shelter concept and are,
therefore, integral parts of the civil defense objective of survival and recovery.
The Defense Department follows certain basic guidelines which all levels
of government, for the sake of compatibility, must consider as the logical
framework for planning an operational long-term civil defense program. First
and foremost, an effective civil defense system requires detailed advance plan-
ning and training at all levels to warn the public of impending attack, to move
the population into shelters, and to care for people during the period of shelter
occupancy. Similarly, civil defense planning includes the maintenance of a broad
communication system for conducting emergency operations and informing the
general population, the perfection of national, state, and local monitoring and
reporting systems capable of collecting, evaluating, and disseminating critical
information pertaining to radiation levels, and the establishment of damage
assessment capabilities to provide information for pre-attack planning and post-
attack operations. Furthermore, vital operations and plans are required for
rescue, firefighting, debris removal, law enforcement, decontamination, and
the reconstruction of essential facilities and services. As a survival factor in
the National Preparedness Program, the civil defense shelter system anticipates
,a high degree of involvement, planning, organization, and training of all levels
of government, private organizations, and people responsible for others.19
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Air University (U.S.). Command Study 14, Chapter 1. The Role of Nonmilitary Defense, pamphlet, June 1965; Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1010302/m1/29/: accessed July 11, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting National WASP WWII Museum.