A persistent agent continues to present a hazard for a considerable period of time after its delivery. It remains as a contact hazard or by vaporizing over a period of time to produce a hazard by inhalation. A non-persistent agent breaks up rapidly after its release and presents an immediate but short-lived hazard. They are released as airborne particles, liquids and gasses. Intoxication usually results from the inhalation of the chemical agent.

The effectiveness of a chemical weapon is the capacity of an agent to produce the maximum number of casualties or amount of disruption of operations with the least amount of agent. There are many factors that can influence the effectiveness of a chemical agent: such as the amount of the agent release, en

Atmospheric Stability- When the temperature of the air is higher than that of the ground; chemical agents in a vapor state tend to stay persistent for longer periods of time. However when the temperature of the air is lower than that of the ground, chemical agents in the vapor state tend not to persist as long as they usually do.

The agents are adequately stable to survive spreading and transport for their biological action. The chemical weapon agents do not always react in the same way from species to species when the same amount of the agent is used on them; a variety of factors influence a species' reaction to a substance.

The possible use of biological weapons is a matter of national and international concern. These agents are spread deliberately using aerosols, food or water which cause diseases that may lead to death in human, animals, and plants. Biological weapons are potentially a serious threat to mankind in terms of the potential damage that can occur. The use of these weapons would cause sickness and in some cases death in large proportions of a population. This would have devastating effects on mankind.

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