After an FBI warning about chlorine gas, State College's water treatment authorities are taking precautions.

Chlorine gas is a poison that when used properly, purifies the water people drink. But if it were to fall into the wrong hands, the results could be deadly.

More than a week ago a nationwide notice was sent from the FBI alerting water treatment facilities that unknown people had made threats of an attack.

Although there have been no direct threats to facilities in the State College area, water treatment authorities are taking precautions, said Max Gill, executive director of the State College Water Authority.

At the Spring Creek Water Treatment Facility, a sewage treatment plant located behind the Nittany Mall, cylinders of chlorine gas, which are used in the sanitation of wastewater, have been placed under close scrutiny.

Chlorine gas was used during World War I and, from a military perspective, is not a very effective agent for causing casualties, executive director of the University Area Joint Authority, Cory Miller, said.

"It wouldn't be a real good choice for a weapon," Miller said. "Most people can move faster than the gas."

Were people to get caught in the cloud, the results could be fatal.

"It's an irritant — if you inhale it, it would cause damage to the esophagus and lungs," Miller said.

The Spring Creek facility, which treats 5.1 million gallons of water per day, is medium-sized by wastewater treatment facility standards and contains only a small amount of the gas.

"We have about 500 lbs. of it," Miller said. "We need very little chlorine."

This amount is small compared to what is stored in facilities in large cities. In San Francisco, close to 200 tons of chlorine are stored. If such a large amount of the gas came under attack and was released near a well-populated area, the results would be devastating, Miller said.

But because of the small amount stored at the Spring Creek Facility, a deadly cloud of gas creeping across campus is improbable. Most likely, the gas released in an attack would slowly roll down Spring Creek and not affect people in the State College community, he added.

"It would certainly mess things up for awhile," Miller said. "It's not going to cause anyone much grief, except maybe some fish."

In one unlikely scenario, were terrorists to break into the Spring Creek facility, steal the chlorine gas and vent it into Beaver Stadium during a football game, Miller said he believes even that would not cause a catastrophic number of casualties.

"Because they are heavier than air, you can actually see the cloud," he said.

The gas would likely settle to the bottom of the stadium and collect, one to two feet off the ground, Miller said.

"You would need an awful lot to cause damage," Miller said.

Other water treatment facilities have also been warned against possible terrorist attacks.

After the FBI warning, members of the water authority met with police to discuss increasing protection of the facilities, Gill said.

So far, because there is no immediate threat, officials have decided upon small improvements, such as improving lighting and the locks at the facility, Gill said.

Penn State students feel whatever expenditures are made, the cost is worth it.

"They are spending money in order to protect human life," said Ryan Seese (graduate-business administration). "There is really no question (whether it is good or not)."

Because of the site's distance from any large population area, a terrorist venting chlorine gas from the water purification facility would not accomplish much.

"They have you plan for a half-mile radius around the facility," Gill said. "It's pretty much just us and the cows."