AN anti-terrorism exercise in Launceston today will test the capabilities of the city's emergency services, Police and Emergency Management Minister Jim Cox said.

Mr Cox said the multi-agency simulated counter terrorism exercise, dubbed Northern Exposure, would involve the Tasmanian Fire Service, the Tasmanian Ambulance Service, Tasmania Police, the State Emergency Service, the Northern Regional Recovery Unit and the Launceston General Hospital.

"The scenario is based on the collapse of a building due to an explosion, and is designed to test the response of the city's emergency services,'' Mr Cox said.

"A prop has been constructed by the Tasmania Fire Service in a large shed at the Launceston Show Society in Invermay to create a scene where urban search and rescue teams will be exposed to the dangers and difficulties associated with on-site treatment of casualties and their extraction over a lengthy period of time from the collapsed building site.

"The difficulties confronting the rescuers will be compounded by the presence of toxic substances from exploding agents that caused the collapse of the multi-story building.

"Emergency service personnel will have to take into account the chemical contamination, and along with treating the injured, will have to decontaminate people rescued as well as the rescuers themselves to ensure no-one suffers chemical after-effects."

Mr Cox said such simulated exercises were an important part of ensuring emergency service personnel were given high quality training opportunities testing a wide range of skills.

"A real-life disaster of this magnitude does not bear thinking about, however it is imperative that our emergency services undergo such simulations so that they can provide the very best response in the unlikely event such an emergency occurs."

Mr Cox said the exercise would begin at 10am and would conclude about 8pm.