AP New Jersey

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Caustic byproduct leaks at Newport Chemical Depot

By Associated Press
July 14, 2005

NEWPORT, Ind. -- About five gallons of a caustic byproduct _ the result of the process to neutralize VX nerve agent _ leaked at the Newport Chemical Depot Wednesday.

The VX hydrolysate, a caustic hazardous waste, leaked onto the floor inside a sealed area of the Newport Chemical Agent Disposal Facility, said Terry Arthur, Army spokeswoman.
Arthur said the waste liquid was immediately contained.

The Army has proposed disposing of the hydrolysate at a DuPont facility on the Delaware River, but New Jersey officials are seeking to block that from happening.

The leak occurred during a maintenance operation when control-room operators were transferring wastewater by remote to test a flow meter, said Jeff Brubaker, Army site project manager. He said the five gallons of waste flowed into a sump in the sealed concrete floor.

Control-room operators noticed the leak on a closed-circuit television screen and immediately shut off the flow, Brubaker said.

"Our people responded quickly and exactly as they have been trained," he said.

A recent profile of the byproduct revealed the hydrolysate is more flammable than previously believed, the Army has said. Neutralization of VX will not resume until the Army finishes its analysis on the chemical, officials have said.

More than 250,000 gallons of the Cold War-era chemical weapon are stored at the depot.