Army report undermines
key argument for incineration
(Excerpted from the May 2000 issue of CWWG's newsletter "Common Sense")
An internal U.S. Army Soldier, Biological
and Chemical Command (SBCCOM) report, made public October 21 1999,
revealed that the rush to incinerate chemical weapons is based
on false arguments. The document, titled "Chemical Stockpile
Storage Stability Status" and dated October 8, 1999, concludes
"there is no apparent trend toward increased or decreased
leak rates in the chemical stockpile."
For years Army officials have asserted that a growing risk of
nerve gas leakage, particularly from spontaneous explosion of
stored M-55 rockets or aging agent containers, mandated rapid
incineration and prohibited deploying advanced technologies.
The Army has proclaimed M-55 rockets to be the most risk-significant
item in the U.S. stockpile and has defended its 1984 decision
to use incineration in large part based on the danger posed by
storing these munitions.
The report specifically addresses concerns about the M-55 rockets,
observing, "The results indicate that normally stored (that
is, non-leaking rockets and undetected/unoverpacked leaking rockets)
M-55 rockets can dissipate sufficient heat to prevent autoignition.
The results for overpacked leaking M-55 rockets indicate that
the autoignition probability is low but cannot be ruled out."
The overpacked rockets have been segregated from the rest of the
stockpile to eliminate the risk within the igloos where large
numbers of "normally stored" rockets reside.
As for ton containers filled with the agent HD (mustard agent)
which incineration advocates claimed were at risk from drain plug
leakage, the report said, "There was corrosion noted on some
of the tested plugs however there were more than sufficient threads
engaged to preclude any cause for concern. The survey indicates
no increasing trend in leakers or severe corrosion problem, hence
the recommendation was made to maintain the current visual surveillance
program."
The Army's rhetoric--their 'sky is falling' campaign about storage
risk--is debunked by data used in the October internal report.
SBCCOM--the branch of the Army responsible for storage--has documented
that the fundamental assumptions of the chemical weapons incineration
program are false.
There is ample time to implement advanced agent destruction technologies
which pose less threat to human health and the environment.
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