Anniston Star
October 4, 2002

ADEM gives Army OK to retest furnace at depot

By Jason Landers
Star Staff Writer

State regulators granted approval Thursday for the Army to retest the effectiveness of a key
furnace at the chemical weapons incinerator.

It is the second time this year the Alabama Department of Environmental Management has given the Army permission to test the facility's liquid incinerator, one of three furnaces to be used at the site.

The furnace is designed to destroy liquid nerve and blister agent drained from weapons stockpiled at the Anniston Army Depot.

Some earlier test runs on industrial compounds that are more difficult to destroy than liquid agent received a failing grade from ADEM.

Lab analysis of the low-temperature runs did not follow the state's established protocol. Because of the error, ADEM drafted a notice of deficiency. It is that failing grade that now is forcing the Army to redo the low-temperature portion of the surrogate tests.

Army incinerator spokesman Mike Abrams said the Army will redo the procedure this weekend, possibly starting Saturday.

Severe weather could delay the re-test, he added.

"We have to demonstrate that the furnace is efficient and functional," said Abrams, who added that the initial surrogate runs, despite the procedural error, demonstrated the furnace could destroy 99.9999% of the compounds.

Abrams and state regulators said the data collected from this test run will be analyzed using the ADEM-approved procedure.