RIVERTON - The borough has joined the governor, the state Department of Environmental Protection and other public and private entities in opposing the U.S. Army's plan to dump a neutralized nerve agent into the Delaware River.

"To me, it's a no-brainer," Councilwoman Muriel Alls-Moffatt said yesterday about a resolution opposing the Army's plan that was passed unanimously last week by the Borough Council. "This stuff is apparently so deadly that one drop can kill an adult. I don't care if they dilute it or not. That's just bizarre. The Army wants to put it in the Delaware River."

Riverton's public water supply originates in the Delaware River.

VX nerve agent is a liquid with the consistency of mineral oil that can kill a healthy adult with a single droplet. The federal Centers for Disease Control says it is the most potent of all nerve agents used for chemical warfare.

In December 2003, the Army announced a plan to transport millions of gallons of neutralized nerve agent by truck or rail from Indiana to the DuPont Chambers Works in Deepwater, Salem County. Water and a corrosive agent are being used to neutralize the VX for transport.

Once at the DuPont treatment plant, the neutralized nerve agent would be treated again before being dumped into the Delaware River, the Army said.

While the neutralized and treated VX would be discharged nearly 50 miles downstream from Riverton, Tracy Carluccio of the Pennsylvania-based Delaware Riverkeeper Network said the impact could be felt for miles upstream due to the tidal effect.

"To dispose of this (neutralized nerve agent byproduct) by basically diluting it and dumping it into the Delaware River is unacceptable," Carluccio said. "The governor and the commissioner of the (state) Department of Environmental Protection have made it clear that New Jersey does not support this plan."

Acting Governor Richard J. Codey and state DEP Commissioner Bradley Campbell have spoken out publicly against the Army's proposal. Campbell called the Army's plan "flawed," and said it "should be abandoned, not revised."

Carluccio said she was happy to learn that Riverton had joined Cape May and other towns downstream that have passed resolutions opposing the discharge, and said she hopes the Army listens to their concerns.

"The Army should do the right thing ... They should move ahead with the destruction and disposal at the Newport, (Indiana Chemical Wea-pons) facility," Carluccio said.

The Army needs to dispose of the VX by 2007, under terms of an international treaty.

Email:  tmchale@phillyburbs.com.

June 14, 2005 6:06 AM