02/20/04

Only one thing is more important than destroying the deadly chemical weapons stored for decades in Anniston: Destroying them safely.

The weapons contain agents so potent that even a tiny amount can kill. This Cold War-era stockpile is deteriorating to the point that it poses a threat just sitting in storage. But the weapons' volatility ought to require even more caution among those charged with eradicating the danger.

Critics contend the Army is moving in the direction of less caution. The Chemical Weapons Working Group and 19 other organizations asked the Army this week to shut down the incinerator at the Anniston Army Depot because of a series of glitches and "near-miss incidents."

Some opponents have pointed out, for instance, that the incinerator was designed to burn the lethal nerve agent sarin separately after it had been drained from rockets. But since that doesn't work if the sarin has gelled or crystallized, the Army is trying different approaches - some that require employees to spend more time working in areas where dangerous chemical agents are present. Plus, the Army is trying to burn these weapons at a rate of 14 per hour in Anniston, while it burned less than two per hour at an older incinerator in Utah.

Concerns accelerated after two incinerator workers were contaminated with sarin early this month. The Chemical Weapons Working Group said the Army's conflicting accounts about the incident spawned further worries.

Whether or not the best answer is to shut down the incinerator, the Army owes it to the facility's workers and the Anniston community to consider these issues. The Army needs to look closely at how employees were contaminated, lay out all the facts and take whatever steps are necessary to prevent a similar episode in the future.

In particular, the Army needs to take a second look at whether the Anniston incinerator is taking unnecessary risks by trying to go too fast to destroy these particularly volatile weapons.

Anniston residents who have lived for years in the shadow of these weapons are more eager than anyone to see the stockpile destroyed. But in this case, safety is more important than speed.