Birmingham News
July 26, 2003

Riley holds off signing pact for incinerator

07/26/03
KATHERINE BOUMA
News staff writer

Gov. Bob Riley has refused to sign an agreement with the Army over the chemical weapons incinerator in Anniston until he gets the right to stop the burn if necessary, a spokesman said.

Riley is requesting a clause in a long-negotiated memorandum of agreement stating that he could stop the incinerator work if the Army did not fulfill its commitments to Anniston and the state, spokesman David Azbell said.

"We feel certain that the Army is going to live up to its commitments, and if the Army is comfortable that it will live up to its commitments, they should be comfortable with this," Azbell said.

The Army is reviewing the governor's request, a Pentagon spokeswoman said.

"I can assure you that Army leadership will actively continue a cooperative relationship with Congress, the Department of Defense and federal and state elected officials to ensure our common objective of eliminating chemical weapons from your community the safest way possible," said Army spokeswoman Cynthia Smith.

The Army plans to incinerate 661,529 artillery shells, rockets and mines stored in earthen bunkers at the Anniston Army Depot. The operation is expected to last nine to 10 years and cost about $2.3 billion, including costs of building and operating the plant.

Anniston's base is one of eight around the country where the Army has stored Cold War-era weapons containing nerve agents or mustard gas. Under an international treaty, the United States has agreed to destroy the weapons.

Construction of the incinerator is complete, but state and federal government have been arguing for several years over what must be done before the incinerator begins operation.

Most recently, elected officials told the Army they wanted to hold incineration until four safety conditions were met: protecting neighboring schools, planning assistance for high-need or disabled residents, equipping the Army to activate warning sirens without calling the counties first and updating the emergency response plan.

However, the Army has said it could work around the remaining safety concerns. For example, the Army has offered to move nerve-gas weapons only after 4 p.m., when schools are not in session.

The Army does not need the governor's permission to begin operating the incinerator, although it does need an environmental permit from the state.

Earlier this year, officials began discussing a "memorandum of agreement" that would allow the state and the Army to agree on the terms of beginning incineration in Anniston.

The agreement calls for the signatures of Acting Army Secretary Les Brownlee, an official with the Department of Homeland Security and Riley.

"By having the MOA, it gives the governor the assurance that his concerns have been resolved and at the same time, with this clause it gives him the ability to take action on behalf of the people of Alabama," Azbell said.

Neither he nor the Army would predict when they will be able to resolve the question. Azbell said he was confident that it could be resolved. If it is not, it is expected to become irrelevant in October, when safety measures are expected to be finished.

The Army still awaits a final permit from the state. The Alabama Department of Environmental Management is using the extra time afforded by the controversy to carefully double-check every aspect of the incinerator's permit, one of the most contentious in the department's history, said spokesman Clint Niemeyer.

"This is one of the most scrutinized, and that is rightly so," Niemeyer said. "It is a sensitive issue for the entire state as well as the Anniston area, and we take our responsibility very seriously."