East Oregonian
March 29, 2002

Igloos to be used to store incineration waste

By HEIDI SODERSTROM
of the East Oregonian

HERMISTON--The public comment periods for the Army's proposal to add 58 storage igloos to the Umatilla Chemical Agent Disposal Facility Hazardous Waste Permit and the renewal of the Air Contaminant Discharge Permit closed this week after two public hearings.

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality held a hearing Wednesday at the National Guard Armory in Hermiston. The second hearing, addressing the air permit, was held Thursday at Good Shepherd Medical Center.

The only public testimony heard at the meeting about the proposal to add storage igloos came from a representative of the Confederated Tribes of Umatilla Indian Reservation.

"It sounded like his comments were in support of the issue," said Tom Beam from the DEQ on Thursday.

The igloos in question are in J-Block at the Umatilla Chemical Depot. They are similar to the igloos used to store the chemical agent stockpile. The Army wants to store hazardous waste generated during incineration in the igloos, Beam said.

The Umatilla depot stores more than 220,500 chemical munitions and containers of nerve and mustard agents. All chemical weapons at Umatilla are on schedule to be destroyed by December 2008, said Don Barclay, site project manager for the facility.

The primary use of the additional storage units would be to temporarily store contaminated "secondary process wastes" generated during incineration, Beam said. The wastes would be stored while they wait for further treatment in one of the incinerators.

Wastes must be determined to be "agent-free" before being sent offsite to a permitted hazardous waste disposal facility. The storage igloos also would be used to store non-agent-contaminated hazardous waste (generated from maintenance and other activities) when offsite shipment can't be accomplished within 90 days.

The depot's existing hazardous waste permit does not allow such storage for more than a few days.

The only comments at the meeting to address the renewal of the Army's Air Contaminant Discharge Permit came from Hermiston's Karyn Jones, representing the anti-incineration group GASP.

The DEQ is responsible for "protecting and enhancing Oregon's water and air quality, for cleaning up spills and releases of hazardous materials and for managing the proper disposal of hazardous and solid waste," according to a DEQ notice on the comment period and hearing.

That's why air permits are required for certain activities that release pollutants into the atmosphere. The Umatilla Chemical Depot falls under the scope of the DEQ's interest because of the chemical agents stored there since 1962.

The depot was initially granted an air quality permit in February 1980. Its current permit was issued Feb. 12, 1997, to include construction and operation of the incineration facility, said Doug Welch, senior environmental engineer for the DEQ's Air Quality Program.

The existing permit was supposed to expire Sept. 1, 2000, but will remain in effect until the DEQ completes the renewal process.

Air quality permits from the DEQ are valid up to five years, after which facility's must apply for renewal, Welch said.

This Air Contaminant Discharge Permit will cover hazardous waste storage and emissions from four incinerators that will be used to destroy the chemical weapons stockpile.

The pilot light on the first of two incinerators designed to burn liquid chemical agents at the facility was lit Feb. 19.

Starting the natural gas-fired liquid incinerator tests the furnace's ability to operate and begins the necessary process of curing the brick lining inside the furnace's primary and secondary chambers.

No chemical warfare agents will be burned during testing, although the testing may cause visible water vapor emissions from the facility's common stack, Barclay said.

For more information about the depot and incineration plans, call the Outreach Office at 564-9339. An information line at 1-888-866-5928 also provides recorded updates on testing activities.

For permit information about the proposal to add 58 storage igloos to the Umatilla Chemical Agent Disposal Facility Hazardous Waste Permit and to renew the Army's Air Contaminant Discharge Permit, inquire at local libraries or the Hermiston DEQ office at 567-8297.