East Oregonian
Wednesday, December 04, 2002

Study says incineration safe option

WASHINGTON (AP) - America's arsenal of chemical weapons can be safely incinerated at a few sites around the country, despite chemical releases and violations at the only two operational incinerators, according to a report Tuesday.

"The risk to the public and to the environment of continued storage overwhelms the potential risk of processing and destruction of stockpiled chemical agent," said the report by the National Research Council, a branch of the National Academies of Science. "The destruction of aging chemical munitions should proceed as quickly as possible."

The council did not weigh in on whether incineration was preferable to other methods of neutralizing the chemical agents. Critics who favor neutralization said the report ignored important incidents and glossed over the dangers of incineration.

Under an international treaty, the United States agreed to dispose of 31,500 tons of deadly nerve agents and toxic blister agents. About a quarter of the stockpile has been destroyed at weapons incinerators in Tooele, Utah, and on Johnston Atoll in the Pacific Ocean.

"The technology is capable of doing the job if it's run correctly, and there's no reason it cannot be run correctly if management puts its mind to it and trains its work force properly," said Charles Kolb, chairman of the committee.

The council report identified 40 cases where chemical agents leaked into areas where it was not supposed to have been and three where it escaped from an incinerator building. But it said amounts that escaped were too small to threaten the public.

"There will be future 'chemical events,' and serious consequences to both plant personnel and surrounding communities cannot be ruled out," the report said. It also said, however, "The major hazard to the surrounding communities arises from potential releases of agent from stockpile storage areas, not the demilitarization facilities."