By Karen Hutchinson-Talaski

Staff writer

HERMISTON — The Umatilla Chemical Agent Facility has cleared the final hurdle in order to begin agent operations — approval by the Environmental Quality Commission.

On Friday, the UMCDF received final approval to begin incineration of chemical weapons stored at the Umatilla Army Depot by the EQC in an unanimous decision.

All four EQC commissioners agreed that the process has been a long one. However, they said it was one which was fraught with delays.

"We have been hearing local voices," vice chair Lynn Hampton said. "The local voices for the most part have said destroy the chemical weapons. They have said get it out of our backyard, do it wisely and with all dispatch."

Although cheers erupted in the room after the decision, for GASP's Karyn Jones, approval to burn is not a good thing.

"I am not surprised, but I am sad," Jones said. "I hope the judge will grant the injunction."

Jones is referring to a motion filed by GASP attorneys last week asking for an injunction to stop the start of incineration. The courts should make a decision on the injunction by the middle of this week, Jones says.

"I am confident the court will rule in our favor," Jones said. "I would prefer the plant not do start-up."

The UMCDF plans to put the first chemical agent through the plant on Wednesday, says Don Barclay, the Army's site project manager.

"We will make our final plans over the next few days to move the first pallet of the rockets to the plant," Barclay said. "We'll meet Monday, go through those final plans. Probably target Wednesday to do that first move. This gives our team at the depot the opportunity to step up to the plate and do what we said we could do."

GASP is hoping the first pallet won't make it to the plant. The environmental group feels the UMCDF and the Army are not in compliance with the original permit approved 12 years ago.

In that permit, a dunnage incinerator was to be built to take care of waste materials, a process no longer necessary, says Dennis Murphey from the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.

"The permitees were not going to take it (the dunnage incinerator) out of the permit until they had an approved alternative method of waste disposal," Murphey said. "Once that is complete, then they intend to modify the permit and take the dunnage incinerator out. Once they have finalized the carbon processing and disposal system, then they will be in a position to take the dunnage incinerator out."

According to Murphey, although the dunnage incinerator was put into the original permit, it is not a requirement for final incineration approval.

"They were permitted to install a dunnage incinerator," Murphey said, "they weren't required to install a dunnage incinerator. They are required to safely, and with an approved method, process secondary waste in the facility. That is what they are doing."