Hermiston Herald
Nov. 19, 2002

WDC names project manager for incinerator

ARLINGTON, Va., Nov. 11 - Fred Hissong, president of the Washington Demilitarization Company (WDC), announced the appointment of Douglas G. Hamrick as project general manager of the Umatilla Chemical Agent Disposal Facility (UMCDF).

Hamrick replaces General Manager Ron Garner, who is becoming plant manager for Pine Bluff Chemical Agent Disposal Facility in Arkansas. That incinerator is said to have the same basic design as UMCDF. Hamrick grew up in the Tri-Cities area.

Hamrick brings management experience in virtually every aspect of the life cycle of such facilities from construction to startup and from operations to closure. His new assignment is effective immediately. He will report directly to Hissong.

He has held key management positions at similar government facilities in Hanford, Wash., Rocky Flats, Colo. and Anniston, Ala. His career in such assignments has spanned more than 25 years. Hissong said the newly appointed project general manager has distinguished himself in the fields of environmental and safety management and in costs savings to government customers.

Prior to his present assignment, he was plant manager for the Anniston Chemical Agent Disposal Facility. Hamrick is a Bachelor of Science graduate of Washington State University and spent six years in the Navy's nuclear program prior to joining the Westinghouse Hanford Company, a predecessor of Washington Group International.

The recently completed Umatilla facility is responsible for destroying 11.6 per cent of the nation's original 25,000-ton chemical weapons stockpile. It is undergoing final operations and systems tests under a Department of Defense contract to build, test, operate and, finally, close and decontaminate the site.