A proposed $40 million cut in construction money next year for chemical
weapons disposal plants at the Blue Grass Army Depot in Madison County and
a site in Colorado will eventually cost taxpayers $220 million, according
to an internal Defense Department document.
The cut from the $131 million requested by the Pentagon to $91 million
will delay the work for a year, the Pentagon warned. The reduction was made
in a House subcommittee. The document was obtained by the Berea-based Chemical
Weapons Working Group. It is considered unofficial because it has not been
released to the public or shared with members of Congress, said Craig Williams,
the group's director.
Officials hope to begin construction this year of a plant that will destroy
the depot's aging stockpile of nerve and blister agent. But it will be difficult
to carry out construction plans without full funding, the Pentagon said. The
cut would drive up costs because projects cannot be started until full funding
is in place, and some parts of the construction process can't proceed until
others are completed.
Williams predicted last month that the budget cut would drive up costs, but he said Friday that he was surprised the Pentagon's figure was so large.