An investigation is underway in Washington as the Army looks into the dumping of chemical weapons off Hawaii's waters decades ago.

KHON2 first reported the discovery of that "burial at sea."

State leaders hope to get answers this week, in a meeting with top brass.

In Washington, the Army says it is going to do the right thing -- a promise that comes from the director of staff for the Army, a man who knows the islands first hand.

Major General James Campbell assumed his post at the Pentagon after serving as the Army's commander in the pacific.

"Were I a citizen in the state of Hawaii? I would be very comforted in knowing that the Army's going to do the right thing," says Major General Campbell.

The weapons were disposed off Waianae and perhaps other parts of Hawaii as far back as the 1940's. Accounts of the disposal faded over time and were, until recently, forgotten.

But in his office at the Pentagon, General Campbell's perceptions about Hawaii seem anything but faded.

There was a sharp recollection of environmental controversies the Army faced over training at Makua, and the deployment of Stryker armored vehicles to the islands.

"This is how I balance that. I am very familiar with that debate, and I am very sensitive to the land of Hawaii, the culture of Hawaii, the diversity of the state and the beauty of that land," says Major General Campbell.

An inventory of the weapons, their locations and their contents is the first task, which he says are already underway.

"That investigative work has begun, and they're going to get to the bottom of it..." says Major General Campbell, "...just the documentation on where this is located, the depths which is located, I guess the impact of sea water."

Governor Linda Lingle will be meeting with General Campbell in Washington Thursday, even as the members of Hawaii's congressional delegation continue to receive briefings from the Pentagon about the ongoing investigation, and what steps will come next.