By JEFF MONTGOMERY
Staff reporter
05/14/2004

A south Jersey congressman called Thursday for the Army inspector general to investigate undisclosed shipments of chemical weapon disposal wastes to a DuPont Co. plant on the Delaware River.

Rep. Robert E. Andrews, D-Haddon Heights, said the transfers of neutralized VX nerve agent wastes reflect a "reckless and haphazard" approach by the Army and DuPont while trying to clear the way to treat up to 4 million pounds of the waste at DuPont's wastewater plant in Deepwater, N.J.

"If there was a deliberate decision to process without public disclosure and consultation, that's a major problem," Andrews said. He asked the inspector general's office to determine if the transfers and treatment were "premature."

DuPont and Army officials have confirmed at least three instances involving transfers of neutralized VX wastes to the plant, dating at least to the mid-1990s. Shipments of 7,000 pounds between 1994 and 1996 were obscured by regulatory action in Maryland that allowed re-designation of the material as "waste from cleaning of laboratory equipment."

New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bradley M. Campbell said in a letter to a state lawmaker released late Thursday he did not believe the most recent incident involving about 3.6 gallons of wastes in late 2003 and early 2004 posed any threat. But Campbell said the full project would require a permit amendment, and said he "could not commit to approving such a modification" based on indications that the plant would do little to treat two chemicals in the waste products.

The Delaware River Basin Commission has barred the venture pending further study, under the multistate agency's authority to regulate discharges.

New Jersey DEP said late Thursday that it is still reviewing whether DuPont met the agency's disclosure and permit requirements in the '90s episodes.

Comments were not immediately available from the Army inspector general's office. The Army office provides commanders with independent audits and investigations on issues that include compliance with military rules, accounting requirements and environmental regulations, among other topics.