"They don't want to listen to what we have to say," Stephen Kelley, son of Community In-Power and Development Association (CIDA) director, Hilton Kelley, said. "We don't support their business or the contract they have with the Army."

Recently, Veolia entered into a $49 million contract with the Army to incinerate nearly 2 million gallons of caustic VX wastewater. Shipment of the chemical began last week and according to the contract, should continue for another three years. Coming from the Newport Chemical Agent Disposal Facility in Indiana, convoys of the former nerve agent must cross eight state lines to get to Port Arthur.

Southeast Texas citizens are upset with the Army, Veolia and local government for not allowing residents to have a voice in the contract to bring the chemical to the area.

"We met with Daniel Duncan (Safety Manager of Veolia) and Mitch Osborne (General Manager of Veolia) and basically they admitted that they knew they would come across opposition and that's why they didn't make it public until the day before the shipments started coming," Kelley said.

Warren Field, who stood along Texas 73 with a picket sign, said mostly the community is concerned with the transporting of the material as well as the long lasting effects the chemical will have on residents of the area.

"I don't agree with nothing they're doing," he said. "And no government officials have stood up for their citizens' safety. That stuff was made for killing folks. Once they heat it, it will go into the atmosphere and I'm concerned with the long term effects. A study hasn't been done in that area."

Field said that the only thing government officials have taken a stand for is bringing jobs to the area.

"They are sacrificing 55,000 people for 250 jobs. We can have jobs and we can have safety,"he said.

Thursday, a Kentucky based community group, Chemical Weapons Working Group, released a Notice of Intent to Sue the Army and the US Army Chemical Materials Agency (CMA) as well as the National Environmental Policy Act for allowing the VX wastewater, hydrolysate, to be shipped to the Port Arthur plant. Hilton Kelley and CIDA were named as plaintiff.

Field said the suit was the only logical next step if the shipments won't stop.

"There will be a resistance," Kelley said. "We are human beings and have been disrespected up to this point."

The goal of the picket and the stand against the shipments, Field said, is to get local officials to stand up and fight with the community.

"This will affect the whole Golden Triangle," he said. "And I'm concerned how the VX will affect with other elements in the atmosphere."

Picketer Eddie Marie Cruse of Port Arthur echoed the concerns of the protest leaders.