Published: September 13 , 2007

New timeline for weapons destruction

Ronica Shannon
Register News Writer

An amended military funding bill could have the destruction of locally stored chemical weapons coming to an end at the same time it originally was to begin.

The latest time allotment to destroy weapons stored at the Blue Grass Army Depot was 2017-2023.

However, U.S. Sens. Wayne Allard of Colorado and Mitch McConnell of Kentucky say the amended bill sets a deadline of Dec. 31, 2017, to destroy chemical agents and munitions at the depot and the Pueblo Chemical Depot in Colorado.

The bill still must be approved by the full Senate.

"Without a firm deadline, DOD will continue to drag its feet," McConnell said. "This is unacceptable to me and to the people of Madison County."

A previous Pentagon budget proposal moved the deadline for chemical weapons destruction from 2012 (which was set by the international Chemical Weapons Convention) to 2023. The deadline already has been extended from 2007 to 2012 as a result of funding stopped by the Pentagon in 2005.

"The senators' proposals would direct and force by law getting the disposal work done by 2017 and provide funding to support that schedule," said Craig Williams, director of the Berea-based Chemical Weapons Working Group that oversees the timely and environmentally safe destruction of the weapons.

Allard called the provision a big step.

"The establishment of hard deadline for the Department of Defense to destroy these weapons will ensure that cleanup will be a top priority," he said.

The Blue Grass depot stores 532 tons of nerve and blister agents in rockets and projectiles. The Pueblo depot stores 2,611 tons of mustard agent in projectiles and cartridges.

"For the past two decades, the cleanup of these dangerous chemical weapons at the Blue Grass Army Depot has been a top priority for me," McConnell said. "I have continued to put pressure on the Department of Defense to get the job done and I will continue to keep their feet to the fire until all the weapons are disposed off and the community is safe."

The total cost for the Kentucky project is estimated at $3.8 million.

The construction of the 69,000-square-foot weapons destruction pilot plant at the depot is now under way.

New projects over the next several months will include: Constructing a 28,000-square-foot maintenance building; a 23,000-square-foot, two-story modular office building; a 1,400-square-foot access control building; and a 1,700-square-foot badging facility.

The facility's construction is estimated to cost about $2 billion.

Ronica Shannon can be reached at rshannon@richmondregister.com or 623-1669, Ext. 234.