By Patricia L. Pastore/Tribune-Star

Workers at the Newport Chemical Agency Disposal Facility will resume neutralizing VX in the middle of next week.

Officials suspended the neutralization process June 10 so workers could review data for the first five weeks of operations and clean up a 30-gallon liquid spill that contained a mixture of VX, sodium hydroxide and water.

The plant and the work force are ready to continue, said Rick Rife, Parsons project manager for Newport Chemical Agent Disposal Facility. Parsons is contracted by the Army to operate the Newport Chemical Agent Disposal Facility.

Leaky valves caused the spill June 10 in the toxic cubicle, where it was contained without injury to workers, the public or the environment.

"The valves were removed and reassembled. The valves themselves were not replaced, just the gaskets/diaphragms," Rife said.

The leak was in a monitor that feeds nerve agent VX into the reactor, where it is mixed with hot sodium hydroxide and water during neutralization, Rife said.

The temporary suspension of neutralization allowed the Army and Parsons to conduct "lessons learned classes" this week for every shift of workers.

Rife shared some of the results of the employee meetings.

"The supervisors answered questions and provided information to the workers, and the workers offered suggestions to management," Rife said. "Operators suggested better positioning of the existing closed circuit cameras in the toxic cubicle to improve process monitoring."

The toxic cubicle is the sealed containment area of the facility.

"There was a recommendation to establish a satellite inventory of personal protective equipment to improve response time for entries in the toxic cubicle," Rife said. "One suggestion already implemented was to install a spreadsheet in the control room with contact names and phone numbers to facilitate data exchange with the site laboratory. All of the suggestions are being evaluated and prioritized for possible action or implementation."

The Newport Chemical Depot manufactured VX for the U.S. defense stockpile from 1962-1968. In 1969, then President Nixon issued a unilateral decree halting production of chemical weapons, including the last two lots of VX produced at Newport.

The Army has protected and guarded the 1,269 tons of VX stored at the Chemical Depot since then without incident.

"Our top priority is the safety of the surrounding communities, site personnel and the environment," Col. Jesse L. Barber has said. Barber is Chemical Materials Agency program manager for alternative technologies and approaches.

Destruction of VX began May 5. As of June 11, using the neutralization technology, about 3,079 gallons of VX had been destroyed. The destruction process is expected to last about 30 months.

VX hydrolysate, a caustic waste product of neutralization, requires further treatment before final disposal. VX destruction is expected to produce about 3 million to 4 million gallons of hydrolysate, which is currently being stored in special tanks at the site. Barber said the preferred method of disposal is off-site treatment at a commercial hazardous waste treatment facility. Environmental groups have opposed relocation of the hydrolysate, and Barber said in January if for any reason it can't be moved, the Army has options for on-site treatment.

A planned shut down is expected 75 days after operations began, Barber has said. He said the maintenance shutdowns and occasional neutralization suspensions are built into the planned 30-month destruction program.

A drop of VX about the size of a BB can kill in minutes, the Army has said.

The Newport Chemical Depot is about 30 miles north of Terre Haute.

Patricia Pastore can be reached at (812)231- 4271 or pat.pastore@tribstar.com.

Story created Jun 21, 2005 - 11:55:23 CDT