Army delays VX destruction

Review board to observe test in October to determine if military is ready

By Patricia L. Pastore/Tribune-Star

August 24, 2004

The Army is delaying the start of VX destruction until 190 operational and safety issues raised by a review board during a test earlier this month are addressed.

About 1,269 tons of this deadly nerve agent is stored at the Newport Army Chemical Depot in Newport. A drop of VX the size of a BB may be lethal in minutes.

VX destruction is expected to be pushed back until between October through December, said Jeff Lindblad, Chemical Materials Agency spokesman, on Monday.

"Of the 190 observations we began with earlier this month, we have 156 remaining to complete and verify," said Jeff Brubaker. Army site project manager.

He said each observation was assessed to determine if it must be corrected before starting operations or if it can be completed once operations have begun.

"We took the conservative approach and determined that the vast majority of the observations need to be completed prior to starting operations," Brubaker said.

The Commissioning Review Board, which consists of members of the Army Safety Office, federal Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other representatives, is expected to return to observe another test in October to determine if the Army is ready to destroy the nerve agent stockpile at Newport, Lindblad said.

Recommendations being worked on, according to Lindblad, include:

-- Tighter integration of emergency response plans with other depot agencies.

-- Enhanced storage of personal protective equipment.

-- Adding or relocating air monitoring devices to ensure overlapping coverage.

-- Enhanced backup power source for laboratory.

-- Repairing a problem with condensation dripping from air-conditioning duct in laboratory.

"We are working on each item aggressively, but will not begin operations until all observations are completed and verified," Brubaker said. "Additionally, we are committed to not begin operations until we have the reports from the Centers for Disease Control. I believe safety is most important even if a schedule delay results."

The Army still is addressing the safe transportation and disposal of the 4 million gallons of caustic VX hydrolysate, the anticipated byproduct yielded by VX neutralization.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is preparing an assessment of its recommendation regarding the Army's plans for the safe transportation and disposal of the hydrolysate.

The Army plans to take the caustic waste to New Jersey, where DuPont will further treat it before dumping it into the Delaware River.

Citizens and citizens' groups from New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware are fighting the plan to dispose of the hydrolysate there.

Brubaker said Tuesday the Army has storage tanks for the VX toxic waste but VX destruction won't begin until the CDC report is in hand.

"Hopefully there will be no showstoppers identified in the CDC report," he said.

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