CARNEYS POINT TWP. -- DuPont is upgrading its facilities for the ongoing disposal of neutralized mustard gas byproduct from the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, according to the company.
And while treatment of the waste at DuPont Chambers Works has been "flawless," the project has gone slower than expected, said Plant Manager John Strait.
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The company wants to install an additional filtration unit at its Wastewater Treatment Plant in Carneys Point because the hydrolysate from Aberdeen contains more solids than anticipated, according to Strait.
Recent tests of a sampling of cylinders at Aberdeen have detected solids in the waste such as dirt and rust solely from the decades-old containers, he said.
The new unit would allow DuPont to filter out any such solids before treatment, according to Strait, who compared it to "a filter at your sink." Strait said the upgrade was not substantial and would cost approximately $30,000, which DuPont would likely pay up front and be reimbursed for.
Strait said that the plant itself has seen no increase in solids via daily sampling, adding that it's not a serious situation if such solids did go through.
Effluent from the plant -- which processes more than 15 million gallons of wastewater daily -- is discharged into the Delaware River.
The proposed unit would not change the plant's maximum or minimum capacity or require changes to DuPont's discharge to surface water permit, according to a company abstract on the upgrade.
DuPont signed an agreement with U.S. Army contractor Bechtel National in May 2002 to treat the neutralized byproduct of liquid mustard agent. Neutralization began in April 2002 at Aberdeen and the first shipment came to Chambers Works that June. The destruction of the entire mustard agent stockpile at Aberdeen is expected to produce approximately 7 million gallons of wastewater.
The ongoing project is apparently behind its original schedule.
Because of safety considerations, emptying of canisters at Aberdeen went slower than expected early on, according to Strait. He expects to complete the project some time next year.
The instillation of the filtration unit has not held up the project, he said.
On Wednesday, members of the Carneys Point Township Committee unanimously approved a permit application for the upgrade.
The measure was a necessary step before the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection Agency approves DuPont's application for the upgrade, according to Solicitor John Jordan.
While the possible disposal of more than 1,200 tons of waste byproduct from Army plans to neutralize VX nerve agent in Indiana would also involve DuPont's Wastewater Treatment Plant, the upgrade is specifically related to the mustard gas project, according to Strait.
"This is completely related to the mustard gas," he said.