VX byproduct may be taken to New Jersey

By Patricia L. Pastore/Tribune-Star

December 20, 2003

The byproduct of VX neutralization may be headed to New Jersey, according to information obtained by the Tribune-Star on Friday.

DuPont Chambers Works waste water treatment plant in Deepwater, N.J., is the choice of Parsons Technology to treat and dispose of VX hydrolysate, the byproduct of VX neutralization, according to an environmental impact statement released by the Army on Friday.

The statement proposes neutralization of the entire stockpile of VX at the Newport Chemical Depot, with disposal of the hydrolysate at the New Jersey plant, which is permitted to treat and dispose of such liquid, the document states.

DuPont is the largest commercial hazardous waste treatment plant in the United States, said DuPont spokeswoman Michele Reardon.

Parsons Technologies Inc. is the contractor running the Newport Chemical Agent Disposal Facility for the Army.

"We have a request from Parsons to proceed with the VX hydrolysate off-site process," said Jim Mars, government administrative contracting officer for the Newport Chemical Agent Disposal Facility. "The Army is not yet ready to issue a contract because it is still reviewing the terms and conditions of the agreement as presented by Parsons, and also [is] waiting for a 30-day comment period for the legal notice published in New Jersey."

The legal notice, published Friday in "Today's Sunbeam," a Salem, N.J., newspaper, read, " ... this notice is to inform the public that the Army has completed its review of the health and environmental issues presented by the transportation of liquid effluent [hydrolysate] from the treatment of chemical agents at Newport, Indiana. The DuPont Chambers Works Plant in Deepwater, N.J., is being considered for possible treatment and disposal of this waste. The Army has determined that this transportation will have no significant impact on human health or the environment. Comments may be submitted to the Newport Chemical Stockpile Outreach ... ."

Parsons and the Army may be reviewing other commercial waste water treatment sites.

"New Jersey is the only place a legal notice was published," as of Friday, said Terry Arthur, Army spokeswoman.

More than 1,200 tons of nerve agent VX, the most deadly of Cold War weapons, is stored at the Newport Depot. An accelerated program start-up date to destroy VX has been delayed twice by the Army. The present target date to begin nerve agent neutralization is this spring, said Col. Jesse Barber, project manager of the Army's Alternative Technologies and Approaches Project.

The Army also released a Transportation Analysis for off-site treatment of VX hydrolysate from the Newport Chemical Agent Disposal Facility.

This document evaluates two transportation routes that show there is not expected to be an increased risk to the public or the environment from transporting the hydrolysate from Indiana to New Jersey.

DuPont already is testing methods to treat and dispose of the caustic VX hydrolysate.

"We are presently looking at VX waste and doing a treatability study," said Reardon, external affairs officer for DuPont Solutions. "We are confident we can treat it."

DuPont treats between 8 million and 12 million gallons of liquid waste a day, she said.

"We treat acidic wastes and caustic wastes in every pH range every day," said John Strait, DuPont Chamber Works plant manager.

Within the next 60 days, DuPont is expected to have the results of the VX hydrolysate tests.

A two-step treatment is planned for VX hydrolysate, said Todd Owens, a business manager at DuPont.

"We'll do a pre-treatment to get rid of the skunk-like odor and then use a type of biodegradation at the water treatment plant. Once the effluent is completely treated, it will make its way into the Delaware River."

The Transportation Analysis outlines procedures of transport along with safety measures of the plan, such as:

-- VX hydrolysate will be shipped in tractor-trailer trucks with two-driver teams to minimize any en route stops and to avoid layovers. Vacuum tankers will be used.

-- All drivers will have mobile communication systems that allow for immediately contacting the dispatch office for assistance.

-- Each tanker truck will be equipped with a global positioning system that will allow for monitoring of the vehicle's location along the route.

-- Drivers will be specially licensed to haul hazardous materials.

-- Trucks will follow the designated hazardous carrier route and will stop for any required inspections at monitoring stations.

The Army is giving particular attention to several factors, including: determining the best days and times for transportation; developing the transportation emergency response plan; and advance briefing/training of emergency response agencies and personnel along the transportation route, the analysis report stated.

The Revised Environmental Impact Statement and the Transportation Analysis are available to the public at the Chemical Disposal Facility Outreach office, 140 S. Main St., Newport. The office is open from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Patricia Pastore can be reached at (812)231-4333 or pat.pastore@tribstar.com.