Tests have revealed significant levels of mercury contamination in some of the storage containers and munitions, which the Army is destroying at the nearby Tooele Chemical Agent Disposal Facility.

For mustard gas containers that are not contaminated with mercury, the Army will continue to use its customary disposal process, which consists of draining and incinerating the containers.

For mercury-laden containers, the Army will drain the mustard gas out of the containers, then wash them out. The drained agent will be processed in a liquid incinerator with a mercury filtration system. The washout water will be neutralized and the mercury will be removed from it, according to the Army Chemical Materials Agency.

The Army is in the process of destroying its stockpile of Cold War-era chemical weapons that are stored around the country.