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Anniston CW Disposal Facility to Shut Down for Four Months to Prepare for VX Processing
After completing the destruction of sarin-filled 105mm shells, workers at the Anniston Chemical Agent Disposal Facility in Alabama will start a four-month process to ready the facility to destroy VX weapons, the Anniston Star reported (see GSN, Sept. 28). Processing of VX is expected to start in June, according to the Star. “They look the same as the GB [sarin] rockets, they just have a different agent in them,” said Tim Garrett, the Army’s project manager at the facility, of the VX-filled weapons. “We’re going to have to retool the equipment.” Workers are expected to install an additional 50 chemical monitors to check for VX. Equipment is also expected to be cleaned with a decontamination solution, and samples from around the facility will be taken to ensure all sarin was destroyed. “From a monitoring perspective, you do not want to deal with two agents at one time,” said Garrett. “You want to eliminate the possibility of GB (sarin) at all times.” The furnace where the weapons are destroyed will be heated to ensure all sarin was destroyed and then, once cooled, will be inspected. The machine that destroys rockets will be adjusted to destroy VX weapons. Finally, the incinerator that burns the nerve agent will be inspected to verify all sarin has been destroyed, according to the Star. After work on the equipment is finished, the Army Chemical Materials Agency will check to make sure it is in good working order before VX destruction begins (Brian Lyman, Anniston Star, Nov. 27).
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