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Newport Depot Faces Early CW Processing Problems
Troubles at the U.S. Army’s Newport Chemical Agent Disposal Facility have forced the Indiana plant to suspend work for nearly half of its six-month operating life, the Indianapolis Star reported last week (see GSN, Nov. 7). The cause of the latest problem — the spill of nearly 500 gallons of wastewater produced during VX nerve agent processing — has yet to be determined. This was the third spill at the depot since processing began in May. It forced the site’s second suspension of weapons disposal. Depot spokeswoman Terry Arthur said that valves on processing equipment — which were linked to the previous spills — are not believed to have caused the latest incident. “We're looking at pipes, flanges, gaskets and all kinds of joints,” she said. The Army, site contractor Parsons Corp., watchdog groups and residents close to the plant expressed little concern by the spills. Newport officials said the spills were contained in a specially designed room and posed no danger to the public or depot workers. Army Chemical Materials Agency spokesman Jeffrey Linblad said troubles at the site don’t stem from problems with technology or processes, because the facility has successfully proven it can destroy nerve agent. Similar unexpected problems have occurred at other processing facilities, Lindblad said. The Army still expects to meet a November 2007 deadline to destroy all the VX at the site. Officials hope the facility is back on line by January and will be capable of processing four VX containers a day. “It's going to take what it takes,” Arthur said. “We are doing it slowly and deliberately.” Others expect the delays to continue. “I think there is going to be a long string of these (delays),” said Leonard Akers, who lives near the facility. “I think this is just a preview of coming attractions.” Thomas Linson, permitting branch head at the Indiana Environmental Management Department land-quality office, said he is concerned about getting the nerve agent destroyed on time. “The timeline probably is the overarching concern. It's in everybody's interest to get the VX destroyed as soon as possible, but we want it to occur safely,” he said (Tammy Webber, Indianapolis Star, Nov. 5).
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