The U.S. Army began incinerating test materials Saturday at the Anniston Army Depot in Alabama in preparation for destroying chemical weapons stored there (see GSN, Feb. 15).

The test was the first conducted in a well-populated area, according to the Associated Press.  More than 72,000 people live within nine miles of the Anniston depot, which holds more than 2,200 tons of chemical munitions.  Residents near the depot have little to fear, said Anniston spokesman Mike Abrams.

The Army is using dummy rockets in a nine-day test that began Saturday, Abrams said.  The process of destroying actual chemical weapons will begin in September, the AP reported.

“We’ve already destroyed safely more than three times the amount of the chemicals we have stored here,” he said, referring to incineration projects at the Johnston Atoll in the Pacific Ocean and Tooele Chemical Agent Disposal Facility in Utah.

Some residents, however, said they are concerned that it would be impossible to evacuate the town if an accident does occur.

“If something goes out that smokestack and the siren goes off, it’s still gone,” said Brenda Lindell, a founder of Families Concerned About Nerve Gas Incineration.  “You can’t protect the public.  I think it’s crazy” (Jay Reeves, Associated Press/Deseret News, March 17).

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