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U.S. Army Considering Alternatives for Treating VX Neutralization Byproduct
The U.S. Army is considering alternative disposal methods for a major byproduct of chemical weapons destruction at the Newport Chemical Depot in Indiana, the Indianapolis Tribune-Star reported yesterday (see GSN, Oct. 14). A Dayton, Ohio, waste treatment facility had originally been selected to dispose of the hydrolysate byproduct, but that plan was dropped this week in the face of local opposition. Hundreds of thousands of gallons of hydrolysate are expected to be created when the Army begins neutralizing its VX nerve agent stocks at Newport. The Army still supports treating the hydrolysate off-site, said Col. Jesse Barber, a project manager at the Army Chemical Materials Agency. The Army is examining shipping the byproduct to other waste treatment facilities, he said. One option being considered if the hydrolysate cannot be immediately removed off-site for treatment is the construction of a tank farm at the depot, said Army site project manager Jeff Brubaker. Contractors are expected to send proposals for installing such equipment to Parsons Engineering, the Newport depot’s lead contractor, by Oct. 24, Brubaker said. Another option is on-site treatment of the hydrolysate by “supercritical water oxidation,” he said. A plan of action for the neutralization of VX stockpiles at the Newport depot is expected to be announced before the end of next month, the Tribune-Star reported (Patricia Pastore, Indianapolis Tribune-Star, Oct. 16).
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