Newport VX Disposal Facility Begins Tests

The U.S. Army Newport Chemical Depot facility set up to dispose of VX nerve agent has begun six days of testing to prepare for the expected start of operations in September, the Associated Press reported yesterday (see GSN, June 22).

Workers at the Indiana depot are using water rather than chemicals to test the full neutralization process. The six-day test began Monday and ends tomorrow, AP reported.

The test is one of the last steps in the approval process for VX neutralization. Representatives from the Army, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Indiana Department of Environmental Management have been observing the dry run, said Col. Jesse Barber, a project manager for the Army Chemical Materials Agency.

“There have been a few minor comments coming back — things we can do to make our process better — but there have been no showstoppers,” Barber said.

Neutralization of the 1,269 tons of VX is expected to take 2 1/2 years (Rick Callahan, Associated Press/Newsday.com, July 15).

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