NON-STOCKPILE CHEMICAL WEAPONS

[jjohnson@pmcd.apgea.army.mil]

From: "Joseph T. Johnson" <jjohnson@pmcd.apgea.army.mil>

 ******WARNING: THIS IS A LONG FILE ******

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY

Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement: Destruction of Non-Stockpile 
Chemical Warfare Materiel Containing Chemical Agent

AGENCY: Department of the Army, Department of Defense

ACTION: Notice of Intent
________________________________________________________________________

SUMMARY: The Department of the Army announces its intent to prepare a 
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) on the destruction of 
chemical warfare materiel (CWM) containing chemical agent and to initiate 
the public scoping process for the PEIS. The PEIS is being prepared in 
accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), as amended.

The U. S. Army's Program Manager for Chemical Demilitarization has the 
responsibility for the destruction of the nation's chemical warfare materiel.
The Program Manager has established project managers to accomplish this 
goal. The Project Manager for Chemical Stockpile Disposal is responsible
for destroying the stockpile of unitary chemical weapons in the Department
of Defense/Department of Army inventory (called stockpile). The PEIS for
destroying the stockpile materiel was completed in 1988, and the destruction
program is in progress at two locations, Johnston Island in the Pacific and 
Tooele, Utah. The Project Manager for Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel 
(NSCM) is responsible for destroying all other CWM (called non-stockpile) 
within the United States and its territories.

The PEIS is specifically concerned with the following CWM containing 
chemical agent under the auspices of the Project Manager for Non-Stockpile 
Materiel: (1) CWM from former test ranges and burial sites once it is 
recovered; (2) CWM that has already been recovered and is currently in 
storage; and (3) research, development, test and evaluation (RD&TE) materiel 
used in CWM development and pre-production processes. Presently, materiel 
are either known to exist or possibly exist at 68 locations in 31 states, 
the Virgin Islands, and Johnston Island in the Pacific Ocean.

To achieve the destruction of chemical agent contained in the CWM 
considered in this PEIS, the Army proposes to select one or more strategies 
that (1) provide protection for human health, safety, and the environment 
and (2) enable the U. S. to comply with the requirements of the Chemical 
Weapons Convention. The selection of one or more strategies is needed by 
the Army in order to focus resources on, and provide for, a future 
destruction capability. The Non-Stockpile PEIS will analyze the potential 
environmental consequences of various alternative strategies that will meet 
these objectives.

Strategy components that could be used in alternative development may 
include any or all of the following: treatment, transportation and/or 
destruction/disposal. The preliminary alternatives that the Army is 
considering for analysis include: (1) onsite chemical treatment of CWM with
offsite destruction of the resultant wastes either by thermal destruction 
or another disposal method; (2) onsite chemical treatment and onsite 
destruction/disposal of chemical treatment wastes (3) onsite thermal 
destruction; (4) offsite chemical treatment and/or thermal destruction or 
another disposal method; and (5) no action, which is defined as a continuation
of the current methods for handling these types of CWM, including 
safely packing, shipping and storing CWM at permitted locations..

DATES: Written and oral comments on alternative strategies and their 
components (treatment, storage, transportation, and destruction/disposal) 
and the important environmental issues that should be evaluated in the PEIS
are invited. Comments should be provided by February 28, 1997 to ensure
consideration. Comments received after this date will be considered to 
the extent practicable.

To facilitate public participation and comment on the proposed scope of 
the PEIS, the Army will hold five regional public scoping meetings in the
vicinity of Tampa, Florida; Newport, Indiana; Huntsville, Alabama; Salt 
Lake City, Utah; and San Antonio, Texas. The specific dates, times, and
locations of these meetings will be announced in a separate Federal Register 
notice, by letter, and in appropriate news media. Repositories containing 
information on the NSCM program and the PEIS will be established at these
and other locations and will be identified in local media announcements.

ADDRESSES: Written comments on the scope of the PEIS should be sent to 
Program Manager for Chemical Demilitarization, ATTN: SFAE-CD-NP 
(Mr. Dragunas/PEIS), Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD 21010-5401. Comments on 
the scope of the PEIS may also be made by calling the toll-free telephone 
number 1-800-410-9901.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Program Manager for Chemical 
Demilitarization, ATTN: SFAE-CD-NP (Mr. Dragunas/PEIS), Aberdeen Proving 
Ground, MD 21010-5401. Requests for further information may also be 
made by calling the toll-free telephone number 1-800-410-9901.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, 
Stockpiling, and Use of the Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction, 
or Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), requires the destruction of all CWM. 
The U.S. Army, as Executive Agent for the Department of Defense is responsible
for ensuring that Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel is destroyed in a safe, 
environmentally sound and cost-effective manner. The U. S. and over 150 
nations signed the CWC on January 13, 1993, and they and the U. S. are 
working toward ratification.

Buried CWM can be dated back to World War I. The practice of burying 
leaking or obsolete CWM in the past was an acceptable method of disposal. 
Often burial was accompanied by draining and decontamination. Therefore, 
the CWM underwent a form of destruction. In other cases, intact munition
s were simply buried. These techniques reduced the risk to the public.
These approaches sometimes resulted in incomplete and/or partial 
destruction. However, in certain situations, based on site specific 
determinations, current technological limitations, and stakeholder input, 
leaving the buried CWM in the ground may be preferable to excavation and 
destruction.

Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Program

The Project Manager for NSCM is responsible for the destruction of all
CWM containing chemical agent in the U. S. and its territories not included
in the nation's unitary stockpile of chemical weapons and chemical agent.
Different types of NSCM include: (1) CWM from former test ranges and
burial sites once it is recovered; (2) CWM that has already been recovered
and is in storage: (3) binary chemical weapons and components; (4) former
chemical weapon production facilities; (5) miscellaneous chemical warfare
materiel.

This PEIS will focus on those specific types of NSCM that require similar
 decisions as to their destruction strategies. These include (a) CWM from
former test ranges and burial sites once it is recovered; (b) CWM that has
already been recovered and is in storage and (c) the research, development,
test and evaluation materiel portion of the miscellaneous materiel=2E 
Decisions concerning destruction strategies for binary chemical weapons
and components; former production facilities; and the remainder of the
miscellaneous materiel are independent of this PEIS and undergo appropriate
levels of environmental review. These latter actions are independent
because they consist mainly of demolition, recycling and /or disposal 
operations that use completely different destruction strategies than those
under consideration in this PEIS and they do not contain chemical agent.

In accordance with Section 176 of 1993 Defense Authorization Act, the 
NSCMP has prepared a Survey and Analysis Report (1993), that identifies the
locations, types, and quantities of NSCM. Since the issuance of the Report,
the number of locations, types, and quantities of NSCM continue to be
updated. The tables included with this notice lists the sites where CWM
is presently known or could possibly exist. The Army continues to review
historical documents and data to assess sites where past actions may have
resulted in disposal of CWM by burial.

Table 1. LOCATIONS WITH KNOWN OR POSSIBLE BURIED CHEMICAL WARFARE 
 MATERIEL1

Alabama
Camp Sibert
Fort McClellan
Redstone Arsenal

Alaska
Cape Yakak Radio Station
Chichagof Harbor
Fort Wainwright
Gerstle River Expansion Area
Gerstle River Test Site
Unalaska Island

Arizona
Camp Navajo
Yuma Proving Ground

Arkansas
Fort Chaffee
Pine Bluff Arsenal
Southwestern Proving Ground

California
Edwards Air Force Base
Fort Ord
Santa Rosa Army Air Field

Colorado
Pueblo Army Activity
Rocky Mountain Arsenal

Florida
Brooksville Army Air Field
MacDill Air Force Base
Withlacoochee

Georgia 
Fort Benning
Fort Gillem

Hawaii
Kipapa Ammunition Storage
Schofield Army Barracks

Illinois
Fort Sheridan
Savanna Army Depot Activity

Indiana
Camp Atterbury
Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division
Newport Chemical Activity

Iowa
Camp Dodge

Kentucky
Blue Grass Army Depot
Fort Knox

Louisiana
Camp Claiborne
England Air Force Base
Fort Polk

Maryland
Aberdeen Proving Ground
Fort Meade

Massachusetts
Fort Devens

Michigan
Chemical Warfare Development Division

Mississippi
Camp Van Dorn
Columbus Army Airfield =

Missouri
Camp Crowder

Nevada
Hawthorne Army Depot

New Jersey
Fort Hancock
Naval Air Warfare Center, Lakehurst
Raritan Arsenal

New Mexico
Fort Wingate Depot Activity

New York
Camp Hero

North Carolina
Camp Lejeune
Laurinburg-Maxton Army Air Base

Ohio
Cleveland Plant
Ravenna Army Ammunition Plant

Oregon
Umatilla Depot Activity

South Carolina
Charleston Naval Weapons Station

South Dakota
Black Hills Ordnance Depot

Tennessee
Defense Depot Memphis

Texas
Camp Bullis
Camp Stanley Storage Activity

U.S. Virgin Islands
Water Island

Utah
Dugway Proving Ground (Formerly Used Defense Site)
Dugway Proving Ground
Tooele Army Depot
Wendover Bombing and Gunnery Range

1. Based on a U.S. Army Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Program Survey 
and Analysis Report November 1993 updated data base which is unpublished.

Table 2. LOCATIONS WITH RECOVERED CHEMICAL WARFARE MATERIEL AND RESEARCH,
 DEMONSTRATION, TESTING, AND EVALUATION MATERIEL1

Alabama
Anniston Army Depot
Redstone Arsenal

Alaska
Fort Richardson

Arkansas
Pine Bluff Arsenal

Colorado
Pueblo Army Activity
Rocky Mountain Arsenal

Johnston Island

Kentucky
Blue Grass Army Depot

Maryland
Aberdeen Proving Ground

Oregon
Umatilla Depot Activity

Texas
Camp Bullis

Utah
Dugway Proving Ground
Tooele Army Depot

1. Based on a U.S. Army Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Program Survey 
and Analysis Report November 1993 updated data base which is unpublished.

To achieve the destruction of certain types of CWM, the Army proposes to 
select and implement strategies that (1) provide the highest levels of 
protection for human health, safety, and the environment and (2) enable the
U. S. to comply with the requirements of the Chemical Warfare Convention
=2E The PEIS will analyze the potential environmental consequences of 
various alternative strategies that will meet this need.

Components of a strategy could include any or all of the following: treat
ment, transportation, and/or destruction/disposal. The alternatives that 
the Army is considering at this time for analysis include: (1) onsite 
chemical treatment of CWM with offsite destruction of the resultant wastes
either by thermal destruction or another disposal method; (2) onsite 
chemical treatment and destruction of chemical treatment wastes (3) onsite 
thermal destruction; (4) offsite chemical treatment and/or thermal 
destruction or another disposal method; and (5) no action, which is defined 
as a continuation of the storage of recovered and RDT&E materiel, and the 
packaging, transportation and storage of future recovered buried CWM at 
permitted locations..

Decisions concerning whether sites should be excavated to recover possible
CWM and how sites should be cleaned up are the responsibility of 
installation/site authorities. These site-specific decisions will determine 
whether a selected strategy is appropriate for each specific location.

The preliminary strategies that have been identified for evaluation in the
PEIS are: 

Onsite Chemical Treatment and Offsite Destruction of Chemical Treatment 
Waste - Chemical agents in CWM would be chemically treated onsite. Waste
from chemical treatment and any other wastes such as metal body parts, 
would be packaged in accordance with appropriate transportation regulations
and the waste would then be transported offsite for thermal destruction or
another disposal method.

Onsite Chemical Treatment and Onsite Destruction/Disposal of Chemical 
Treatment Waste - Chemical agents in CWM would be chemically treated onsite.
Waste from chemical treatment would also be destroyed/disposed of onsite.
Any other waste such as metal body parts, from the on-site treatment 
would be packaged in accordance with appropriate transportation regulations
and then transported offsite for disposal.

Onsite Thermal Destruction - Chemical agents in CWM would be thermally 
destroyed onsite. Any waste from thermal destruction such as ash and/or 
metal body parts would be packaged in accordance with appropriate 
transportation regulations and the waste would then be transported offsite 
for disposal. 

Offsite Chemical Treatment and/or Offsite Thermal Destruction - CWM 
containing chemical agents would be packaged in accordance with appropriate 
transport regulations and then transported to an offsite location. The CWM
containing chemical agents would then be either chemically treated or 
thermally destroyed or disposed of by another method at the offsite location

No Action - CWM containing chemical agent already in storage and RDT&E 
materiel would continuation to be stored. CWM containing chemical agent 
recovered in the future would be packaged in accordance with appropriate 
transport regulations and then transported to an offsite location for long
term storage at a permitted location.

For all disposal alternatives, treated residual metal parts would likely 
be recycled or disposed of in accordance with applicable environmental 
regulations.

The PEIS, as currently envisioned, will not evaluate specific offsite/onsite
treatment and/or destruction/disposal locations under these strategies.
Should the Army select an offsite destruction/disposal strategy, further
environmental review would be required to determine the potential 
environmental consequences of implementing that strategy at that specific
location. The PEIS will also not evaluate onsite contamination. This 
contamination will be handled under established environmental 
remediation/restoration procedures and regulations.

The important environmental issues that have been identified on a 
preliminary basis for evaluation and analysis in the PEIS are: (1) the 
potential impacts of the alternative strategies on air quality, water 
resources, and land resources (2) the potential impacts to public 
health from the implementation of the destruction technologies; (3) 
the potential impacts to public health and safety from accidents that 
could occur during the handling, transport, storage, and destruction of 
CWM; and (4) the potential socioeconomic impacts of the alternative strategies.

Scoping Process

Scoping which is integral to the NEPA process, is a procedure that solicits
input to the EIS process to ensure that issues are identified early and
properly studied. Scoping commences after a decision is made to prepare
an EIS in order to provide an early and open process for determining the
scope of issues to be addressed and for identifying the significant issues
related to a proposed action. The scope of issues to be addressed in
the draft PEIS will be determined, in part, from written comments received
by mail and oral comments received and recorded by phone and at the poblic
meetings. The preliminary identification of alternatives and environmental
issues is not meant to be exhaustive or final. The Army considers the
scoping process to be open and dynamic in the sense that alternatives
other than those given above may warrant study and new matters may be
identified for potential evaluation.

The scoping process will include both interagency and public scoping. 
The public is invited to submit written comments or provide oral comments 
at a meeting or by phone to the addresses and phone numbers listed under 
the DATES section of this notice and/or attend a public meeting that will 
be announced in news media.

The Army will use the public input received during scoping to develop a 
Statement of Scope to guide preparation of the PEIS. After completion, 
the Statement of Scope will be made available to scoping participants and 
the public upon request. The draft PEIS prepared from the scoping process
will be made available for public review and comment. Notice of 
availability of the draft PEIS will be announced, written comments on the 
draft solicited, and information about possible public meeting to comment 
on the Draft will be published at a future date. The Army expects to release 
a final PEIS by mid-1999.
 

Raymond J. Fatz
Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army
(Environment, Safety and Occupational Health)