ARMY AL&T
We will remain vigilant and keep safety—the safety of our workers, our communities, and our environment—at the forefront of this important national and international mission.
stockpiles, so another CMA mission area—the Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Project (NSCMP)—destroys these chemical weapons and materiel, referred to as “non-stockpile” chemi- cal materiel. When suspect chemical warfare materiel is recovered, NSCMP personnel are engaged to assess the content and condition of the mate- riel and assist in ultimate destruction determinations. NSCMP also has the responsibility of destroying facilities and equipment that were used to pro- duce chemical agent. This effort was safely completed in 2006, ahead of schedule and the CWC requirements.
CMA also partners with the Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (ACWA) program, a separate DOD program responsible for destroying the stockpiles in Pueblo, CO, and Richmond, KY. While ACWA will destroy those weap- ons per congressional direction, CMA is responsible for the safe and secure storage of those stockpiles.
The Army and the Federal Emergency Management Agency established the Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program (CSEPP)—a CMA responsibility—to help pro- tect residents who live and work near the Army installations in the event of a chemical accident or incident. Key components of the program include emergency planning, training, public outreach and education, exercises, med- ical preparedness and response, public alert and notifi cation, and communi- cations. CSEPP has a federal statutory requirement to remain active in an area until the stockpile stored there is com- pletely destroyed.
Each CONUS stockpile site has a Citizen’s Advisory Commission (CAC) consisting of nine members, including seven governor-appointed citizens who live in areas near destruction operations and two state governor representatives with direct responsibilities related to the chemical demilitarization program. The
CAC meets at least twice per year and Army representatives attend and par- ticipate in those meetings. Other key CMA stakeholders include the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the EPA, the National Research Council, and state regulators.
Continuing Mission CMA estimates that 1,582 tons of chemical agent had already been destroyed by the time the United States ratifi ed the CWC on April 29, 1997. When the United States signed the treaty, they, along with 86 other nations, agreed to destroy all their chemical weapons and former chemical weapons production facilities within a predetermined timeline. Today, more than 180 nations have ratifi ed the CWC, and CMA has destroyed more than 21,000 tons of chemical agents.
The Army and CMA are safely work- ing toward meeting the 2012 CWC deadline. CMA has overcome many obstacles throughout the years and remains committed to the safe destruc- tion of all the chemical weapons at their four operating destruction sites.
“We have a lot of work to do, many years to go. We have achieved many sig- nifi cant milestones, but there are many more milestones to achieve before we declare our mission complete,” Whyne said. “We will remain vigilant and keep safety—the safety of our workers, our communities, and our environment— at the forefront of this important national and international mission.”
ARGIE SARANTINOS-PERRIN is a Communications Specialist with Science Applications International Corp. under contract with the CMA. She holds a B.A. in mass communications and is pursuing an M.S. in professional writ- ing from Towson University.
PBCDF munitions handlers watch the last Enhanced Onsite Container carrying VX M55 rockets being lifted by an overhead crane into the disposal facility’s container-handling building. (U.S. Army photo courtesy of CMA.)
62 APRIL –JUNE 2010
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72
