The U.S. Army's Chemical Materials Agency (CMA) is the world leader in programs to store, treat, and dispose of chemical weapons safely and effectively. The agency develops and uses technologies to safely store and eliminate chemical weapons while protecting the public, its workers and the environment. CMA was created to incorporate the former Program Manager for Chemical Demilitarization and portions of the U.S. Army Soldier and Biological Chemical Command into one agency. This streamlines operations and allows for greater integration of these programs. More information on the organization is available at About CMA.

ANCDF resumes mustard operations

The Anniston Chemical Agent Disposal Facility at the Anniston Army Depot resumed chemical munitions demilitarization operations on Thursday, July 2, 2009.

Conrad F. Whyne, CMA director, said, “We reviewed the efforts the Anniston team accomplished prior to their beginning operations. And we also reviewed the pre-operational reviews. We have concluded ANCA and ANCDF employees are ready and prepared to resume safe demilitarization operations.”

Mustard is the last type of chemical weapon left in the arsenal at the Anniston Army Depot.

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These two CAMDS veterans have seen it all -

CAMDS has not only provided most of the technology now used at CMA’s stockpile sites, it has also showcased the commitment and skill of its employees. Two of its longest-serving are Douglas Peirce, a surety worker at CAMDS who started in 1979, and Ronnie Wilson who joined him in 1980 and is now DCD’s CSEPP coordinator.

In their early years, they tested ways to neutralize GB and VX nerve agent on an industrial scale and worked on the first bench-scale model Liquid Incinerator. This led to the development of a range of prototypes from incineration technologies to rocket and projectile cutting as well as secondary waste solutions. Peirce and Wilson also helped with testing ACWA’s destruction process, and the equipment used to destroy NSCMP’s Category 3 treaty items.

When asked what was the scariest thing that ever happened at CAMDS, Ronnie Wilson answered, “It was in 1980 when we were told that the facility would be closed in two years.”

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Environmental Forum XVI

The Environmental Forum XVI will be held in Portland, Ore., August 25-26, 2009. Registration packets will be sent to invitees in the coming weeks. For more information, please call 443-402-9233.

Click here for more information

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The little railcar that could -

A vintage railcar, circa the early 1930s, performed many jobs before retiring to the Utah State Railroad Museum as a display. Like the chemical weapons it was connected to later in life, the railcar had a role in World War II as part of a mobile medical unit transporting soldiers to stateside hospitals. It was later used as a backup power source by the Air Force Mobile Medical Attachment before arriving at CAMDS in 1974.

The railcar’s role at CAMDS was to be part of a transportable unit that could move from site to site, destroying chemical weapons. However, the concept of a transportable system evolved into a permanent facility, and the railcar served as a backup power supply to the Pollution Abatement System until 1993. With CAMDS’ closure in sight, workers became increasingly concerned about the railcar’s fate and urged to have it retired to the Railroad Museum, where it was relocated last year.

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8/25/2009 Pueblo, CO	Mustard Agent Vapor Detected  [56KB pdf] At approximately 9:46 a.m. today, during normal chemical monitoring operations, chemical workers detected a low level of mustard agent vapor inside a munitions storage structure storing 105 mm projectiles at Pueblo Chemical Depot.
8/21/2009 Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD	Non-Stockpile operations at Pine Bluff Arsenal  [473KB pdf] The U.S. Army Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Project (NSCMP) currently manages two operations at Pine Bluff Arsenal (PBA), Ark.
8/20/2009 Tooele, UT	DCD Monthly Update  [955KB pdf] Deseret Chemical Depot update for August 2009
8/20/2009 Hermiston, OR	UMCDF Weekly Update  [152KB pdf] Umatilla Chemical Agent Disposal Facility weekly project update - August 20, 2009.
8/19/2009 Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD	Explosive Destruction System overview  [973KB pdf] The U.S. Army Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Project (NSCMP) designed the Explosive Destruction System (EDS) to provide on-site treatment of chemical warfare materiel in a safe, environmentally sound manner.
8/19/2009 Aberdeen Proving Ground-Edgewood Area, MD	Mobile Munitions Assessment System  [443KB pdf] The MMAS is a mobile system developed by the U.S. Army's NSCMP to provide detailed information on the contents of recovered but unidentified munitions (especially those that may contain chemical agents).
8/19/2009 Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD	Single CAIS Access and Neutralization System  [1,641KB pdf] The U.S. Army NSCMP developed the SCANS, a hand-held, chemical treatment container used to access and treat CAIS items containing the chemical agents mustard (H) or lewisite (L).
8/19/2009 Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD	Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Project Overview  [1,150KB pdf] The Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Project (NSCMP) provides centralized management and direction to the Department of Defense for the disposal of non-stockpile chemical materiel in a safe, environmentally sound and cost-effective manner.
8/18/2009 Pine Bluff, AR	PBCA/PBCDF Weekly Update  [246KB pdf] Pine Bluff Chemical Agent Disposal Facility weekly project update for August 11, 2009 through August 17, 2009.
8/13/2009 Hermiston, OR	UMCDF Weekly Update  [193KB pdf] Umatilla Chemical Agent Disposal Facility weekly project update for August 13, 2009
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