CBRNE Munitions and Field Operations
ECBC performs global CB operations in a safe, secure and environmentally sound manner by providing a broad range of field deployable operations for the remediation of CB agents and other sensitive materials. ECBC’s deployable lab services provide near real-time detection of airborne contaminants using automated continuous monitoring systems that satisfy site-specific requirements. Fully functional, transportable laboratories provide critical onsite analysis of air, water and soil samples utilizing state-of-the-art analytical instrumentation to monitor for chemical and biological warfare agents, as well as their breakdown products. In addition, ECBC installs, operates and maintains a broad range of engineering-controlled vapor containment shelters, as well as decontamination, neutralization and destruction systems. ECBC subject matter experts also sustain CB filtration systems used in surety laboratories and field operations.
Expertise and/or capabilities:
Weapons Elimination
Latest News:
A year of successful support in Australia
ECBC's Chemical Biological Applications & Risk Reductions (CBARR) Business Unit’s commitment to global chemical and biological operational support has brought CBARR to two sites in Australia in support of the Australian Department of Defence (ADoD) – the former Columboola Depot and Defence Site Maribyrnong (DSM). Collaborative relationships under multiple cooperative research and development agreements (CRADA) were established with various Australian firms in order to execute the missions.
Beginning in December 2009, the CBARR team supported the ADoD at Columboola, Queensland. The Columboola project took more than two years to complete and had several phases.
“The CBARR team has diligently put in months worth of work away from their families in support of the Australian government’s mission to eliminate chemical hazards in their country,” Timothy Blades, deputy director of ECBC’s Directorate of Program Integration and CBARR Operations Director said.
Initially, 144 munitions previously unearthed at Columboola and were identified as artillery shells containing mustard agent. CBARR worked with the U.S. Army Chemical Materials Agency to support munitions assessment in preparation of destruction. A subsequent deployment by CBARR destroyed the munitions using an Explosive Destruction Technology from February to May 2011.
Near the end of the investigative survey a 100-lb. bomb was discovered, which previously contained mustard agent. Luckily, it was determined to only contain residual contamination and the CBARR team successfully decontaminated the contents prior to final site demobilization.
As summer ended, CBARR concluded their work at Columboola and moved on to their second project – DSM, located near Melbourne.
In September 2012, ECBC’s CBARR team began performing an assessment and investigation of the DSM site used by the Defence Science Technology Office (DSTO). The DSTO previously operated out of 44 buildings for approximately 50 years with chemical agent laboratories supporting the research and development chemical warfare agent and related materials. These buildings are no longer operational and must be rendered safe.
The ECBC CBARR team will be working with the ADoD and Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, while partnering with Golder Associates to complete the assessment and ultimate decommimissing of the former laboratories through the winter of 2013.
“ECBC offers the ADoD professional staff and state-of-the-art equipment to safely and effectively perform agent operations making not just their country safer, but the entire world,” Blades said.
CBARR surprasses customer expectations
The Chemical Biological Applications & Risk Reduction (CBARR) Business Unit epitomizes why the U.S. Army Edgewood Chemical Biological Center (ECBC) is able to meet the needs of customers while surpassing expectations: Teamwork.
Drawing resources from the Center’s Research and Technology (R&T) Directorate and Engineering Directorate, the Directorate of Program Integration (DPI), under which CBARR falls, utilized talented in-house scientists and engineers to collaboratively support test efforts to evaluate the efficiency of biological decontamination products on hardened military equipment. The Joint Project Manager Protection (JPM P) awarded the project to CBARR, who provided the customer with test results that will be used to successfully identify the general purpose decontaminants that meet their needs for moving forward with the acquisition process.
“The success is in the great teamwork. While the testing is ongoing, ECBC has consolidated and fortified the Center’s potential for future biological decontamination efficacy work. It’s a win-win for all,” said Deborah Menking, CBARR project manager.
ECBC provides customers with unparalleled expertise that stretches across three directorates, offering integrated Chemical Biological (CB) solutions in a safe, secure and environmentally sound manner. For the JPM P project, the Engineering Directorate manufactured the test bed materials while R&T produced and tested the Vaccinia virus. DPI was then able to perform the biological efficacy decontamination testing for the bacterial spore and vegetative cell.
In order to accomplish customer goals, the Center designed test procedures and methodologies for the decontamination of five vendor products using three biological microorganisms – B. anthracis Sterne spores, Pantoea agglomerans vegetative cell and Vaccinia virus Western Reserve – to test on five military-relevant materials. Challenge amounts of biological agent were dispensed onto the test bed materials and decontaminated, followed by extraction and a quantitative analysis comparing the pre-and post-contamination levels on the materials. These test methods and protocols were also verified and validated by previous CBARR work.
“ECBC offers a seamless beginning-to-end process for any kind of CB research, development and analysis. We have the capability to conduct research and turn our results into a practical, life-saving solution for the warfighter,” said Menking.
ECBC supports Albanian Armed Forces in Tirana
In the heart of the Mediterranean along the Adriatic Sea in Southeastern Europe, a two-star general in the Albanian Armed Forces sat down and had coffee with ECBC’s Chemical Biological Applications & Risk Reduction (CBARR) Business Unit. It was less of a formal meeting and more of a grateful exchange between the two parties. The high-ranking general thanked CBARR for providing the team of experts and necessary equipment to safely carry out the destruction of a recently discovered stockpile of chemical warfare agents (CWA). CBARR personnel were appreciative of the opportunity to develop relationships and create a successful working partnership with Albanian laboratory personnel.
“We were incredibly appreciative of the on-site rapport we developed with the Albanian laboratory staff,” said Ray Diberardo, CBARR project manager. “We were able to establish a good working relationship that enabled us to execute the operation in a safe and environmentally sound manner.”
The collaborative effort between the Central Laboratory, Logistics Brigade and Albanian Armed Forces led to the successful destruction of 11 chemical agents during a two-week project in July. CBARR personnel implemented a proven, environmentally sound infrastructure in Tirana, setting up all of the analytical capabilities and engineering controls that ensured the safe destruction of CWAs.
“The challenge of working in foreign country is being able to communicate and work effectively with laboratory and support personnel,” said Diberardo. “It was a natural partnership with the Albanians. We are happy to have the opportunity to provide support and lead international efforts.”
Prior to destruction, CBARR personnel assessed the conditions of the work site and designated locations for storage, detoxification and analysis of the chemical agents. Once the site passed a pre-operations survey by senior team members that verified all supplies and safety protocols were in place, a chemical analysis was conducted on each of the agents to confirm chemical identity, quantify chemical concentrations and establish a baseline for which destruction goals could be measured.
The operation in Albania demonstrates CBARR’s ability to provide chemical and biological solutions for customers worldwide as it leads ECBC’s mission to meet evolving CBRNE defense needs in a safe and secure manner.
Deployable T-30 makes first trip to the west coast, safely destroy munitions in city setting
Piers 90 and 91 of the former Naval Supply Depot in Seattle can get busy in April, the time when cruise ships depart for Alaska and fishing vessels travel to the Pacific Ocean. The northernmost port in the contiguous U.S. was more than just a populous city last April, it was home to ECBC’s Chemical Biological Applications & Risk Reduction (CBARR) Business Unit.
For three weeks, CBARR personnel supported the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District, in a remediation project that included the on-site destruction of conventional recovered munitions at the Port of Seattle. Remedial investigation of the non-chemical munitions was required to determine the nature of the munitions and the extent of the explosives in order to executive proper response actions.
This was the first time the 160,000-pound Transportable Detonation Chamber T-30, which is owned by the U.S. Army and operated by CBARR, was deployed on a long distance mission to the west coast. The T-30 is a mobile, contained detonation chamber that destroys munitions in a safe and environmentally sound manner, and was critical to the success of the operation in the densely populated port city of Seattle.
“That’s what CBARR brings to the table. Our experienced personnel are able to mobilize and setup a site very quickly thereby lowering the costs to our customers,” said Ray DiBerardo, CBARR project manager. “Utilizing a transportable system is a huge asset that enables us to provide a one step destruction solution of conventional munitions to customers anywhere and the high throughput allows us stay on schedule to meet their needs.”
One five-inch Navy projectile and multiple three-inch, five-inch and 40-millimeter casings were safely destroyed on-site by the T-30 during the three-day operation at one of the busiest ports crucial to the U.S. economy. An improved detonation process and particulate filter system optimized system performance, which integrated recent advancements in fragmentation control and donor charge design. Secondary wastes were also limited and no liquid process wastes resulted from the T-30 operation.
