Members of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine met in Pueblo, Colorado, with Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA) leadership in November to receive updates on the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant and Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant (PCAPP).
The Standing Committee on Chemical Demilitarization provides independent oversight of the chemical demilitarization program and oversees studies in support of PEO ACWA, said Bruce Braun, director, Board on Army Science and Technology, which operates as part of the Academies.
The most recent study performed by the Academies for PCAPP is the hydrolysate report that reviewed potential alternatives to on-site treatment of hydrolysate in the event the biotreatment and water recovery system should fail to perform, said Greg Mohrman, site project manager, PCAPP.
“The report examined the technical aspects of the treatment system and recommended off-site shipment of hydrolysate should be examined and long-lead preparatory actions undertaken just in case,” said Braun.
“The value of conducting this meeting on site is that it gives the members a chance to interact with key technical and managerial personnel directly,” said Mohrman. “Members were able to tour our facility and get a first-hand view of the scale and complexity of the systems built to complete the stockpile mission.”
Braun said although the meetings are conducted in a not-for-attribution environment, the PEO ACWA sponsor takes notes from the discussions, advice and comments. The standing committee meets twice annually, alternating between Colorado and Kentucky.
