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Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA)Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA)Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA)Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA)
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      Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA)


      Mission: The safe elimination of chemical weapons at Pueblo and Blue Grass by Sept. 30, 2023

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      Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant (BGCAPP)

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      PCAPP is safely destroying the chemical weapons stockpile currently in storage at the U.S. Army Pueblo Chemical Depot in Colorado.

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Pueblo Plant Technicians Sniff for Odors to Ensure Environmental Protection

Published: May 18, 2016 | Category: Environnment, PCAPP News, Technology
A monitoring technician uses a field olfactometer, a portable odor detecting and measuring device, to verify and determine the strength of odors at the Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant.

A monitoring technician uses a field olfactometer, a portable odor detecting and measuring device, to verify and determine the strength of odors at the Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant.

A group of Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant (PCAPP) monitoring technicians sniffs for and identifies odors from the facility to ensure the environmental protection of communities surrounding the U.S. Army Pueblo Chemical Depot.

“The purpose and importance of odor monitoring is to ensure the processes PCAPP uses do not disturb the public or create a nuisance,” said Robert Kinsman, senior monitoring technician.

Technicians use an instrument called a field olfactometer to help verify the odor and gauge how strong it is, Kinsman said. The technicians categorize odors in one of the following categories: medicinal, floral, fruity, vegetable, earthy, offensive, fishy or chemical.

“The team is looking for malodorous or suspicious odors,” said Will Reid, monitoring technician.

Regulatory limit is any odor identifiable as emanating from a PCAPP process detectable at the depot property boundary. When technicians discover scents near the odor detection threshold, follow-up actions are initiated to identify the source of the odor and mitigate it, said Paul Warbington, environmental manager.

The team of odor monitoring technicians performs three assessments a day, but when an odor is present, the frequency of patrols increases to determine the intensity, location and drift.

“The first step is to identify the location and cause of the odor and get operations staff to take measures to correct the condition,” Warbington said.

If the initial action does not eradicate the odor, a plant shift manager is notified to integrate the management team, engineering team and plant operators for mitigation.

“This may include measures up to and including shutting down the operation from where the odor is emanating,” Warbington said.

PCAPP procedure calls for measures to mitigate potential odor sources, including deferring potential odor causing activities during adverse climatic conditions and maintaining closed containers and process vessels, said Warbington.

More PCAPP Technology Articles

  • Agent-filled 4.2-inch mortar rounds are monitored during Static Detonation Chamber agent trial testing operations at the Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant.

    Static Detonation Chamber Trial Testing Concludes

    Published: May 13, 2022
  • After a chemical weapon is drained of agent and rinsed with high-pressure hot water, Agent Washwater Separator tanks collect fluid before sending it to Agent Neutralization Reactors to destroy the mustard agent. The Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant has two tanks, providing the plant with redundancy when neutralizing agent.

    Backup Systems Allow for Safe Repairs

    Published: March 28, 2022
  • All chemical weapons from the Colorado stockpile are sorted into four color-coded lots to reduce delays in destruction due to problematic munitions.

    Color Coding Boosts Chemical Weapon Destruction

    Published: March 23, 2022
  • A Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant ordnance technician holds the first 4.2-inch mortar round to be processed in the Static Detonation Chamber complex.

    First Agent Destroyed in Static Detonation Chamber

    Published: February 22, 2022
  • Static Detonation Chamber ordnance technicians Rachelle S. and Mike W. remove a 57mm conventional ammunition round from its fiber tube during SDC non-agent Trial Burn Testing.

    Conventional Explosives Demonstrate Static Detonation Chamber Capability

    Published: February 15, 2022
PCAPP Environment

Related Videos

  • Pueblo Plant Monitoring System Can Detect Airborne Agent

    Pueblo Plant Monitoring System Can Detect Airborne Agent

    March 16, 2016
  • Pueblo Plant Protects Colorado’s Blue Skies

    Pueblo Plant Protects Colorado’s Blue Skies

    December 15, 2014

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Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA)