The U.S. Army Pueblo Chemical Depot submitted a Record of Environmental Consideration (REC) regarding contingency planning for off-site shipment of hydrolysate from the Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant (PCAPP).

“The National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine made a recommendation to the [PCAPP] program to build a loading and shipment terminal in case the biotreatment system, for some reason, did not work,” said Walton Levi, deputy site project manager, PCAPP.

The plan calls for the construction and operation of a loading dock and shipment terminal for the shipment of mustard agent hydrolysate, the product of the chemical neutralization process, from PCAPP to an off-site Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facility. The anticipated duration of use of the terminal would be through the completion of PCAPP operations.

Program Executive Officer Conrad Whyne, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives, said he expects the biotreatment system to operate properly. Any offsite shipment would be a contingency plan to ensure chemical agent destruction is not interrupted

“ACWA and PCAPP are committed to using the Biotreatment Area to treat hydrolysate, but we have reached the point where we need to start building the shipping facility,” Levi said. “The Transportation Risk Assessment showed that shipping hydrolysate would have negligible risk.”

The REC public comment period was open for public comment from January 25 to March 1, 2017.  PEO ACWA is currently reviewing comments received during the public comment period.