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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)

      BGCAPP is safely destroying the chemical weapons stockpile currently in storage at the Blue Grass Army Depot near Richmond, Kentucky.

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      Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant (PCAPP)

      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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Drill Enhances Emergency Response

Published: February 9, 2021 | Category: BGCAPP News, Safety
Drill Enhances Emergency Response

Medical response personnel treat and prepare a training dummy for transport as an exercise evaluator looks on during a simulated agent exposure drill at the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant in December.

Blue Grass medical staff and personnel from several other departments recently participated in a drill to test and train response to an emergency in the main plant.

“We held a simulated agent exposure drill to practice and polish emergency response skills,” said Jeremy Sayre, deputy operations manager, Bechtel Parsons Blue Grass. “The more we train for these unlikely events, the better prepared we are if something ever does happen. It’s all about protecting the workforce.”

The scenario involved an operator’s gloves being punctured by a contaminated splinter in the Unpack Area 2, where workers unload projectiles from their pallets and place them onto trays to begin their destruction process, Sayre said. Workers had to don their masks, decontaminate themselves and the affected worker, provide proper aid for the exposure, then exit the room into the hands of medical personnel. From that point, the medical team took over, assessing and treating the patient, the worker now replaced by a training dummy, transporting them to the Medical Facility and following decontamination and medical procedures from there.

“The whole point of the exercise is to continue to test and train people so that if there is an event, everyone knows what to do,” Sayre said. “We want our operators and any workers on the site to feel secure that even above our standard high levels of safety, all processes, procedures and personnel are in place to make sure they are well taken care of in an emergency.”

Multiple training events are held every year to plan, proactively train and demonstrate response capability.

More BGCAPP Environment Articles

  • Workers remove used carbon filters from the Blue Grass Explosive Destruction Technology air filtration system for disposal as hazardous waste.

    Teamwork Key to Removing Used Carbon Filters

    Published: April 19, 2022
  • Workers pass a piece of plywood up the Static Detonation Chamber 1200 stairs in preparation for opening the roof to allow a new piece of equipment to be lowered into the building. The building passed decontamination verification testing in January, which means workers do not have to wear chemical protective gear as they prepare for the system’s next activity.

    Former Mustard Destruction Facility Passes Crucial Test

    Published: March 1, 2022
  • Workers drill holes for structural steel placement on the Static Detonation Chamber 1200 Off-gas Treatment System Building foundation at the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant. A public comment period is open through March 16 for a permit modification request for this system.

    Comment Period Open for Public Input on Draft Environmental Permit

    Published: February 23, 2022
  • A worker guides a crane after its placement of the thermal oxidizer for the Static Detonation Chamber (SDC) 1200 unit at the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant. The SDC 1200 requires a completely new off-gas treatment system in order to process drained, containerized VX nerve-agent warheads.

    New Pollution Abatement System Under Construction

    Published: August 30, 2021
  • A forklift operator is guided by spotters as he loads a crate of non-contaminated rocket motors onto a truck at the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant July 20. The Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection has opened a public comment period for plant modification requests that include additional storage space for the motors.

    Public Comment Period Open for Hydrolysate Shipment, Rocket Motor Storage

    Published: July 29, 2021
  • A truck and tank trailer sit in the tanker loading station at the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant.

    Project Managers to Discuss Hydrolysate Shipment at June 9 Public Meeting

    Published: June 3, 2021
  • A deer browses in an experimental plot of American chestnut trees on the Blue Grass Army Depot near the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant. The depot is a partner in a conservation project to propagate blight-resistant versions of the American chestnut tree.

    Blue Grass Partner Assists with Conservation Effort

    Published: April 30, 2021
  • Technicians program a Rocket Warhead Containerization System robot inside the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant in February. This equipment is the subject of one of four Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection permit modification requests currently in a public comment period.

    Public Involvement Opportunities for Permit Modification Requests

    Published: April 5, 2021
  • Comment Period Open for Plant Permit Modification Requests

    Comment Period Open for Plant Permit Modification Requests

    Published: January 28, 2021
  • First-Time Filter Change Activity

    First-Time Filter Change Activity

    Published: December 29, 2020
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Recent News

  • Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant Monthly Recap – April 2022

    Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant Monthly Recap – April 2022

    May 2, 2022
  • Entire U.S. Stockpile of VX Nerve Agent Eliminated

    Entire U.S. Stockpile of VX Nerve Agent Eliminated

    April 20, 2022
  • Teamwork Key to Removing Used Carbon Filters

    Teamwork Key to Removing Used Carbon Filters

    April 19, 2022
  • U.S. Chemical Demilitarization Transparency Event Held for International Organization

    U.S. Chemical Demilitarization Transparency Event Held for International Organization

    March 31, 2022
  • BGCAPP Monthly Recap – March 2022

    BGCAPP Monthly Recap – March 2022

    March 31, 2022

Safety Videos

  • Blue Grass Plant Medical Staff Stays Prepared

    Blue Grass Plant Medical Staff Stays Prepared

    June 5, 2017
  • Testing Rolls On Inside Kentucky’s Chemical Weapons Destruction

    Testing Rolls On Inside Kentucky’s Chemical Weapons Destruction

    September 23, 2016
  • On-site Medical Facility Prepares to Support Blue Grass Plant

    On-site Medical Facility Prepares to Support Blue Grass Plant

    June 27, 2016
  • Emergency Operations Center Supports Kentucky Chemical Weapons Destruction Project

    Emergency Operations Center Supports Kentucky Chemical Weapons Destruction Project

    April 19, 2016
  • High Angle Training to the Rescue at the Blue Grass Plant

    High Angle Training to the Rescue at the Blue Grass Plant

    January 8, 2016

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