In 2022, the Pueblo plant came closer to eliminating the chemical weapons stockpile in Colorado, completing the second of three munition destruction campaigns and starting the second phase of the last campaign on the 4.2-inch mortar rounds in early December.

“The PCAPP workforce completed the 105mm projectile destruction campaign in July and began the second phase of the third and final campaign, the 4.2-inch mortar rounds, as 2022 came to a close,” said Walton Levi, site project manager, Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant, or PCAPP. “We are in the home stretch with just 10% of the existing stockpile yet to be destroyed before the 2023 deadline.”

The PCAPP main plant uses a two-step destruction process, neutralization followed by biotreatment, as the primary technology to destroy the U.S. chemical weapons stockpile in Colorado.

In February, three Static Detonation Chamber units, which employ thermal destruction technology to detonate or deflagrate munitions, began to destroy a portion of the 4.2-inch mortar rounds and problematic 105mm and 155mm munitions. In December, the first 4.2-inch mortar rounds entered the main plant after approval from regulators.

PCAPP hosted a community event in July that marked the destruction of nearly 383,000 105mm projectiles. Since agent-destruction operations began in Colorado in 2015, more than 700,000 munitions and nearly 2,400 tons of chemical agent have been safely eliminated by a workforce of more than 1,500 team members.

In the fall, the installment of a Burster Rotating Adaptor Device allowed previously rejected 155mm and 105mm projectiles to be processed in the main plant. October brought approval from the state for installation of the new Improved Cavity Access Machines, which began an escalation of operations in early December.

In 2023, the program is targeting completion of the destruction of the remaining stockpile by the Chemical Weapons Convention treaty commitment of Sept. 30.