State regulators approved the closure plan for the Static Detonation Chamber complex at the Pueblo plant Nov. 5, which sets the course for reuse of the three units by Department of Defense organizations.

“Over the last few months, in anticipation of this approval, the workforce has engaged in a variety of readiness activities to prepare themselves,” said Walton Levi, site project manager, Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant. “We are chomping at the bit to get the units ready for reuse.” 

The three Static Detonation Chamber, or SDC, units will eventually be transported to other states for reuse after agreements were signed with U.S. Army organizations.

Each unit will be decontaminated, decommissioned and disassembled before being transported to its new location. The specific decontamination levels required for turnover to the Army organizations are outlined in the newly approved plan. 

Levi noted the SDC complex has been inactive since summer 2023 and now must be reheated before decontamination can be completed. Following the decontamination effort, the SDC units and supporting equipment will undergo a rigorous sampling regimen to verify that all reuse and closure requirements have been met. 

“Because the SDC complex is smaller and less complex than the main plant, the closure process is expected to take less time and manpower,” Levi said. “We expect transport of the first unit to its new location at the Redstone Arsenal in Alabama by spring of 2025.” 

Three SDC units, each consisting of a detonation chamber and an off-gas treatment system, augmented the main plant by destroying a portion of the 4.2-inch mortar rounds and overpacked 105mm and 155mm projectiles unsuitable for processing in the main plant. The last chemical munition in the Colorado stockpile was destroyed in an SDC unit June 22, 2023.

The main plant closure plan was approved by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment March 29.