Saturday, August 27, 2005

Chicago Tribune | Stay or go, Army store of lethal VX frays nerves

VX, which the Army began producing in 1961, was designed for launch on rockets or to drop on large numbers of troops. It works like a pesticide; as little as a pinhead inhaled or touching skin can kill a person in minutes. The chemical weapon never was used, and the nation's entire VX stockpile is housed at the Indiana depot. The goal was to have all of the material disposed of by the end of 2007, but delays have made the earliest possible date late 2008.

Neutralizing the material--or watering it down to what scientists say is a caustic but not toxic solution--is the current plan, but that, too, has run into problems. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a recent report that diluting the agent may not be harmful to humans but might damage aquatic organisms. The Army suspended disposal operations in mid-June after officials at the facility discovered a wastewater leak during the neutralization process. Inspectors also learned that the wastewater--the byproduct of neutralizing the material--was more flammable than expected.

// posted by Unknown @ 2:48 p.m.
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