[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 203 (Friday, October 18, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54421-54424]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-26343]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement: Destruction of Non-
Stockpile Chemical Warfare Materiel Containing Chemical Agent
AGENCY: Department of the Army, Department of Defense.
ACTION: Notice of Intent.
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SUMMARY: The Department of the Army announces its intent to prepare a
Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) on the destruction
of chemical warfare materiel (CWM) containing chemical agent and to
initiate the public scoping process for the PEIS. The PEIS is being
prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act
(NEPA), as amended.
The U. S. Army's Program Manager for Chemical Demilitarization has
the responsibility for the destruction of the nation's chemical warfare
materiel. The Program Manager has established project managers to
accomplish this goal. The Project Manager for Chemical Stockpile
Disposal is responsible for destroying the stockpile of unitary
chemical weapons in the Department of Defense/Department of Army
inventory (called stockpile). The PEIS for destroying the stockpile
materiel was completed in 1988, and the destruction program is in
progress at two locations--Johnston Island in the Pacific and Tooele,
Utah. The Project Manager for Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel (NSCM)
analysis include: (1) on-site chemical treatment of CWM with off-site
destruction of the resultant wastes either by thermal destruction or
another disposal method; (2) on-site chemical treatment and on-site
destruction/disposal of chemical treatment wastes (3) on-site thermal
destruction; (4) off-site chemical treatment and/or thermal destruction
or another disposal method; and (5) no action, which is defined as a
continuation of the current methods for handling these types of CWM,
including safely packing, shipping and storing CWM at permitted
locations.
DATES: Written and oral comments on alternative strategies and their
components (treatment, storage, transportation, and destruction/
disposal) and the important environmental issues that should be
evaluated in the PEIS are invited. Comments should be provided by
February 28, 1997, to ensure consideration. Comments received after
this date will be considered to the extent practicable.
To facilitate public participation and comment on the proposed
scope of the PEIS, the Army will hold five regional public scoping
meetings in the vicinity of Tampa, Florida; Newport, Indiana;
Huntsville, Alabama; Salt Lake City, Utah; and San Antonio, Texas. The
specific dates, times, and locations of these meetings will be
announced in a separate Federal Register notice, by letter, and in
appropriate news media. Repositories containing information on the NSCM
Program and the PEIS will be established at these and other locations
and will be identified in local media announcements.
ADDRESSES: Written comments on the scope of the PEIS should be sent to
Program Manager for Chemical Demilitarization, ATTN: SFAE-CD-NP (Mr.
Dragunas/PEIS), Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland 21010-5401. Comments
on the scope of the PEIS may also be made by calling the toll-free
telephone number 1-800-410-9901.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Program Manager for Chemical
Demilitarization, ATTN: SFAE-CD-NP (Mr. Dragunas/PEIS), Aberdeen
Proving Ground, Maryland 21010-5401. Requests for further information
may also be made by calling the above listed toll-free telephone
number.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production,
Stockpiling, and Use of the Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction,
or Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), requires the destruction of all
CWM. The U.S. Army, as Executive Agent for the Department of Defense,
is responsible for ensuring that NSCM is destroyed in a safe,
environmentally sound and cost-effective manner. The U.S. and over 150
nations signed the CWC on January 13, 1993, and they and the U.S. are
working towards ratification.
Buried CWM can be dated back to World War I. The practice of
burying leaking or obsolete CWM in the past was an acceptable method of
disposal. Often burial was accompanied by draining and decontamination.
Therefore, the CWM is responsible for destroying all other CWM (called
non-stockpile) within the United States and its territories.
[[Page 54422]]
The PEIS is specifically concerned with the following CWM
containing chemical agent under the auspices of the Project Manager for
Non-Stockpile Materiel: (1) CWM from former test ranges and burial
sites once it is recovered; (2) CWM that has already been recovered and
is currently in storage; and (3) research, development, test and
evaluation (RDT&E) materiel used in CWM development and pre-production
processes. Presently, materiel are either known to exist or possibly
exist at 68 locations in 31 states, the Virgin Islands, and Johnston
Island in the Pacific Ocean.
To achieve the destruction of chemical agent contained in the CWM
considered in this PEIS, the Army proposes to select one or more
strategies that (1) provide protection for human health, safety, and
the environment and (2) enable the U. S. to comply with the
requirements of the Chemical Weapons Convention. The selection of one
or more strategies is needed by the Army in order to focus resources
on, and provide for, a future destruction capability. The Non-Stockpile
PEIS will analyze the potential environmental consequences of various
alternative strategies that will meet these objectives.
Strategy components that could be used in alternative development
may include any or all of the following: treatment, transportation and/
or destruction/disposal. The preliminary alternatives that the Army is
considering for analysis include: (1) on-site chemical treatment of CWM
with off-site destruction of the resultant wastes either by thermal
destruction or another disposal method; (2) on-site chemical treatment
and on-site destruction/disposal of chemical treatment wastes (3) on-
site thermal destruction; (4) off-site chemical treatment and/or
thermal destruction or another disposal method; and (5) no action,
which is defined as a continuation of the current methods for handling
these types of CWM, including safely packing, shipping and storing CWM
at permitted locations.
DATES: Written and oral comments on alternative strategies and their
components (treatment, storage, transportation, and destruction/
disposal) and the important environmental issues that should be
evaluated in the PEIS are invited. Comments should be provided by
February 28, 1997, to ensure consideration. Comments received after
this date will be considered to the extent practicable.
To facilitate public participation and comment on the proposed
scope of the PEIS, the Army will hold five regional public scoping
meetings in the vicinity of Tampa, Florida; Newport, Indiana;
Huntsville, Alabama; Salt Lake City, Utah; and San Antonio, Texas. The
specific dates, times, and locations of these meetings will be
announced in a separate Federal Register notice, by letter, and in
appropriate news media. Repositories containing information on the NSCM
Program and the PEIS will be established at these and other locations
and will be identified in local media announcements.
ADDRESSES: Written comments on the scope of the PEIS should be sent to
Program Manager for Chemical Demilitarization, ATTN: SFAE-CD-NP (Mr.
Dragunas/PEIS), Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland 21010-5401. Comments
on the scope of the PEIS may also be made by calling the toll-free
telephone number 1-800-410-9901.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Program Manager for Chemical
Demilitarization, ATTN: SFAE-CD-NP (Mr. Dragunas/PEIS), Aberdeen
Proving Ground, Maryland 21010-5401. Requests for further information
may also be made by calling the above listed toll-free telephone
number.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Background: The Convention on the
Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling, and Use of the
Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction, or Chemical Weapons
Convention (CWC), requires the destruction of all CWM. The U.S. Army,
as Executive Agent for the Department of Defense, is responsible for
ensuring that NSCM is destroyed in a safe, environmentally sound and
cost-effective manner. The U.S. and over 150 nations signed the CWC on
January 13, 1993, and they and the U. S. are working towards
ratification.
Buried CWM can be dated back to World War I. The practice of
burying leaking or obsolete CWM in the past was an acceptable method of
disposal. Often burial was accompanied by draining and decontamination.
Therefore, the CWM underwent a form of destruction. In other cases,
intact munitions were simply buried. These techniques reduced the risk
to the public. These approaches sometimes resulted in incomplete and/or
partial destruction. However, in certain situations, based on site-
specific determinations, current technological limitations and
stakeholder input, leaving the buried CWM in the ground may be
preferable to excavation and destruction.
Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Program
The Project Manager for NSCM is responsible for the destruction of
all CWM containing chemical agent in the U.S. and its territories not
included in the nation's unitary stockpile of chemical weapons and
chemical agent. Different types of NSCM include: (1) CWM from former
test ranges and burial sites once it is recovered; (2) CWM that has
already been recovered and is in storage: (3) binary chemical weapons
and components; (4) former chemical weapon production facilities; (5)
miscellaneous chemical warfare materiel.
This PEIS will focus on those specific types of NSCM that require
similar decisions as to their destruction strategies. These include (a)
CWM from former test ranges and burial sites once it is recovered; (b)
CWM that has already been recovered and is in storage and (c) the RDT&E
materiel portion of the miscellaneous materiel. Decisions concerning
destruction strategies for binary chemical weapons and components;
former production facilities; and the remainder of the miscellaneous
materiel are independent of this PEIS and undergo appropriate levels of
environmental review. These latter actions are independent because they
consist mainly of demolition, recycling and/or disposal operations that
use completely different destruction strategies than those under
consideration in this PEIS and they do not contain chemical agent.
In accordance with Section 176 of 1993 Defense Authorization Act,
the NSCMP has prepared a Survey and Analysis Report (1993), that
identifies the locations, types, and quantities of NSCM. Since the
issuance of the Report, the number of locations, types, and quantities
of NSCM continue to be updated. The tables included with this notice
lists the sites where CWM is presently known or could possibly exist.
The Army continues to review historical documents and data to assess
sites where past actions may have resulted in disposal of CWM by
burial.
Table 1.--Locations With Known or Possible Buried Chemical Warfare
Materiel\1\
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Alabama:
Camp Sibert
Fort McClellan
Redstone Arsenal
Alaska:
Cape Yakak Radio Station
Chicagof Harbor
Fort Wainwright
Gerstle River Expansion Area
[[Page 54423]]
Gerstle River Test Site
Unalaska Island
Arizona:
Camp Navajo
Yuma Proving Ground
Arkansas:
Fort Chaffee
Pine Bluff Arsenal
Southwestern Proving Ground
California:
Edwards Air Force Base
Fort Ord
Santa Rosa Army Air Field
Colorado:
Pueblo Army Activity
Rocky Mountain Arsenal
Florida:
Brooksville Army Air Field
MacDill Air Force Base
Withlacoochee
Georgia:
Fort Benning
Fort Gillem
Hawaii:
Kipapa Ammunition Storage
Schofield Army Barracks
Illinois:
Fort Sheridan
Savanna Army Depot Activity
Indiana:
Camp Atterbury Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division
Newport Chemical Activity
Iowa:
Camp Dodge
Kentucky:
Blue Grass Army Depot
Fort Knox
Louisiana:
Camp Claiborne
England Air Force Base
Fort Polk
Maryland:
Aberdeen Proving Ground
Fort Meade
Massachusetts:
Fort Devens
Michigan:
Chemical Warfare Development Division
Mississippi:
Camp Van Dorn
Columbus Army Airfield
Missouri:
Camp Crowder
Nevada:
Hawthorne Army Depot
New Jersey:
Fort Hancock Naval Air Warfare Center, Lakehurst
Raritan Arsenal
New Mexico:
Fort Wingate Depot Activity
New York:
Camp Hero
North Carolina:
Camp Lejeune
Laurinburg-Maxton Army Air Base
Ohio:
Cleveland Plant
Raven Army Ammunition Plant
Oregon:
Umatilla Depot Activity
South Carolina:
Charleston Naval Weapons Station
South Dakota:
Black Hills Ordnance Depot
Tennessee:
Defense Depot Memphis
Texas:
Camp Bullis
Camp Stanley Storage Activity
U.S. Virgin Islands:
Water Island
Utah:
Dugway Proving Ground (Formerly Used Defense Site)
Dugway Proving Ground
Tooele Army Depot
Wendover Bombing and Gunnery Range
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\1\ Based on a U.S. Army Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Program Survey
and Analysis Report, November 1993 updated data base which is
unpublished.
Table 2.--Locations With Recovered Chemical Warfare Materiel and
Research, Demonstration, Testing, and Evaluation Materiel\1\
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Alabama:
Anniston Army Depot
Redstone Arsenal
Alaska:
Fort Richardson
Arkansas:
Pine Bluff Arsenal
Colorado:
Pueblo Army Activity
Rocky Mountain Arsenal
Johnston Island
Kentucky:
Blue Grass Army Depot
Maryland:
Aberdeen Proving Ground
Oregon:
Umatilla Depot Activity
Texas:
Camp Bullis
Utah:
Dugway Proving Ground
Tooele Army Depot
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\1\ Based on a U.S. Army Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Program Survey
and Analysis Report, November 1993 updated data base which is
unpublished.
To achieve the destruction of certain types of CWM, the Army
proposes to select and implement strategies that (1) provide the
highest levels of protection for human health, safety, and the
environment and (2) enable the U.S. to comply with the requirements of
the Chemical Warfare Convention. The PEIS will analyze the potential
environ-mental consequences of various alternative strategies that will
meet this need.
Components of a strategy could include any or all of the following:
treatment, transportation, and/or destruction/disposal. The
alternatives that the Army is considering at this time for analysis
include: (1) on-site chemical treatment of CWM with off-site
destruction of the resultant wastes either by thermal destruction or
another disposal method; (2) on-site chemical treatment and destruction
of chemical treatment wastes (3) on-site thermal destruction; (4) off-
site chemical treatment and/or thermal destruction or another disposal
method; and (5) no action, which is defined as a continuation of the
storage of recovered and RDT&E materiel, and the packaging,
transportation and storage of future recovered buried CWM at permitted
locations.
Decisions concerning whether sites should be excavated to recover
possible CWM and how sites should be cleaned up are the responsibility
of installation/site authorities. These site-specific decisions will
determine whether a selected strategy is appropriate for each specific
location.
The preliminary strategies that have been identified for evaluation
in the PEIS are:
On-site Chemical Treatment and Off-site Destruction of Chemical
Treatment Waste--Chemical agents in CWM would be chemically treated on
site. Waste from chemical treatment and any other wastes such as metal
body parts would be packaged in accordance with appropriate
transportation regulations and the waste would then be transported off
site for thermal destruction or another disposal method.
On-site Chemical Treatment and On-site Destruction/Disposal of
Chemical Treatment Waste--Chemical agents in CWM would be chemically
treated on site. Waste from chemical treatment would also be destroyed/
disposed of on site. Any other waste such as metal body parts from the
on-site treatment would be packaged in accordance with appropriate
transportation regulations and then transported off site for disposal.
On-site Thermal Destruction--Chemical agents in CWM would be
thermally destroyed on site. Any waste from thermal destruction such as
ash and/or metal body parts would be packaged in accordance with
appropriate transportation regulations and the waste would then be
transported off site for disposal.
Off-site Chemical Treatment and/or Off-site Thermal Destruction--
CWM containing chemical agents would be packaged in accordance with
appropriate transport regulations and
[[Page 54424]]
then transported to an off site location. The CWM containing chemical
agents would then be either chemically treated or thermally destroyed
or disposed of by another method at the off-site location.
No Action--CWM containing chemical agent already in storage and
RDT&E materiel would continue to be stored. CWM containing chemical
agent recovered in the future would be packaged in accordance with
appropriate transport regulations and then transported to an off-site
location for long term storage at a permitted location.
For all disposal alternatives, treated residual metal parts would
likely be recycled or disposed of in accordance with applicable
environmental regulations.
The PEIS, as currently envisioned, will not evaluate specific off-
site/on-site treatment and/or destruction/disposal locations under
these strategies. Should the Army select an off-site destruction/
disposal strategy, further environmental review would be required to
determine the potential environmental consequences of implementing that
strategy at that specific location. The PEIS will also not evaluate on-
site contamination. This contamination will be handled under
established environmental remediation/restoration procedures and
regulations.
The important environmental issues that have been identified on a
preliminary basis for evaluation and analysis in the PEIS are: (1) The
potential impacts of the alternative strategies on air quality, water
resources, and land resources; (2) the potential impacts to public
health from the implementation of the destruction technologies; (3) the
potential impacts to public health and safety from accidents that could
occur during the handling, transport, storage, and destruction of CWM;
and (4) the potential socioeconomic impacts of the alternative
strategies.
Scoping Process
Scoping, which is integral to the NEPA process, is a procedure that
solicits input to the EIS process to ensure that issues are identified
early and properly studied. Scoping commences after a decision is made
to prepare an EIS in order to provide an early and open process for
determining the scope of issues to be addressed and for identifying the
significant issues related to a proposed action. The scope of issues to
be addressed in the draft PEIS will be determined, in part, from
written comments received by mail and oral comments received and
recorded by phone and at the public meetings. The preliminary
identification of alternatives and environmental issues is not meant to
be exhaustive or final. The Army considers the scoping process to be
open and dynamic in the sense that alternatives other than those given
above may warrant study and new matters may be identified for potential
evaluation.
The scoping process will include both interagency and public
scoping. The public is invited to submit written comments or provide
oral comments at a meeting or by phone to the addresses and phone
numbers listed under the DATES section of this notice and/or attend a
public meeting that will be announced in area news media.
The Army will use the public input received during scoping to
develop a Statement of Scope to guide preparation of the PEIS. After
completion, the Statement of Scope will be made available to scoping
participants and the public upon request. The draft PEIS prepared from
the scoping process will be made available for public review and
comment. Notice of availability of the draft PEIS will be announced,
written comments on the draft solicited, and information about a
possible public meeting to comment on the draft will be published at a
future date. The Army expects to release a final PEIS by mid-1999.
Richard E. Newsome,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army (Environment, Safety and
Occupational Health) OASA(I,L&E).
[FR Doc. 96-26343 Filed 10-17-96; 8:45 am]
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