Buried chemical warfare material

For over 70 years the U.S. has produced and stored chemical weapons. In addition to the military arsenal, there are also "non-stockpile" materials. Non-stockpile material includes buried chemical warfare material, binary chemical weapons, recovered chemical weapons, and former production facilities. Some of these materials date back to World War I development and production efforts. Not all of these sites are still under military control. For example, in 1993, a large number of World War I chemical shells were removed from a residential neighborhood in Washington, D.C. The burial site was discovered by construction crews while excavating the basement of a new home. In addition to non-stockpile materials, there have also been several situations where individuals have claimed to possess chemical munitions and threatened to release their contents. For these reasons, it would be beneficial to be able to rapidly identify suspect munitions. 

Identifying and assessing sites with possible buried chemical warfare material ... 

Uhe stockpile (the subject of the Amy s Chemical Stockpile Disposal Program) consists of (1) bulk containers of nerve and blister agents and (2) munitions, including rockets, mines, bombs, projectiles, and spray tanks, loaded with nerve or blister agents. Buried chemical warfare materiel, recovered chemical warfare materiel, binary weapons (in which two nonlethal components are mixed after firing to yield a lethal nerve agent), former production facilities, and miscellaneous chemical warfare materiel are not included in the stockpile. The disposition of these five classes of materials is the subject of a separate Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Pro-... 

First, past experience at other sites indicates a tendency to bury excess munitions. And, as noted, buried chemical weapons munitions have already been found at the Spring Valley site. Second, as the District of Columbia has seen above, the production of chemical warfare agents was very large. The operation had 1200 chemists and engineers and 700 support personnel. If each chemist used only one small bottle of dangerous chemicals a week, that is a lot of material. 

During a search of Record Group 70, Bureau of Mines, the District of Columbia found a document entitled, Instructions for the Care, Storage and Handling of Gas Warfare Material. This manual was issued by the Gas Service A.E.F. on June 15, 1918. The manual states, If a leak is suspected it should be reported immediately and all men required to work near the dump should keep the respirator in the alert position. The suspected shell should be immediately located and removed and buried. .. Holes 4 feet deep will always be kept prepared. .. Piles of earth and a spade should be kept near the chemical projectile stacks, to cover up the liquid that has escaped. 

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