Chemical weapons destruction response

The First Review Conference, whilst reaffirming that the destruction of chemical weapons is the responsibility of the possessor States Parties, called upon States Parties that are in a position to do so, to provide assistance to support the efforts of possessor States Parties that request such assistance in implementing their programmes of chemical weapons destruction. 

The twentieth century saw an unprecedented increase in destruction caused by warfare, mainly brought about by the ever-increasing lethality of weapons and the introduction of new forms of killing, notably the development and refinement of chemical weapons. The terrorist attacks on New York on 11 September 2001, and the responses to them, suggest that in the twenty-first century we shall continue to witness violence by both states and terrorist groups within them. 

The role that the public has assumed - neither enshrined in the treaty documentation nor anticipated by the States Parties is another unique characteristic of the CWC. Here again, the Convention is evolutionary compared with earlier treaties and international agreements. Chemical weapons disposal has emerged as a vivid example of how local environmental justice concerns can intersect with global disarmament and nonproliferation efforts. With no formal inducement, the public has become a player in the execution of the CWC-mandated destruction of chemical weapons. What lessons can be learned from the public response and how... 

In addition to national, state, and local regulatory review, there is also oversight required pursuant to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). International CWC observers, commonly referred to as the Inspectorate, maintain offices on site at JACADS and TOCDF. The Inspectorate is responsible for general oversight and for ensuring that the destruction of chemicals is carried out pursuant to CWC guidelines. 

The U.S. Army Chemical Demilitarization and Remediation Activity is responsible for implementing the destruction of all U.S. chemical warfare-related material, including the chemical weapons stockpile and nonstockpile chemical material, and for insuring maximum protection to the environment, general public, and personnel involved in the destruction. The activity s office of Program Manager for Nonstockpile Chemical Material is responsible for ... 

In contrast, Fritz Haber, the Nobel laureate chemist who, more than anyone else, was responsible for the development and fielding of chemical weapons for use by Kaiser Wilhelm H s army, downplayed the importance of chemical warfare as a weapon of mass destruction after the surprise was gone. In an interview published in New York in 1921, he concluded Poison gas caused fewer deaths than bullets. 42(pl0)... 

Reluctance by possessor states to employ chemical weapons, which could be termed the chemical warfare threshold, has seemed to be relatively high since World War I. However, the Iraqi precedent, the ineffective world response to Iraq s use of chemical warfare, and the perceived effectiveness of this use all suggest that the chemical warfare threshold has been substantially lowered. The growing list of states motivated, for reasons of offense or deterrence, to develop relatively low-technology, low-cost weapons of mass destruction greatly increases the likelihood that military personnel will have to contend with casualties of chemical warfare. 

In 1996, persuaded by public opposition in Lexington, Kentucky, and Pueblo, Colorado, Congress enacted Public Law 104-201, which instructed the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) to conduct an assessment of the chemical demilitarization program for destruction of assembled chemical munitions and of the alternative demilitarization technologies and processes (other than incineration) that could be used for the destruction of the lethal chemical agents that are associated with these munitions. In response, the Army established the program manager for the Assembled Chemical Weapons Assessment (PMACWA). In Public Law 104-208, the PMACWA was required to identify and demonstrate not less than two alternatives to the baseline incineration process for the demilitarization of assembled... 

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