Toxic agents stockpiling

Non-stockpile chemical material (e.g., wastes from past CW agent disposal efforts, unserviceable munitions, contaminated containers, and found rounds that have been recently located after having been historically buried) are also undergoing disposal. Furthermore, any soil or groundwater that may be contaminated by potentially toxic agent re.sidues at the sites where non-stockpile material has been found are remediated and subjected to the protocoLs of a formal cleanup program (Opresko ct al 1998, 2001 Bakshi etai, 2000). 

Mustard, in terms of the quantity that the CWS stockpiled, was the most important American toxic agent. The plants at the Edgewood, Huntsville, Pine Bluff, and Rocky Mountain arsenals produced 174,610,000 pounds, exclusive of the nine million pounds of the new distilled mustard. ... 

Interestingly, much work has been devoted to the development of substances in the class of cholinesterase inhibitors that have exceedingly high toxicity substances that also have properties (such as volatility and sufficient but not excessive environmental stability) that make them useful as agents of warfare. Most of those now stockpiled were first developed during World War II. Sarin and VX are perhaps the most well-known members of this class of compounds that have been especially designed to kill people. 

The job of a chemical munition is to create a toxic environment over as much of the target as is compatible with the toxicity of its charge. It must convert its bulk load either into an even distribution of liquid or solid particles, or into a cloud of vapour, or into both. It must, additionally, do this in a certain time. These are strict demands, and they are made more severe by the diversity of chemical agents now in stockpiles. Each agent has a combination of physical characteristics and toxic behaviour that is unique but, nevertheless, all munitions work on the same basic principle they cause the transfer of energy from a store, generally an explosive, to the chemical load. The simplest chemicals to disperse are the volatile, non-persistent ones such as phosgene the hardest ones... 

For the purpose of implementing the CWC, toxic chemicals and precursors, which have been identified for the application of verification measures, are listed in Schedules contained in the Annex on Chemicals (for the Schedules, see Chapter 2). Schedule 1 includes chemicals developed, produced, stockpiled, or used as a chemical weapon as defined above, and chemicals structurally close to them. Schedule 2 lists three toxic chemicals not included in Schedule 1 and the degradation products and precursors of these toxic chemicals as well as of those of Schedule 1. Schedule 3 lists four toxic chemicals and precursors not listed in the other Schedules. The Schedules contain mainly organic chemicals with different chemical and physical properties, being neutral chemicals, acids, bases, volatiles, and nonvolatiles, where phosphorus, fluorine, sulfur, chlorine, nitrogen, and oxygen occur frequently. Riot control agents are not included in the Schedules. 

Chemical warfare agents (CWA) are classified into several categories, for example, nerve agents and vesicants. Tear gases are forbidden as a method of warfare but still allowed for riot control purposes. The CWC fists chemicals in three Schedules, which have been constructed on the basis of the toxicity of the chemicals, their industrial use, and historical usage as warfare agents. Schedule 1 consists of families of toxic chemicals, which have been developed, produced, stockpiled, or used as chemical weapons, for example, sarin and mustard gas. These chemicals have little industrial use. Schedule 3, on the other hand, consists of 17 single chemicals with... 

Lewisite is the most important of the organo-arseni-cal CW agents. Exposure to lewisite is quite painful, and onset of symptoms occurs rapidly (seconds to minutes) (31) in contrast to sulfur mustard for which a latency period occurs of several hours between exposure and symptoms (32). Although it is not known to have been used as a CW agent, lewisite is still considered a potential threat due to the relative ease of production and its rapid onset of action. Moreover, substantial stockpiles of lewisite are present in the United States, Russia, and in China abandoned by the Japanese Imperial Army. This may constitute a potential hazard for public health (33). The toxicity of lewisite is inter alia caused by the high affinity for the vicinal di-thiol system present in dihydrolipoic acid, a component of the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex, as is the case for other arsenicals (34). This prevents the formation of acetyl coenzyme A from pyruvate. 

A.P. Watson and G.D. Griffin, Toxicity of vesicant agents scheduled for destruction by the chemical stockpile disposal program, Environ. Health Perspect., 98, 259-280 (1992). 

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