The Pueblo Chemical Depot is set to begin destroying the United States’ largest remaining stockpile of chemical weapons this week in southern Colorado. Here are nine things to know about these chemical weapons and how we got here:
1. First use: April 22 marks the 100th anniversary of the first use of chemical weapons in modern warfare at Ypres in Belgium.
2. Huge production: From World War I to 1968, the United States produced nearly 40,000 tons of chemical weapons. These weapons were either nerve agents or blister agents.
3. Scary stuff: Mustard agent is a blister agent, which can cause redness and itching of the skin, irritation in the eyes, scarring and increased risk for lung and respiratory cancer.
4. Into the sea: From 1967 to 1970, the U.S. Army disposed of thousands of chemical warfare agents and ammunition into the sea as part of Operation Cut Holes and Sink ‘Em (CHASE).
5. No more: Congress passed a law in 1972 known as the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act prohibiting this kind of dumping.
6. Date of destruction: In 1997, the United States ratified the Chemical Weapons Convention Treaty and agreed to destroy all of its chemical weapons by April 29, 2012.
7. Work not done: 90% of the U.S. stockpile — 30,500 tons — was destroyed by the treaty date in 2012 at depots in Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Maryland, Oregon, Utah and Johnson Atoll in the Pacific. The remaining 10% — about 2,700 tons — is located at two sites in Colorado and Kentucky.
9. Don’t burn it: Residents in Colorado and Kentucky protested the use of incineration to get rid of the chemical weapon stockpile. The process of neutralization was adopted.
8. Pueblo’s plans: The Pueblo Chemical Depot in southern Colorado will destroy 2,600 tons of aging mustard agent beginning in March. The depot has about 780,000 shells containing mustard agent.
9. The last one: The Blue Grass Army Depot in Richmond, Kentucky, has the remaining stockpile of chemical agents. It’s a fifth of the size of Pueblo Chemical Depot’s stockpile, however, it has a larger variety of chemical weapons including nerve agent.