DEEPWATER — The U.S. Army is planning to dump treated VX nerve agent into the Delaware River here which will flow through Delaware Bay and onto the Atlantic Ocean in Cape May County.
Delaware Riverkeeper Maya K. van Rossum said the Army has stockpiles of chemical weapons around the country and under a treaty from 1997, they are under an obligation to destroy them.
The Army has stockpiled VX nerve agent in Newport, Ind., which it proposes to partially treat and turn into a solution called hydrolysate or VXH.
The VXH will be transported by truck to this state on Route 80 to the New Jersey Turnpike to Salem County, through highly-populated areas of the state. The mixture will be delivered to Dupont Chambers Works in Deepwater for additional treatment and dumping into the Delaware River. “It’s not VX but has all of the components necessary to make VX,” said von Rossum. “Under the right conditions, it could reform into VX.”
VXH could contain VX agent up to 20 parts per billion (ppb).
When 4 million gallons of treated VX is dumped in the river, tidal action could cause it to linger in the river or bay for as long as 72 hours, said van Rossum. “It’s not like it is flowing down and out the river,” she said. “It’s getting caught up in the tidal action and moving back and forth as more and more gets contributed.” “Your area is effected by every pollution discharge that is washed into or directly dumped into the river,” said van Rossum.
In Newport, Ind., the community repeatedly voiced its preference that the VX nerve agent be treated and destroyed on site, but the Army changed its mind after Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and decided the VX should be disposed of at another location.
“If the Army is concerned about terrorists... why on earth are they not looking at the very real possibility that terrorists will take the opportunity, during transport, to get their hands on this stuff,” said van Rossum.
One drop of VX can cause paralysis and death within minutes.
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Come on everyone join in, don't be shy.
Note to self: Never go for a dip in the Delaware River!
Can we say 'vandalism' 'highjacking''?!!
Living in the land of DuPont, this issue is being debated every week. DuPont must be getting some type of government incentive to dispose of the VX. Personally with the public outcry, I hope that it doesn't happen. Taking the VX from Indiana to New Jersey via rail or trucks would be insane under any circumstances, but with the current state of affairs it would be unthinkable. Maybe Homeland Security needs to get involved to make sure that it absolutely does not happen any time soon!