Virginia-Based Firm Processed Final Rocket at Kentucky Blue Grass Plant
A Bechtel-led team has destroyed the last munition in the US’ chemical weapons stockpile at the Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant, or BGCAPP, near Richmond, Kentucky.
The disposal of the final projectile marks the end of the US’ commitment to eradicate all its chemical weapons before 30 September this year, in line with the Chemical Weapons Convention pact ratified in 1997.
Bechtel Parsons Blue Grass, a joint venture between Bechtel and Parsons Corporation, secured a contract from the US Defense Department in 2003 to design, build and operate the BGCAPP.
Construction of the plant was completed in 2015.
Bechtel, which has played an active role in the US and abroad to eliminate chemical weapons, said the weapons stockpile at BGCAPP originally consisted of 523 tons of chemical agent configured in 155mm projectiles containing mustard and VX nerve agent, 8-inch projectiles containing GB nerve agent, and M55 rockets containing GB and VX nerve agent.
Destruction began in 2019 and took place “around the clock”, Bechtel said, and continued without interruption during the pandemic. The weapons had been amassed by the US Army at Kentucky and other sites during and after World War II.
“I am so proud of my Bechtel colleagues who with hard work, spirit, and ingenuity, delivered a monumental feat for the country and its allies,” said John Howanitz, president of Bechtel’s Nuclear, Security and Environmental business.
“With this achievement, Bechtel has now safely eliminated nearly 5,000 tons of chemical weapon rockets, artillery rounds, mortar shells, and storage canisters at four of the nine original US storage sites in Kentucky, Colorado, Maryland, and Alabama.”
The plant will now be safely shut down in a “multi-year effort” that will begin with decontamination and dismantling of equipment in areas of the plant that have come into contact with chemical agents.
The disposition for the remainder of the plant had not yet been determined, Bechtel said.
Bechtel is a member of the Breakbulk Global Shipper Network, an extensive networking platform for executives operating at the top end of the project supply chain in sectors such as oil and gas, energy and renewables, mining and minerals, construction, forestry, industrial manufacturing and aerospace.
The next in-person meet-up for BGSN members will be at Breakbulk Americas 2023, taking place on 26-28 September at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, Texas.
PHOTOS: Destroying chemical weapons in the Blue Grass plant. CREDIT: Bechtel
