Lofty Matters

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The Pentagon is considering a plan to ship deadly chemical weapons to military sites in four states in order to destroy the munitions in a timely manner…according to a new report.

Might you live near one of these routes???

Transporting such lethal agents along routes perhaps from Colorado to Oregon has prompted strong opposition from Congress and watchdog groups as well.

Their complaint is that this plan exposes the American public to unnecessary risks.

According to a 1997 treaty which banned chemical weapons, Congress has ordered the military to destroy all munitions of this type by the end of 2017.

According to an unpublicized report delivered to lawmakers last week, the Pentagon has admitted that it probably could not meet that deadline unless begins to ship nerve agents and mustard gas to additional sites for destruction.

Even the possibility of adding more staff and working around the clock at the two sites with complicated dismantling requirements in Kentucky and Colorado probably won’t ascertain that the military meets the 2017 deadline, the report said.

So…work would be accomplished faster if some weapons at Kentucky’s Blue Grass Army Depot were moved to sites in Alabama and Arkansas, the report said. Also some at the Pueblo, CO, site will be sent to Utah and Oregon.

Congress would first have to change laws that prevent moving the weapons, the report said.

Pentagon officials do not have many options for meeting the congressional mandate to destroy all weapons by 2017. The US already expects to miss the 2012 deadline set by the international Chemical Weapons Convention.

Kevin Flamm (Pentagon manager for plans to eliminate weapons in Colorado and Kentucky) said that he is focusing on speeding up weapons destruction by adding workers and operating around the clock. He expects that this will enable destruction to be finished in Colorado by 2017 but probably not in Kentucky.

Feel like calling a Congressperson or something? I do!

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