The Army plans to start destroying Cold War-era chemical weapons Saturday at its incinerator near Anniston, Alabama, the first time the military has burned the deadly munitions near a populated area. The timetable to start destroying the chemical weapons came Friday after a judge in Washington rejected motions by opponents to delay it. The incinerator will begin operations Saturday morning unless weather or other factors cause a delay, incinerator spokesman Mike Abrams said. The Army plans only "limited burns" on weekends and between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. on weekdays until certain schools and other community buildings near the incinerator are provided with safety pressurization this fall.
| The usual suspects say the usual things... |
Opponents say incineration raises too great a risk near homes and schools — about 35,000 people live in the "pink zone" within 9 miles of the Army site, which is about 50 miles east of Alabama’s most populous city, Birmingham.
| And took them to the usual place... |
The Army’s decision came only hours after U.S. District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson’s ruling cleared the way for burning to begin.
| And then they did the usual symbolic things, generating the usual hysteria... |
After the judge’s decision, Sharon McConathy took her granddaughter to pick up safety gear being provided to thousands of Anniston-area people — protective hoods that resemble gas masks and plastic sheeting to seal up a room in her mobile home in the event of an accident. "It’s real scary," McConathy said. "I think they’re putting everybody at risk."
| That's the obligatory quote from a Concerned Local Resident™... |
Environmentalists had asked Jackson first for a temporary restraining order and then a preliminary injunction blocking the startup, but he denied both. He said their arguments were "purely speculative" and they had not shown sufficiently that "harm will flow."
"And you don’t know what you’re talking about, either, so shut up!"
| "But... But... The Army's never destroyed chemical weapons before so we don't know what'll happen! And every time they have, there's been a catastrophe! There's a woman in Idaho whose kids are all retarded. How'd that happen, I ask you?" |
Craig Williams, executive director of the Chemical Weapons Working Group, which filed for the restraining order, said it may take days to decide if the ruling will be appealed. "It’s a sad day for those in Anniston and for this nation when our government is unwilling to prevent U.S. citizens from exposure to toxic chemicals," Williams said.
Typical nut-case enviro. There’s no safe way, yada yada.
The Army had planned to begin destroy some 2,254 tons of nerve agents and mustard gas this past Wednesday, a project expected to take seven years. But the military agreed to a delay so the hearing before Jackson could be held. Sherri Sumners, president of the Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce, said a few opponents have created hysteria among some in the community.
| Oh, Sherri! Say it ain't so! That's never happened before... |
"They have been told so much and heard so much," Sumners said. "Incineration is a lot better than letting it sit out there." She expects most community fears to subside after the incinerator has operated safety for a couple of months.
Betty Wall, who lives outside of the pink zone, went to pick up her safety gear after seeing news reports Friday that the incinerator was about to begin operating. "You just don’t know what’s going to happen," she said. "People just need to get right with the Lord."
| "Hallelujah! Pass the snakes! I'm so-o-o-o-o frightened!" |
David Ford, a spokesman with the county Emergency Management Agency, said about 3,300 people have picked up safety gear this week at an old military building where it is being given out free, but Friday was slow. "We don’t know how many are left who want it," he said.
"Hey, y'all! Have a free gas mask!"
"It's 98 degrees outside, with 98 percent humidity. And you want me to wear a gas mask? For how long?"
"'Bout a week."
"Ummm... Yeah. I'll give y' a call." |
Williams’ group advocates another method of destruction called chemical neutralization, but the Army contends incineration is just as safe. About 7 percent of the nation’s stockpile of Cold War-era chemical weapons is in Anniston.
You wonder if this fellow would be unhappy if he were hung with a new rope. |