Kentucky plant completes destruction of projectiles with nerve agent

Published 6:31 am Friday, June 4, 2021

Kentucky’s chemical weapons destruction facility has eliminated its stockpile of projectiles containing VX nerve agent.

The Blue Grass Chemical Agent plant destroyed the last projectiles on May 28, the facility said in a statement this week. Plant workers dismantled the weapons and mixed the nerve agents with chemicals and water, turning it into a neutral solution.

The plant at the Blue Grass Army Depot in Madison County began disposing of its 523 tons of decades-old chemical weapons in 2019. As of May 21, it had eliminated more than 27% of its chemical agents, the statement said.

“This marks not only the completion of the second of five destruction campaigns in Kentucky, but also the destruction of all projectiles containing nerve agent in the U.S. chemical weapons stockpile,” said Dr. Candace Coyle, site project manager.

Teams will now focus on destroying mustard-filled projectiles and preparing to eliminate nerve agent-filled rockets, officials said.