Neighbors of the proposed incinerators and downwind are deeply concerned about possible accidental releases of large amounts of chemical warfare agents and toxic byproducts. In addition, chronic releases of low levels of chemical warfare agents, as documented at the Utah and Pacific facilities pose risk. Recent reports from Congress, investigating Gulf War Illness, confirm the health risk of low-level exposure to agents currently being burned at the Army incinerators. The incinerators are unsafe. Shutdowns at both existing facilities continue to plague operations and the number of whistleblowers from both plants has increased, now including a former General Manager, a former Chief Safety Officer and a former Chief of Hazardous Waste Management.
Alternatives are cleaner and safer.
The Alternative Technologies currently moving towards demonstration are not dependent on combustion and the resultant emissions which include dioxins, furans, PCB's, chemical agents and hundreds of additional toxic compounds. Regulatory complexity is diminished since the alternatives have fewer potential environmental impacts. In Indiana and Maryland, where alternative technologies are moving forward, public opposition has been reduced, if not eliminated entirely. Navy's Extremely Low Frequency Transmitters, known as Project ELF, is a cold war relic, part of the communications system designed to launch and wage nuclear war. With little current need for it's capacities, the system should be deactivated.