In November 1985, the Congress directed the Army to destroy the Department of Defense’s (DOD) stockpile of unitary chemical weapons. The stockpile is stored at eight Army installations in the continental United States and one installation on the Johnston Atoll in the Pacific Ocean. It consists of various lethal weapons, such as rockets, bombs, and projectiles, and bulk containers that contain nerve and mustard agents. Exposure to the agents can result in death. In 1993, the United States signed the U.N.-sponsored Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and the Use of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction, commonly referred to as the Chemical Weapons Convention. The United States agreed to dispose of (1) binary chemical weapons, recovered chemical weapons, and former chemical weapon production facilities within 10 years and (2) miscellaneous chemical warfare materiel within 5 years of the date the convention becomes effective. If ratified by the U.S. Senate, the convention becomes effective 180 days after the 65th nation ratifies the treaty, but not sooner than January 13, 1995. Under the terms of the convention, chemical weapons buried prior to 1977 are exempt from disposal as long as they remain buried. In the United States, burial was a common disposal method for chemical warfare materiel until the late 1950s. Should the United States choose to excavate the sites and remove the chemical weapons, the provisions of the convention would apply. DOD officials estimate that the convention will enter into force in fiscal year 1996. In the fiscal year 1993 National Defense Authorization Act (P.L. 102-484), the Congress directed the Army to report on its plans for disposing of all nonstockpile chemical warfare materiel within the United States. In 1993, the Army issued a report describing the nonstockpile chemical materiel, potential disposal methods, transportation alternatives, and disposal cost and schedule estimates. The report concluded that it would cost the Army $1.1 billion ($930 million in direct project disposal costs and $170 million in programmatic costs) to destroy, primarily by incineration, demolition, and neutralization, the nonstockpile chemical materiel required by the convention within the required time frames. Programmatic costs are associated with more than one disposal project or program category. For example, the portion of management and personnel costs that support more than one project is considered programmatic costs. Also, estimated costs to procure and test equipment to be used at more than one site are included in the programmatic cost estimate. The Army also reported that it would cost $16.6 billion ($12.04 billion in direct disposal costs and $4.56 billion in programmatic costs) to recover and destroy, primarily by incineration and neutralization, buried chemical materiel within 40 years. These estimates are considered rough order of magnitude estimates, typically used when a program is not fully developed. According to program officials, the Army plans to issue a supplement to its 1993 survey and analysis report, which will include revised cost and schedule estimates, in mid-1995. Appendix II describes the Army’s nonstockpile chemical warfare materiel. The Army Chemical Demilitarization and Remediation Activity, formerly named the Army Chemical Materiel Destruction Agency, is responsible for storing, transporting, and disposing of nonstockpile chemical warfare materiel. The extent to which other federal and state agencies will be involved in the program depends on the location and particulars of the nonstockpile chemical materiel. Appendix III describes federal and state agencies’ roles and responsibilities for the nonstockpile disposal program. As of November 1994, the Army had not issued a comprehensive implementation plan to dispose of nonstockpile chemical warfare materiel. Moreover, based on the Army’s experience with the stockpile disposal program, it is likely to be several years before the Army can develop a disposal plan that includes reliable cost and schedule estimates.The Army’s 1993 report provides an initial scoping of the magnitude of effort required to safely destroy all nonstockpile chemical materiel in the United States if so directed. However, because of uncertainties about the nature and magnitude of the materiel or the disposal methods to be used, the Army recognizes that its $17.7-billion cost estimate for the nonstockpile disposal program cannot be relied on for budget purposes. Appendix IV lists the disposal methods used by the Army to develop its program cost and schedule estimates. Whenever possible, the Army plans to dispose of nonstockpile chemical materiel on-site. However, there may be occasions when it is not feasible or practical for the Army to do so, and transportation to another disposal location may be required. Factors the Army intends to consider are population proximity and density, chemical weapon type, condition of the munitions, and public safety and environmental policy. In addition, the opinions and concerns of the affected states, local governments, and the public will affect the Army’s decisions. For example, there is strong public opposition to incineration and transportation of chemical weapons across state boundaries. The Army’s level of knowledge and stage of planning by category of nonstockpile materiel are summarized in table 1. The locations and quantities of binary chemical weapons are well-documented and understood by the Army. Binary weapon systems principally involve an artillery projectile and components of the bigeye bomb. The projectile is composed of chemical elements, a metal casing, and explosive components. Although the bigeye bomb was never produced or stockpiled, some associated chemical elements must be destroyed. Although the method for destroying binary chemical weapons has not been determined, the Army estimates that, subject to the availability of funds, it can destroy the binary weapons within 10 years for $190 million. According to Army officials, the chemical elements in binary weapons are not lethal agents until they are combined during flight to a target; therefore, handling and disposing of the chemical elements and components should not pose any major problems. Some of the disposal options being considered for binary weapon components are incineration, landfill, crushing, and smelting. The actual disposal method will be selected by the Army after a comprehensive environmental review. The Army has a good understanding of miscellaneous chemical warfare materiel to be destroyed and has documented them by location, configuration, quantity, and type. However, changes are likely to occur as materiel is added or deleted as a result of the Chemical Weapons Convention verification process. The materiel is predominantly metal containers and munitions components. Some of the components contain explosive charges that may need to be extracted before disposal. Despite an uncertainty about the disposal method, the Army estimates that, subject to the availability of funds, it can destroy the miscellaneous chemical warfare materiel within 5 years for $210 million. According to Army officials, disposal options are numerous since most of the materiel is not contaminated with a chemical agent. The options include incineration, smelting, and crushing. However, the decision on disposal methods will be based on (1) the location, configuration, and type of materiel, (2) results of the required environmental analyses and studies, and (3) input from the affected states, local governments, and the general public. The Army has some information on the recovered chemical weapons that it must dispose of, but the inventory will change as additional weapons are recovered. According to Army documents, chemical weapons have been recovered from range-clearing operations, chemical burial sites, and research and development test areas. As of November 1993, there were 7,056 recovered chemical items in the Army’s inventory, consisting of mortar cartridges, projectiles, bombs, German rockets, chemical agent identification sets, and bulk containers. With appropriate funding, the Army estimates that the destruction of recovered chemical items can be completed within 10 years, at a cost of $110 million. The Army believes that handling and disposing of recovered chemical weapons will be difficult as (1) they are more likely to have deteriorated than other nonstockpile materiel and (2) the identity of the agent is unknown in 25 percent of the weapons. The Army is studying several destruction options, including transportable incineration and neutralization systems. However, the actual method for destroying the recovered chemical weapons cannot be selected until after the Army completes the required technical and environmental studies. The Army has identified former chemical weapon production facilities that need to be cleaned up. They consist of buildings and equipment for producing, loading, storing, and assembling chemical munitions and agents. These facilities are located in four states and are in various degrees of contamination and deterioration. The Army estimates that it will take 10 years and $420 million to dispose of former chemical weapon production facilities. However, the Army has no experience in destroying former production facilities in compliance with the Chemical Weapons Convention. It is still in the process of determining the levels of contamination, identifying potential problems in the demolition process, and determining how to safely dispose of the buildings and their components. Some of the disposal options being considered are incineration of contaminated materiel and demolition of uncontaminated facilities and equipment. The final disposal decision will not be made until comprehensive environmental studies are completed with the participation of the affected states, local governments, and the public. The Army has limited and often imprecise information about the nature and extent of buried chemical materiel. However, it has begun to develop site characterization, excavation, removal, and treatment procedures for the burial sites. Since burial was considered to be the final disposal act, little record-keeping was done for burial activities and additional sites are likely to be identified. Available records indicate that some burial sites may still contain active chemical agents and explosives; therefore, they pose a threat to human health and the environment. According to Army officials, the lack of knowledge about buried chemical warfare materiel has created considerable difficulty in selecting appropriate disposal methods. The Army has conducted various analyses, including comprehensive documentation surveys, site visits, and interviews, to identify potential burial sites.