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WYDEN SEEKS TO STOP MOVE
TO TRANSPORT CHEMICAL WEAPONS
Senator cosponsors legislation to prevent
Defense Department from studying feasibility of moving weapons
materials to alternate sites such as the Umatilla Chemical Depot
January 27, 2005
Washington, DC – U.S.
Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) today took a step to halt the possible
transportation of dangerous chemical weapons materials across
state borders and into Oregon. Wyden today joined with U.S. Senators
Wayne Allard (R-Colo.) and Ken Salazar (D-Colo.) in sponsoring
legislation to prevent the Department of Defense from funding
a study on the feasibility of transporting the chemical munitions
at the Pueblo, Colorado Chemical Depot to unnamed out-of-state
sites to be destroyed. One possible incinerator site for transported
chemical weapons materials is the Umatilla Chemical Depot in eastern
Oregon; any materials transported to the Depot would travel throughout
eastern Oregon and along the Oregon-Idaho border on their journey.
“Protecting Oregonians
near the Depot and along any potential transport route for some
of the world’s most dangerous weapons is a priority, and
this bill should stop the Pentagon’s latest move in its
tracks,” said Wyden. “The Defense Department has already
studied to death the risks of shipping chemical weapons across
state borders, and it’s time to take that possibility off
the table once and for all.”
The Pentagon said on January
19 that it would conduct a three-month study on the feasibility
of transporting the stockpiles out of Colorado, Kentucky and Indiana
to operational sites in Oregon and other states, at a cost of
nearly $150,000, despite the fact that the Department of Defense
has conducted three similar studies over the last two decades,
all of which concluded such a plan would be impractical. Currently,
it is against the law to transport chemical munitions across state
lines.
Wyden has long been an advocate of safety at the Umatilla Chemical
Depot and in the surrounding communities. In 1999, he released
a study from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) that found
that an emergency preparedness program at the facility lacked
sufficient management. Wyden then worked with the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) and Army representatives to ensure the
maximum protection for citizens living near and working at the
facility.
In 2003, Wyden worked on a bipartisan
basis with U.S. Senator Gordon Smith (R-Ore.) and Congressman
Greg Walden (R-Ore.) to secure $4.1 million for the Umatilla Chemical
Stockpile Emergency Preparation Program. The funds were used for
a variety of safety projects in and around the Umatilla Depot.
The bill is expected to be referred
to the Senate Armed Services Committee.
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