Pine Bluff Chemical Agent Disposal Facility Munitions Handlers watch the last Enhanced Onsite Container carrying VX M55 rockets being lifted by an overhead crane into the disposal facility's container handling building. Download High-Res Image

Pine Bluff Arsenal (PBA) is one of six Army installations in the United States that currently store chemical weapons. The chemical weapons stored at the arsenal consist of various munitions and ton containers, containing GB or VX nerve agents or HD blister agent. The Army is working in partnership with Arkansas state and local government agencies, as well as federal agencies like the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to safeguard the local community and protect the environment as we store and dispose of these chemical weapons. The Army has safely stored approximately 12 percent of the nation’s original chemical weapons at the arsenal since 1942.

The Pine Bluff Chemical Agent Disposal Facility (PBCDF) is designed for the purpose of destroying the chemical weapons stored at PBA. The facility was completed in 2002, and the Army began weapons disposal in March 2005.

PBCDF started disposal operations by destroying M55 GB rockets and later GB containers, with the last GB rocket being processed in May 2007. This marked the end of all GB munitions at PBA. The facility began processing M55 VX rockets in October 2007, with the last VX rocket being destroyed in February 2008, marking the destruction of all stockpile chemical agent-filled rockets at PBA.

The facility uses high-temperature incineration technology, a technology employed by the Army for more than a decade, safely and successfully disposing of more than half of the nation's original chemical weapons.

Additional facilities and systems treat and dispose of chemical warfare materiel not associated with the stockpile, managed by the U.S. Army Chemical Materials Agency’s (CMA) Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Project (NSMCP). The Pine Bluff Explosive Destruction System (PBEDS) a transportable treatment technology used to process recovered chemical warfare materiel, began operations in June 2006 to destroy recovered chemical warfare materiel items stored at PBA. Another ongoing NSCMP project includes the Ton Container (TC) Decontamination Facility, which decontaminates TCs stored at the arsenal, allowing the steel containers to be recycled.

Throughout the years, NSCMP has successfully completed a number of projects at PBA – many ahead of international treaty deadlines. From 2004 to 2006, more than 7,000 recovered chemical warfare items were assessed using the Pine Bluff Munitions Assessment System, which identified the contents and explosive condition of the items before processing to enhance safe handling, treatment and disposal at the arsenal. The Rapid Response System, a transportable treatment technology, processed more than 5,300 Chemical Agent Identification Set (CAIS) items once stored at PBA and completed its mission in November 2006. NSCMP also demolished the Pine Bluff Integrated Binary Production Facilities (IBPF), and neutralized the remaining binary precursor chemicals, DF and QL. Neutralization of the chemicals was completed in October 2006, and demolition of the last IBPF building took place in December 2006 – the final former chemical weapons production facility destroyed in the United States.

Safety and Security

The safety of workers, the public and the environment are paramount to the success of the chemical weapons disposal mission. CMA and the Army arsenal oversee the secure storage of chemical munitions to ensure that they are safe.

Once munitions are slated for disposal, they are transported, treated and disposed of following strict internal processes and regulatory requirements. The CMA is committed to creating a safer tomorrow by permanently eliminating the threat of aging chemical weapons to our communities and our nation.

Public Participation and Community Relations

The Arkansas Citizens' Advisory Commission, whose members include area residents appointed by the governor, is a focal point for public participation in the Army's weapons storage and disposal program in Pine Bluff.

The Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Program works closely with your community and state emergency professionals to develop emergency plans and provide chemical accident response equipment and warning systems.

To learn more about the Army’s chemical weapons disposal mission visit the Pine Bluff Outreach Office for Chemical Disposal.