THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, January 3, 1996 TAG: 9601030462
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: NEWPORT NEWS LENGTH: Medium: 58 lines
A program to put hazardous chemicals under the same type of strict controls given to weapons and ammunition is being tested at Fort Eustis, which made the government's Superfund pollution list last year.
Under the program at the Army installation, soldiers are given only the precise chemicals they need as they need them, whether it's a degreaser or floor wax.
``We limit the products they're allowed to have,'' said Staff Sgt. Colby Maddox, environmental coordinator for the 10th Battalion, based at the Newport News fort. ``We control what they're using. We control how much they're using.''
The transportation battalion of about 1,000 soldiers adopted the program as a test last winter. Their success has persuaded commanders to try to expand it basewide.
In just over six months, the volume of hazardous waste produced by the battalion decreased 23 percent, saving $14,000 in disposal costs and $24,000 in collecting and using chemicals that might otherwise have gone bad.
At the center of the system is Hazmart, a central storage and computer-tracking facility for hazardous chemicals. Cans and barrels of paints, thinners, cleaners and other chemicals are marked with bar codes and kept in white, climate-controlled trailers on the dock of the base's port.
The Hazmart staff makes sure they have the right chemicals in the right amounts and that materials are used properly by the soldiers who get them.
``A lot of times they'll come in and say, `I need some oil,' '' said Staff Sgt. Larry Drommerhausen. ``And we'll say, `Well, what kind of oil do you want?' ''
The system also cuts down on waste because soldiers must bring back unused chemicals, said Helen Worthington, an Army contractor.
Before Hazmart, about 16 percent of chemicals stored in the battalion were no longer usable because they had gone bad sitting on the shelves or out in the cold, Worthington said.
``One of our largest waste streams before was frozen paint,'' she said.
Making soldiers jump through hoops to get chemicals has helped them appreciate the importance of using and disposing of them properly, Worthington said.
``You can't measure that kind of thing, but certainly we've seen a big difference in the level of awareness,'' she said.
The Environmental Protection Agency has identified 34 potentially polluted areas on the fort along the James River. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
ASSOCIATED PRESS
A soldier unpacks a shipment of cleaning materials at the Fort
Eustis ``Hazmart,'' its holding facility.
by CNB