Advisers to the Nation on Science, Engineering, and Medicine

The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and technology and to their use for the general welfare. Upon the authority of the charter granted to it by the Congress in 1863, the Academy has a mandate that requires it to advise the federal government on scientific and technical matters. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts is president of the National Academy of Sciences.

The National Academy of Engineering was established in 1964, under the charter of the National Academy of Sciences, as a parallel organization of outstanding engineers. It is autonomous in its administration and in the selection of its members, sharing with the National Academy of Sciences the responsibility for advising the federal government. The National Academy of Engineering also sponsors engineering programs aimed at meeting national needs, encourages education and research, and recognizes the superior achievements of engineers. Dr. Wm. A. Wulf is president of the National Academy of Engineering.

The Institute of Medicine was established in 1970 by the National Academy of Sciences to secure the services of eminent members of appropriate professions in the examination of policy matters pertaining to the health of the public. The Institute acts under the responsibility given to the National Academy of Sciences by its congressional charter to be an adviser to the federal government and, upon its own initiative, to identify issues of medical care, research, and education. Dr. Harvey V. Fineberg is president of the Institute of Medicine.

The National Research Council was organized by the National Academy of Sciences in 1916 to associate the broad community of science and technology with the Academy’s purposes of furthering knowledge and advising the federal government. Functioning in accordance with general policies determined by the Academy, the Council has become the principal operating agency of both the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering in providing services to the government, the public, and the scientific and engineering communities. The Council is administered jointly by both Academies and the Institute of Medicine. Dr. Bruce M. Alberts and Dr. Wm. A. Wulf are chair and vice chair, respectively, of the National Research Council.

www.national-academies.org

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The Committee on Review and Assessment of the Army Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Demilitarization Program: Workplace Monitoring (see Appendix A for committee members’ biographies) was appointed by the National Research Council (NRC) to evaluate the impact of then newly promulgated or proposed airborne exposure limits (AELs) for nerve agents and mustard on the program of the U.S. Army Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Product (NSCMP).

The chemical demilitarization workforce and neighboring populations must be protected from the risk of exposure to hazardous materials during munition disposal operations and during facility closure. To accomplish this, a program must be in place to monitor hazardous materials in and near the workplace and to monitor workers’ activities and health. A previous NRC report examined the programs in place at two stockpile facilities, the Johnston Atoll Chemical Agent Disposal System and the Tooele Chemical Agent Disposal Facility, to monitor concentrations of airborne and condensed-phase chemical agents, agent breakdown products, and other substances of concern. The report concluded that the programs then in place were adequate and recommended the pursuit of improvements in agent monitoring technologies (NRC, 2001c).

Public Law 91-121 and Public Law 91-441 require the Department of Health and Human Services to review Department of Defense plans for disposing of lethal chemical munitions and to make recommendations to protect public health. In the process of meeting these requirements, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended new AELs for nerve agents and published these recommendations in the Federal Register in October 2003 (Federal Register, 2003a). The AELs of the nerve agents were to be monitored starting January 1, 2005. New AELs for mustard were recommended and published in the Federal Register in May 2004 (Federal Register, 2004). Monitoring of mustard will start on July 1, 2005.

The statement of task for the committee was, on its face, limited:

• Review and understand the basis for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC’s) newly promulgated airborne exposure limits (AELs) for GA (tabun), GB (sarin), and VX and proposed CDC AELs for mustard agent and assess the safety and process implications of these standards.

• Review and become familiar with facility designs and operational procedures:

  • For destruction of the former production facility at Newport, Indiana, and

  • For the use of the mobile explosive destruction system and the rapid response system.

• Assess monitoring technologies in use at the existing non-stockpile sites to determine if they are capable of measuring compliance with short- and long-term AELs and determine the degree to which these technologies can be incorporated into overall program monitoring strategies, particularly for the purposes of process verification and environmental permit compliance.

• If existing monitoring methods are not capable of determining compliance with short- and long-term AELs, evaluate the capability of other monitoring that may achieve the same goal.

• Make recommendations on

  • Application of currently used monitoring methodologies to facilitate non-stockpile activities,

  • Capability of currently used measurement technologies to meet future monitoring requirements,

  • Assessing impacts of newly promulgated AELs on worker and public safety aspects,

  • Alternative measures (e.g., increased personal protective equipment and worker safety training

requirements) that may be required to compensate for inabilities to meet standards with existing equipment,

• Impact of relevant monitoring technologies (for new AELs) and effect on ability to implement in time to meet the CWC treaty deadline, and

• The critical path regulatory approval and public involvement issues that may arise in developing such a monitoring program.

In light of this specific charge, the committee accepted the new AELs from the CDC as a starting point for its review of the monitoring program. That is, the committee did not evaluate the process used or the end points selected by the CDC in revising the 1988 limits, nor did it take a position on the appropriateness of the 2003/2004 CDC-recommended AELs. Nevertheless, the committee expresses in Chapter 3 its belief that the new AELs will not achieve any risk benefit. This report contains a significant discussion of the 2003/2004 AELs and the differences between them and the 1988 limits, because understanding the degree of uncertainty in the new AELs was necessary to understand the role of monitoring in implementing them.

This study was conducted under the auspices of the NRC’s Board on Army Science and Technology (BAST). The chair acknowledges the continued superb support of the BAST director, Bruce A. Braun, and the study director, Nancy T. Schulte. Valuable assistance was provided by Harrison Pannella, Tomeka Gilbert, and James Myska of the NRC staff and by the committee members, who all worked diligently on a demanding schedule to produce this report.

Richard J. Ayen, Chair

Committee on Review and Assessment of the Army Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Demilitarization Program: Workplace Monitoring

This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the NRC’s Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this report:

Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. The review of this report was overseen by Stephen Berry, University of Chicago. Appointed by the NRC, he was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring committee and the institution.

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ACAMS

automatic continuous agent monitoring system(s)

A/DAM

Agilent/Dynatherm agent monitor

AEGL

acute exposure guideline

AEL

airborne exposure limit

CAIS

chemical agent identification set(s)

CAS

Chemical Abstract Service

CDC

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

CFR

Code of Federal Regulations

CG

phosgene

CHPPM

(U.S. Army) Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine

CK

cyanogen chloride

CMA

(U.S. Army) Chemical Materials Agency

CPT

chemical process trailer

CWC

Chemical Weapons Convention

CWM

chemical warfare materiel

DA

diphenylchloroarsine

DAAMS

depot area air monitoring system(s)

DCD

Deseret Chemical Depot (Utah)

DET

detonation chamber

DF

binary chemical agent precursor

DM

adamsite

DPE

demilitarization protective ensemble

EA-2192

product of VX hydrolysis

EDS

explosive destruction system(s)

EIS

environmental impact statement

FPD

flame photometric detector

GA

tabun (a nerve agent)

GB

sarin (a nerve agent)

GC

gas chromatograph

GD

soman (a nerve agent)

GDL

gross detection level

GPL

general population limit

GS

diethyl malonate

GTR

German Traktor rocket

H

sulfur mustard

HD

sulfur mustard (distilled)

HN

nitrogen mustard

HT

sulfur mustard, T-mustard combination

HVAC

heating, ventilation, and air conditioning

IDLH

immediately dangerous to life and health

L

lewisite

LAMS

large area maintenance shelter

LOAEL

lowest observed adverse effect level

MASP

mobile analytical support platform

MCE

maximum credible event

MDU

metal decontamination unit(s)

MEA

monoethanolamine

mg

milligram

MINICAMS

low-level, near-real-time air monitor(s)

mm

millimeter

MMD

munitions management device

MPL

maximum permissible limit

MSD

mass spectrometry detector

NaOH

sodium hydroxide

NECD

Newport Chemical Depot

NIOSH

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

NOAEL

no observed adverse effect level

NRC

National Research Council

NRT

near real time

NSCM

non-stockpile chemical materiel

NSCMP

Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel Product

NSCWCC

Non-Stockpile Chemical Weapons Citizens’ Coalition

O,S-DMP

O,S-diethyl methylphosphonothiolate, a by-product in the manufacture of VX

OSHA

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

P&A

precision and accuracy

PD

phenyldichloroarsine

PFPD

pulsed flame photometric detector

PIG

container for shipping CAIS

PINS

portable isotopic neutron spectroscopy

PMNSCM

Product Manager for Non-Stockpile Chemical Materiel

PPE

personal protective equipment

PS

chloropicrin

psig

pounds per square inch gauge

PWS

projectile washout system

QA/QC

quality assurance/quality control

QL

binary chemical agent precursor

RAP

regulatory approval and permitting

RCRA

Resource Conservation and Recovery Act

RCWM

recovered chemical weapons materiel

RD&D

research, development, and demonstration

RRS

rapid response system

SCANS

single CAIS access and neutralization system

SCBA

self-contained breathing apparatus

SDS

spent decontamination solution

STEL

short-term exposure limit

TAP

toxicological agent protective

TP

triphosgene

TPA

triphenylarsine

TRO

diethyl methylphosphonate, an oxidation product of a VX precursor

TSDF

treatment, storage, and disposal facility

TWA

time-weighted average

U.S.C.

United States Code

VCS

vapor containment structure

VX

a nerve agent

WPL

worker population limit

XSD

halogen-selective detector

3X

level of agent decontamination (suitable for transport for further processing)

5X

level of agent decontamination (suitable for commercial release)