Panel doesn't want incineration held up

Hermiston Herald

06/19/01

By Frank (F. Ellsworth) Lockwood
Staff writer

HERMISTON -- The Governor's Executive Review panel Tuesday discussed redefining or eliminating tough "showstopper" standards, rather than risking the delay of incineration of chemical weapons at Umatilla Chemical Agent Disposal Facility.

Showstoppers are issues that the ERP says absolutely must be resolved before incineration can begin. Most showstoppers have been resolved, but two remain: monitoring, and tactical radio communications.

The Governor's Executive Review Panel met at the National Guard Armory where they reviewed the "Second Interim Report on the Status of Protection for Communities Surrounding the Umatilla Chemical Depot (UMCD)." In a May 8 CSEPP exercise designed to evaluate emergency preparedness, the surrounding communities had passed seven performance measures but failed another eight. Five of the failures were due to the lack of monitoring equipment. The measures failed by default. Others were caused by "minor" issues, panel members said.

The two "key components" of having an adequate emergency program were showstoppers and performance measures. Now some panel members are questioning both of those. Performance measures were a tough, "all or nothing" evaluation. If one evaluator raised an issue at one location, the measure was assessed as failing at the entire exercise.

An "all or nothing, pass/fail scheme" might be inappropriate to use for deciding what is an "adequate program," the panel concluded. "Showstoppers" were questioned as well. According to earlier ERP agreements, emergency preparedness showstoppers, if not resolved, would hold up incineration of chemical weapons.

Umatilla County Commissioner Dennis Doherty suggested a more flexible standard at Tuesday's meeting, but not all agreed. Doherty is the Chemical Stockpile Emergency Preparedness Governing Board's president.

Panel History
The Hazardous Waste Storage and Treatment Permit for the Umatilla Chemical Agent Disposal Facility states that the governor of Oregon must decide that an adequate emergency response program is in place before incineration of chemical weapons can begin.

Gov. John Kitzhaber appointed the 20 representatives to the Executive Review Panel in May 2000 to advise him when an adequate emergency preparedness program is in place and fully operational at UMCD. The panel reported in December that progress was being made.

To track emergency preparedness progress, the panel created a "Master List of Deficiencies." They also rated some elements of readiness as "critical." However, items can be on the critical list without becoming showstoppers. Incineration might go ahead even with unresolved items on the critical list. Not so with showstoppers. The panel had agreed that showstoppers, were essential elements and, if not resolved, would nix a good report.

Most showstoppers have been resolved, but the two remaining unresolved showstoppers were: 1) a tactical radio systems and 2) chemical agent monitoring. Radio tactical communications is in early stages of negotiation for contracting. And monitoring is not in place. Although some equipment purchases have been approved, the agent monitoring concept and equipment have yet to be put in place. Because it provides early warning of agent, monitoring is considered a necessary component of decontamination, evacuation assistance, and reentry into restricted areas.

The review panel goal was to be able to tell the governor in November that emergency preparedness is adequate, but members now worry the showstopper standards will upset their timetable.

Showstoppers Disputed
As the emergency preparedness target date draws nearer, the panel is asking, "Who came up with that list of showstoppers in the first place?" They discussed whether a showstopper really must stop the show, with Doherty suggesting they forget about using the word or the concept of "showstoppers," altogether.

Doherty argued instead for a continuum of desirable readiness indicators, which would allow them to make a positive report to the governor, even if not all showstoppers are resolved. Others questioned whether they could redefine the term, showstopper.

But Wanda Munn, from the state of Washington, said the term "showstoppers" means just that. You stop everything if those issues are not resolved. If items are not really showstoppers, they should be removed from the showstopper list, she said.

DEQ's Wayne Thomas suggested taking a vote on whether or not to have showstoppers, but Armand Minthorn, representing the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, cautioned against that. The panel decided to continue the discussion at the Aug. 23 meeting.

Target Date Doubted
Panel member Robert Flournoy said the panel would not be able to make a positive recommendation in November, based on the standards the panel had developed. A volley of exchanges over the issue took place between Flournoy and the moderator Wayne Thomas of the DEQ.

Thomas: Is there a possibility that we can be ready in November?
Flournoy: No. There are certain elements that are not going to be ready.
Thomas: Do we know that right now?
Flournoy: Do we know what?
Thomas: Do we know that we are not going to be ready in November.
Flournoy: From everything that I have been told absolutely we will not be ready.
Thomas: Is there a possibility that we could be ready in November?
Flournoy: Not when you take into consideration all of the elements ... (unintelligible) there are certain elements, no, we will not be ready. And I
think the governor should know. The community should have to know.
Thomas then told Flournoy, "We are facing it optimistically."
"I will be optimistic then," Flournoy said.

Munn, looking at a calendar, expressed doubts similar to Flournoy's. "I am a little concerned," she noted, about the "enormous achievements" that needed to be accomplished in order to give the governor a positive report in November.

Doherty compared the desired new tactical radio system to a new Cadillac. If the old system works, he said, it can serve for a while if necessary, rather than hold up incineration, just as the old Chevrolet gets one to and from work while waiting for the Cadillac to be delivered.

A recent $500,000 upgrade was done on the existing communications system, and Doherty says that system is adequate until a better one, using a 450 megahertz design, can be put in place. Doherty says CSEPP has its list of priorities on which they are working, so does the Army. When the Army is ready to burn, he says, he hopes the Executive Review Panel will agree that preparation is adequate. The real danger is from continued storage, not from incineration, Doherty said.