SENSE OF CONGRESS ON DEPLOYMENT OF AIRBORNE CHEMICAL AGENT MONITORING SYSTEMS AT CHEMICAL STOCKPILE DISPOSAL SITES IN THE UNITED STATES.

SEC. 1056. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON DEPLOYMENT OF AIRBORNE CHEMICAL AGENT MONITORING SYSTEMS AT CHEMICAL STOCKPILE DISPOSAL SITES IN THE UNITED STATES.(a) Findings.—The Congress makes the following findings:(1) Over 23,700 tons of lethal chemical agents in assembled chemical weapons and bulk storage containers are stored and awaiting destruction at eight chemical agent disposal facilities and stockpile storage sites in the United States. Some of these weapons and storage containers contain GB or VX nerve agents, while others contain blister agents such as HD (mustard agent).(2) Approximately 960,000 persons live in the vicinity of the eight chemical weapons disposal facilities and stockpile storage sites.(3) Airborne-agent chemical monitoring systems are currently deployed at each of the chemical demilitarization facilities and stockpile storage sites to provide continuous and near-real-time monitoring of the presence of chemical agents.(4) The National Research Council has determined that monitoring levels used at the demilitarization facilities are very conservative and highly protective of workers and public health and safety and that the conservative monitoring levels are a contributing factor in false positive alarms.(5) The National Research Council has expressed repeated concern about relatively frequent false positive alarms and the lack of real-time monitoring for airborne agents and has noted the poor state of agent monitoring technology for liquid waste streams and solid materials suspected of possible agent contamination.(6) The National Research Council has concluded that, although the Program Manager for Chemical Demilitarization has made some efforts to develop better agent-monitoring technology, results to date have been disappointing.(7) The National Research Council has concluded that development and deployment of airborne-agent monitors with shorter response time and lower false alarm rates would enhance safety and reduce the tendency to discount agent alarms, and has recommended that the Program Manager for Chemical Demilitarization and the relevant Department of Defense research and development agencies should invigorate and coordinate efforts to develop chemical agent monitors with improved sensitivity, specificity, and response time.(b) Sense of Congress.—It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of the Army—(1) should, in coordination with relevant Department of Defense research and development agencies, invigorate and coordinate efforts to develop chemical agent monitors with improved sensitivity, specificity, and response time; and(2) should deploy improved chemical agent monitors in order to ensure the maximum protection of the general public, personnel involved in the chemical demilitarization program, and the environment.