U.S. ARMY DUGWAY PROVING GROUND, Utah -- Every year, millions of tons of toxic industrial chemicals (TIC) and toxic industrial materials (TIM), such as chorine, are transported domestically by rail cars, tractor trucks, tanker trailers, and barges. Most of these chemicals pass safely through large and small urban communities.
What if there is an accidental release? Does our nation have the kind of critical data needed to protect its citizens during a chemical incident? What do our first responders need to know to mitigate the incident?
To answer some of these outlining questions, a series of chlorine gas releases in the remote Utah desert will be conducted this summer and next at U.S. Army Dugway Proving Ground. The data gathered can help first-responders and others best use their resources to save lives, property, and the environment.
Over the past twenty years there have been several accidents resulting in chlorine releases throughout the United States. The risks to personnel and the resources required when responding to releases demonstrated why conducting these tests at Dugway Proving Ground and collecting the data is so important.
In 2010, a one-ton tanker trailer overturned at a Tulare, Calif., residents reported labored breathing as a noxious substance filled the air. More than 20 people were taken to area hospitals; six were hospitalized, one for 11 days. Sixteen months later, workers in the area reported they still suffered from health problems.
Perhaps the worst chlorine gas accident in the country occurred in 2005 when 18 freight cars derailed in Graniteville, S.C. Reports of the spill noted 120,000 pounds of chlorine gas was released. Nine people were killed and at least 1,400 people were exposed. An estimated 550 people were treated at hospitals.
Of 865 chlorine incidents from 1993 to 2000, 275 caused injuries, according to the federal government's Hazardous Substances Emergency Events Surveillance database. Of the 1,071 victims, 759 were workers, 235 were members of the public and most others were first responders.
The database notes that chlorine incidents occur in the United States at least once every few days, and about one-third of them cause injuries.
Various military news outlets have reported worldwide chlorine attacks on civilians for many years. The Department of Defense has detection systems and decontamination processes to respond in the event of an attack at home and in theaters of operations.
To acquire data for improved response to a chlorine incident, several local and national agencies have partnered with Dugway Proving Ground to conduct the Jack Rabbit II test project this year, from June to October.
"U.S. Army Dugway Proving Ground is the ideal location to perform the Jack Rabbit II testing because we have a combination of knowledgeable experts, monitoring instrumentation, and controlled space that support these releases in a safe, effective, and environmentally responsible way," said Col. Ronald Fizer, Dugway's commander.
Data collected during a series of chlorine field trials is necessary to support the development of enhanced procedures to protect citizens, first responders, and military members. The data will provide improved the understanding of rapid releases of pressurized liquid gases and how its effects can be mitigated.
A second set of trials are scheduled for the same months -- June to October -- in 2016, based upon the data findings from the first trials.
The initial Jack Rabbit test program, (Jack Rabbit I), was conducted at Dugway in April and May of 2010, using chlorine and ammonia, and funded by the Department of Homeland Security. Valuable data collected during the 2010 Jack Rabbit test has been distributed throughout many government agencies, the scientific community, and the nation's first responders. But this dataset is far from complete; additional testing is needed.
The Jack Rabbit I program had four objectives: Construct a disseminator to simulate a tanker car release; characterize the aerosol behavior and properties; determine if a surrogate chemical can be used in place of chlorine; and, evaluate instrumentation for a potential large-scale program.
"We gained a better understanding of TIC/TIM behavior and we observed the dramatic difference between a dense gas and a more buoyant gas when released into the atmosphere," said Donny Storwold, Dugway's program manager for Jack Rabbit I.
Storwold said the most important finding was to understand that more data would be needed to understand how TIC/TIM's would respond in an uncontrolled situation, such as an accidental release.
Dugway's remote test site is perfect for gathering the next generation of data, which is critical for our nation. Its high desert terrain and nearly 800,000 acres are well suited for the Jack Rabbit I and II trials.
In a series of news stories, Dugway will introduce public readers to the emergency responders who will benefit from collected data. The stories will also introduce the Jack Rabbit II partnerships and explain the preparation required for testing, what environmental coordination is required, the impact of testing, and the guidelines, procedures and processes in place to safeguard the public.
Once testing begins, stories highlighting accomplishments and what knowledge is expected to be gained in later trials will be provided to readers.
Additional stories will highlight the equipment used for testing and data collection, dispersion of chlorine, and methods of tracking data critical for testing. A mock urban village will be built, downwind of the release point, to best understand how chlorine would infiltrate communities large and small, to include the effects of chlorine on soil and vegetation.
U.S. Army Dugway Proving Ground is a Department of Defense Major Range and Test Facility Base, which operates under direction of the U.S. Army Test and Evaluation Command in Aberdeen, Md.
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