Chemical arms at Aberdeen, Md., are all destroyed

The U.S. chemical weapons storage and disposal site in Aberdeen, Md., is the second of the nation's nine such sites, and the first on the continent, to destroy all of its chemical agent and storage containers. Chemical agents stored on Johnston Atoll in the Pacific Ocean were destroyed by incineration in 2000. In March 2005, more than 1,800 tons of mustard agent stored in bulk at Aberdeen was completely destroyed by neutralization. This alternative destruction method was used because of citizen opposition to incineration. This month, the Aberdeen disposal facility completed destruction of the containers that stored the bulk agent. The facility itself will be closed over a two-year period. By international treaty, the U.S. must completely destroy its remaining chemical stocks by April 29, 2012, a five-year extension beyond the treaty's original deadline of April 29, 2007.