RICHMOND, Ky. — Construction is complete on a facility that's part of a $5 billion project to safely destroy Kentucky's deadly stockpile of Cold War-era chemical weapons.
The Blue Grass Chemical-Agent Destruction Pilot Plant near Richmond has been in the works for about a decade. Once it opens, officials will conduct a testing period before beginning to destroy the 523 tons of nerve and mustard agents that have been stored at a military depot for decades.
The Army had originally planned to burn the deadly chemicals, but citizens groups opposed that method. The new plant will neutralize the agents with a chemical reaction and then destroy them. Another site in Colorado has been built and is expected to begin destroying weapons next year.
The weapons destruction is scheduled to be completed around 2023.
