ANNISTON
Calhoun County may see many of its demands for emergency protection met, following a meeting Friday between local and federal officials.
The pricetag for protecting the community in the event of a chemical weapons accident at the Anniston Army Depot may exceed $60 million if a Defense Department official agrees to all of the county's demands.
But even if the demands are met, the Army may not be able to begin destroying the chemical weapons in June as planned, a Congressional staffer warned during the meeting. All the safety measures sought may have to be in place, and not just agreed upon, said a staffer for Richard Shelby, R-Tuscaloosa.
The Calhoun County Commission met Friday with Department of Defense officials in a daylong session to hash out many issues that have plagued emergency preparedness in the county. The meeting was one of a series of forums arranged by Undersecretary of Defense Edward "Pete" Aldridge.
County officials said afterward that the meeting was the most productive to date. They emerged cautiously optimistic that the Department of Defense will meet their demands.
Aldridge will decide by the end of October whether to fund the county's requests, including $10 million for gas masks, as much as $25 million for shelters, and $6 million for new emergency planning software.
Calhoun County may begin a widespread preparedness education program following the decision. County officials asked for $1.6 million to begin a public information campaign.
The incinerator is scheduled to start in June the destruction of the more than 661,000 chemical weapons containing lethal nerve agents that are stored at Anniston Army Depot.
The county has been grappling with federal officials over the community's safety in the event of an accident involving chemical weapons at the stockpile or the incinerator.
In April, Gov. Don Siegelman wrote Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld with a 13-point safety checklist, asking for his help in resolving the issues. Siegelman warned that he could not support starting incineration until his checklist was resolved.
The list included the need for new data on the toxicity of the nerve agent, 24-hour staffing for the Calhoun County Emergency Management Agency, more emergency sirens, updated software for the county EMA, and individual planning for the safety of ill or elderly residents who may not be able to protect themselves.
To satisfy Siegelman's demands, Aldridge formed the Operational Assessment Team to tackle the problems.
The team knocked many of the 13 points off the list Friday and reached a resolution on the remainder.
But Joe Summer, a staffer for Shelby, said the senator wants to see all of the issues resolved before he will allow the incinerator to begin destroying the weapons.
Aldridge said during an Oct. 2 meeting with Shelby, Siegelman, Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Mobile, and Rep. Bob Riley, R-Ashland, that the incinerator will not start until the items have been resolved.
With some of the measures - such as special-needs planning - taking as long as a year to implement, Summer said the incinerator may not start in June.
But Dr. Anna Johnson-Winegar, Aldridge's deputy, said resolution doesn't mean all the 13 items need to be absolutely complete. She said the undersecretary meant an agreed-upon plan must be in place.
Updating the county's software may take as long as three years, she said later. The Department of Defense can't wait that long to begin destroying the weapons, she said.
"We may have to discuss what is the definition of 'resolution,'" she said.
Dr. Johnson-Winegar will carry the final list of the county's needs to Aldridge today. Aldridge decide by the end of October whether to support all of the requests. Then he will go before Congress to secure the money.
Dr. Johnson-Winegar verbally agreed to supply money for three additional employees at the Calhoun County EMA.
The Army agreed to use new nerve agent toxicity data in planning emergency response. The new data is awaiting national approval but will help the county accurately determine the size of the affected area and the appropriate response in an accident.
Because of the new toxicity data, the county wants to re-evaluate several buildings to see if they will require some type of collective-protection shelter. The county will receive at least $6 million for collective protection, but Delois Champ of the Calhoun County EMA said it may take an additional $25 million. Only one Anniston school has qualified for collective protection, she said.
Other outstanding issues include planning for the safety of special-needs populations, such as the infirm or elderly. Completing those plans may take nine months to a year.
Dr. Johnson-Winegar said she will include $10 million for protective hoods - essentially gas masks -on the final list. The county has yet to select a hood and asked for more guidance from Army experts.
Dr. Wade Kuhlmann, a gas mask specialist with the Army, displayed several types of gas masks but warned that some can cause suffocation as carbon dioxide can build up inside a protective hood. Additionally, no protective hood has undergone thorough testing for children.
Questions arose over who would bear the liability in the event of a resident's death due to a gas mask accident. Neither federal nor local officials want to volunteer to take the responsibility.
In addition to the governor's original 13 items, the county asked for $5 million to move the county road department's main facility to Fort McClellan. Officials said the road department would have an important role in emergency response in the event of a chemical weapons accident. The facility should not itself be inside the 'pink zone' that delineates those areas nearest to the depot with the highest risk of exposure, the officials argued.
Calhoun County also asked for 500 protective suits for police officers, firemen and paramedics, at a cost of $1.9 million; four surplus Humvees; a meteorological tower; $1.3 million for additional 800-megahertz radios, and approximately $4.2 million for 14,000 recirculating air filters for individual homes.
Aldridge will decide on all of the items by the end of the month, barring any unforeseen catastrophes, said Pat Wakefield, director of the Operational Assessment Team.
Calhoun County Commissioners said they were hopeful Aldridge would come through with the funds.
"This is the most productive meeting I have been to yet," said commissioner Eli Henderson.
