OGDEN -- Between Jan. 11 and June 12 in 2001, the Army Corps of Engineers conducted a cleanup of a World War II trash burial site on land that is now part of the Ogden Nature Center.
If any pollution from the site's years as a military defense depot is found anywhere in Business Depot Ogden, the Army Corps of Engineers has to clean it up. EPA requirements for the cleanup mean it has to be thorough and completely documented.
The record of the 2001 dig on what was called Burial Site 1 in what was then Defense Depot Ogden fills a 4-inch-thick binder with records, photographs and findings. The record is an example of how the Corps of Engineers handled the cleanup, a process that began in 1992 and continues today.
According to the report, initial studies showed Burial Site 1 was used in the mid-1940s for disposal of empty drums that formerly contained a riot-control agent and white smoke.
In 1996, the site was excavated and some empty drums removed. While doing that, workers found buried material that made them think the site contained more sinister substances. That material included:
* Canisters that looked like either gas mask filters or burned-out smoke grenades.
* A fully intact drum that was later found to have once contained either liquid smoke or mustard for mustard gas.
* A 55-gallon drum leaking thick brown liquid.
* Numerous drums containing molasses residuum, "a mustard stimulant."
* Numerous broken or empty glass bottles.
* Components of smoke pots possibly containing hexachloroethane, used in smoke compositions, that appeared to have been burned.
* Tubes of cream believed used to protect from chemical agents.
* Glass bottles containing liquids or white powder, including items identified as part of mustard gas-detection kits.
* About 200 4-ounce cans of paint used to detect the presence of chemical agent.
Fearing chemical warfare items might be in the dump, work stopped and more aggressive tactics planned.
In 2001, workers put an air-tight dome over the site. They wore chemical hazard suits to install emergency showers, air filters for the dome and a portable lab to analyze all found materials.
All dirt was sifted. Numerous daily tests of the soil were conducted and logged. The whole operation was photographed and monitored with cameras. The Ogden Fire Department provided emergency medical personnel to monitor the workers.
In all, 1,286 tons of dirt and debris were removed, leaving an excavation 275 feet long, 18 feet wide and 4 feet deep. Much of what was found was simple trash, such as shoe polish tubes, paint used to detect chemical weapons, empty cans and bottles.
Two items identified as chemical weapons were taken to Aberdeen Proving Grounds for disposal. All the rest, including tons of contaminated soil, was removed and disposed of.
Clean fill was put in to restore the site, which was part of 25 acres transferred to the Ogden Nature Center in 2003.
Mary McKinley, director of the nature center, said all the evidence she has seen from the cleanup leaves her assured there's no pollution from the dump site and the area is safe.
She said the Army Corps of Engineers even put in the parking lot.
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