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Army halts shipment of chemical weapons wastewater to Texas

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PUEBLO, Colo. (AP) — A Colorado Army facility where chemical weapons are being destroyed has suspended shipping wastewater to a Texas incinerator because of Tropical Storm Harvey.

The Pueblo Chemical Depot said Thursday it stopped trucking wastewater to Veolia Environmental Services in Port Arthur when the storm hit. No resumption date was set.

The Colorado depot is dismantling and neutralizing shells containing mustard agent under an international treaty. The depot cannot yet process all the wastewater, so it began shipping it to Texas in late July.

Depot spokesman Thomas Schultz said Veolia informed the Army that wastewater awaiting incineration in Port Arthur has been stored safely.

The Army says the wastewater is primarily saltwater but could irritate human skin because it contains caustic chemicals used to neutralize the mustard. Officials say the wastewater contains no mustard agent.