The SRS Munitions Response Services (MRS) group provided explosive decontamination services to General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems (GD OTS) at Camp Minden, LA. SRS’s team of four UXO technicians and two chemists used MuniRem® to dissolve, remove, and neutralize approximately 1,000 pounds of H6 explosive that was left on a melter flaker machine in a melt pour facility at the former Louisiana Army Ammunition Plant, now known as Camp Minden.

GD OTS came to SRS looking for a more cost effective solution that those being offered to remove the melter flaker machine and clean the bay that housed the operation. The existing offers proposed to dissemble the machine and ship the explosive encrusted parts to an armored furnace hundreds of miles over public roads. SRS proposed instead to chemically dissolve and neutralize the explosives on-site and ship everything off-site as non-hazardous waste. The chemical dissolution and neutralization process was much safer and less expensive than the other proposed process.

GD OTS had estimated there were approximately 200 pounds of H6 in the bay. SRS removed approximately 1,000 pounds of H6 by first cleaning the way into the bay to the machine, cleaning the floor and all walls, and then using MuniRem® to soften the encrusted H6 on the machine so we could safely remove it by hand and dissolve it in treatment tanks.  Once the melter flaker machine was relatively clean, it was dissembled and the individual parts were cleaned and tested explosive free. The approximately 1,000 pounds of dissolved H6 explosive was neutralized with MuniRem® and water. The resulting approximately 30,000 gallons of solution was tested as explosive-free and non-hazardous, and disposed of locally in a non-hazardous landfill.

All the work was overseen by representatives from EPA, GD OTS, the Louisiana National Guard, and the Louisiana State Police. All were impressed with the speed and efficiency of the process and the results.