The U.S. Army Pueblo Chemical Depot officially deactivated this month after 82 years in Southern Colorado. The site recently held a traditional military casing of the colors ceremony which marks a transition or the completion of a mission for a unit.
“We don’t see this as a somber event, rather a milestone achievement,” said Col. Rodney McCutcheon, the depot’s 40th and final commander in a written statement. “For more than three decades, the [Pueblo Chemical Depot] team has strived to make good on the noble cause of ridding the U.S. of chemical weapons.”
More than 250 government contract workers at the site were laid off this week according to the announcement, but as of late August only seven had not found other employment or retired.
According to the U.S. Army, the workers were able to obtain help from a specialized transition office to help them find other federal employment positions, private sector jobs or access retirement services
The 23,000-acre facility was built during World War II to store and handle military supplies, including mustard agent used for chemical warfare.
In the 1990s the U.S. agreed to destroy its chemical weapons as part of an international agreement. That process, including those stored at a site in Kentucky, was completed last year.
The decontamination of the plant where the munitions were destroyed is expected to take three years. Then the rest of the property will eventually be turned over to the local agency PuebloPlex for redevelopment.
