The Big Clean-Up

Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons OPCW,the team currently dismantling Syrias arsenal,has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize this year

An inter-governmental body based in The Hague,Netherlands,it oversees that all signatories to the Chemical Weapons Convention comply with the rules

The chemical weapons can be destroyed in situ using mobile units,or moved to another location for large-scale processing

WHAT ARE CHEMICAL WEAPONS

Toxic chemicals delivered by an explosion,such as a bomb,artillery shell,or missile

Can injure and kill people

Reactions include choking,nerve damage,blood poisoning and blistering

The first chemical weapons,used in World War I,were gases released from canisters

They arent gases now; they8217;re liquid aerosol,with droplets carried through air

METHODS OF DISPOSAL/DESTRUCTION

1917 to 1960s: Commonly accepted disposal methods were open-pit burning,land burial and ocean dumping

1970s onwards: More sophisticated and environmentally sound disposal methods high-temperature incineration and chemical neutralisation

Incineration

Uses a tremendous amount of heat to turn toxic chemical into mostly ash,water vapour,carbon dioxide

Neutralisation

Breaks the chemical agent down using water and a caustic compound,such as sodium hyrdoxide. Large quantity of liquid waste generated must be processed further

WHAT HAPPENS TO METAL SHELLS?

Have to be thermally decontaminated,as enough heat cant be produced to vapourise the metal

Once decontaminated,metal can be sold as scrap

WHERE HAVE WEAPONS BEEN DESTROYED BEFORE?

Iraq and more recently Libya have both had chemical weapons stockpiles destroyed

In Iraq,UN weapons inspectors located chemical weapons facilities and sealed them up. Once sealed they were effectively put beyond use

The Libyan stockpile was much smaller and a disposal plant was built to deal with it although a further stockpile of mustard gas was later uncovered after the overthrow of the Gaddafi regime

WHY IS SYRIA A PECULIAR CASE?

Harder to find the weapons since theres an active civil war going on

No consensus among the international community on the issue

The Syrian govt may continue to use the weapons at their disposal

US ARMY WEAPONS

The countrys stockpile is being disposed of at nine sites

Carried out by its mobile chemical weapons disposal unit. It neutralises the effect of chemicals that leak out of the weapons sites

Chemicals are usually handled by robots

TREATIES REGARDING CHEMICAL WEAPONS

The Chemical Weapons Convention was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1997. It bans the creation of the weapons and mandates their destruction