1. RAF PORTREATH A.K.A Chemical Defence Establishment Nancekuke
By Owen Winters and Matthew Corry

2. RAF Portreath History of the Site: 1940- RAF Fighter Sector Station
and Overseas Air Dispatch Unit
1945- Transport Command Briefing
School
1950- Chemical Defence
Establishment Nancekuke
1976- Start of decommissioning
1980- Site closed and handed back to
RAF
1999- RAF Land Quality Survey
2000- Phase 2 Land Quality Assessment
2000  Remediation

3. CDE Nancekuke
Small-scale chemical agent production and research facility
Produced the nerve agent Sarin, an extremely toxic substance
As a chemical weapon, it is classified as a weapon of mass destruction by the United Nations
Production and stockpiling of Sarin was outlawed by the Chemical Weapons Convention of 1993
While in operation CDE Nancekuke produced 20 tonnes of Sarin (less than 1mg is enough to kill an adult)
In 1976 CDE Nancekuke was closed down and decommissioned

4. Decommissioning All remaining stocks of chemical agents were either:
-Neutralised on site
-Returned to industry
-Buried on site
Demolition materials from the buildings and machinery buried on site
5 Dump locations A-E
-A: In-filled quarry
-B: In-filled valley
-C: Purpose- dug pits
-D&E: Mineshafts

5. Site Investigation
1999 RAF commissioned a Land Quality Survey which recommended a Phase 2 Land Quality Survey to identify and quantify whether the environment was being harmed
Phase 2 survey:
Intrusive investigation
Comprehensive data gathering
Boreholes
Soil Samples
Water Samples
Results:
Low concentrations of industrial chemicals
Asbestos
Absence of chemical warfare agents
MOD voluntarily decided to remediate the
site

6. The Remediation Project
Safety Measures:
Respirators
Protective suits
Vapour containment System

7. The Remediation Project
Sites A & B:
60 trial pits have been dug, no remediation carried out to date
Majority is non-hazardous rubble
Some asbestos material
Decontaminated chemical plant
Chemical waste residues- typical
of industrial activities
Minute traces of chemical agent
breakdown products (from Sarin,
CS Gas, Mustard Gas)
Solid residues of CS

8. The Remediation Project
Site C: (Purpose-Dug pits and trenches)
100m3 of waste material excavated
and disposed of to land-fill
Soil washing
Area revegitated
Sites D & E: (Former Mineshafts)
Above and below ground investigations
Presence of decontaminated chemical plant, machinery, waste materials and reaction vessels
Containment- Entrances secured to prevent unauthorised access

9. Treatment Methods Good records- makes treatment easier to plan
Majority of the chemicals manufactured on the site had a short ‘shelf life’
Natural hydrolysis of the chemicals by the groundwater and bio-remediation has eliminated hazards
Sarin can be chemically deactivated by strong alkalis
Sodium Hydroxide (salt) destroys Sarin in a hydrolysis reaction, converting it to harmless sodium salts
Disposal of non-hazardous material off-site
Soil washing
Containment of decommissioned plant etc in the abandoned mineshafts

10. The Next Steps…
Further investigations of Sites A & B and a decision as to what the optimum remediation strategy will be
Regular sampling of water around the dump sites will continue for several years