The U.S. Chemical Security Analysis Center (CSAC) opened an experimental new facility known as the Chemical Security Laboratory (CSL) this week in partnership with the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Chemical Biological Center (DEVCOM CBC).
Located at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, this facility will allow members of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) and Army experts to validate scientific data and produce findings linked to national readiness, such as chemical threats. It would allow information to be more readily accessible by emergency planners and responders and benefit CSAC’s overall risk and consequence models while contributing data to other S&T projects.
“This new facility will be a vital organic capability for S&T,” Kathryn Coulter Mitchell, DHS Senior Official Performing Duties of the Under Secretary for Science and Technology, said. “Having the ability to conduct our own experimental laboratory research alongside our Army partners brings a more holistic approach to our chemical security analytics and allows us to model analyses rapidly in support of DHS components and other federal, state, and local partners with greater precision.”
Aberdeen Proving Ground is a Department of Defense (DoD) installation. By locating the new lab there, CSAC and CSL seek to improve the lab’s capability and return on investment by leveraging Army expertise in the areas of chemical defense, chemical threat agents, and toxic industrial chemicals.
“The CSL exists within space shared by CSAC and DEVCOM CBC and will contain essential instrumentation capable of measuring physical and chemical properties for various chemical threats of interest to DHS,” Dr. Shannon Fox, CSAC Director, said. “It is a vital capability not found at any of our sister laboratories. We are making efficient use of our strong partnerships here at APG to bring in a new S&T capability altogether.”