Inexcusable lapses

Anyone familiar with government bureaucracy shouldn't be too surprised with the findings of a recent audit into the destruction of chemical weapons here in Utah and elsewhere.

The audit, obtained by this newspaper through a Freedom of Information Act request, showed that the process is costing more and taking longer than expected, and that the Army actually was giving incentives for contractors to slow the process.

Bureaucracies — and the military certainly qualifies as one — are efficient only when tightly monitored and transparent. This process, which was supposed to be completed by 1996 and now may linger until 2023, has been neither.

The only thing that can make the U.S. weapons destruction effort look good, in fact, is the similar one underway in Russia. The Tooele depot here once held 44.5 percent of the nation's stockpile of chemical weapons, and it has so far destroyed 58 percent of what it held. Russia didn't begin an effective destruction program until late last year, and as of last September it had destroyed only 3 percent of its arsenal, according to the Associated Press.

But Americans shouldn't compare themselves to that effort. People expect more here. People ought to require more, particularly when tax dollars are involved.

Pentagon inspectors said the Army is not providing incentives for the destruction work to be finished on time. Instead, the Army provides little oversight, does nothing to punish late work and has given bonuses to contractors who clearly haven't met the requirements for those bonuses. These include bonuses given in Tooele, despite low ratings on environmental compliance.

In addition, the audit found that the Army does little to learn from and apply the experiences of one arms-destruction facility to other such facilities. This results in further delays and predictable problems.

The good news is that Utah's disposal efforts have so far not resulted in any huge safety concerns. But it must be remembered that this destruction process involves some of the deadliest chemicals on the planet, and no amount of oversight and care is too much. The Army can't afford to be lax, nor should it allow for lengthy delays.

What once was estimated to cost $1.7 billion is now projected to cost $27.8 billion.

That may be small change to a large bureaucracy, and it may be welcome change to contractors, but it represents real money to the American people.