Dugway Proving Ground - The Black Vault

The Dugway Sheep Incident, 1968

John Greenewald — Mon, 30 Oct 2017 16:29:13 +0000

Background

The Dugway Sheep Incident, also known as the Skull Valley Sheep Kill, is a notorious event that took place in 1968. On March 13, the U.S. Army’s Dugway Proving Ground in Utah was testing nerve gas when, reportedly due to an accident, a jet sprayed VX, a potent nerve gas, over a large area off-course from its intended target.

This incident led to the death of approximately 6,000 sheep grazing in Skull Valley, an area located around 30 miles from the proving grounds. Symptoms such as convulsions suggested nerve gas poisoning, but the Army initially denied any connection with the deaths.

Eventually, after an investigation by local scientists, the government conceded that the sheep deaths were indeed caused by nerve gas exposure, but they insisted it was due to a wind shift that brought the gas to the valley rather than a direct spraying.

The incident led to a public outcry and increased scrutiny on the U.S. government’s handling and testing of chemical and biological weapons. This helped catalyze an anti-chemical weapons movement, which ultimately resulted in a ban on open-air chemical weapons testing in 1972. Despite the ban, the Dugway Sheep Incident has remained a significant part of the debate over chemical weapons and their potential environmental impact.

Documents relating to the event are archived below.

Document Archive

Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Documents, Released October 4, 2017 [14 Pages, 2.1MB]

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The post The Dugway Sheep Incident, 1968 first appeared on The Black Vault.

West Desert Test Center / Dugway Proving Ground Technical Report Listings

John Greenewald — Wed, 21 Sep 2016 21:14:22 +0000

Background

West Desert Test Center (WDTC) is the testing area for US Army Dugway Proving Ground (DPG) and is designated as the US Army’s Major Range and Test Facility Base for chemical and biological defense testing. WDTC specializes in planning, conducting, and analyzing results of developmental and production tests. Areas of expertise include chemical and biological (CB) defense, smoke and obscurants, materiel and delivery systems, munitions and incendiary devices, meteorological research and modeling, environmental characterization and remediation technology testing, and technology transfer to include specialized hands-on CB training for military and civil support teams.

DPG is part of the US Army Test and Evaluation Command (ATEC). The WDTC is ATEC’s testing activity at Dugway. ATEC also includes Aberdeen Test Center, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland; Electronic Proving Ground, Fort Huachuca, Arizona; Redstone Test Center, Redstone Arsenal, Alabama; White Sands Test Center, White Sands Test Center, White Sands Missile Range, New Mexico; and Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona.

WDTC is organized into specialized divisions that work together to accomplish the mission. WDTC features a diverse and dedicated team of scientists, chemists, microbiologists, engineers, technicians, and support personnel who specialize in developmental test and evaluation.

WDTC’s divisions include:

Chemical Test Division – Testing of chemical defense and decontamination systems and methodologies
Data Management Division – Information technology systems management, data planning and analysis, programming and software development
Life Sciences Division – Testing of biological defense systems, biosurveillance and medical countermeasures testing, production of biological testing materials
Meteorology Division – Meteorological and climatological support, forecasting, meteorology project management
Special Programs Division – Non-acquisition chem/bio testing, advanced training for civilian and military first responders, other advanced training programs

Below you will find report bibliographies of their technical reports. These were obtained by myself and some by GovernmentAttic.org. They are archived here for reference.

Document Archive

West Desert Test Center / Dugway Proving Ground Technical Report Bibliography, 1950-1960 [350 Pages, 8.9MB] – Special Thanks: GovernmentAttic.org

West Desert Test Center / Dugway Proving Ground Technical Report Bibliography, 1961-1965 [2,328 Pages, 13.5MB] – Special Thanks: GovernmentAttic.org

West Desert Test Center / Dugway Proving Ground Technical Report Bibliography, 1966-1969 [24 Pages, 1.2MB]

The post West Desert Test Center / Dugway Proving Ground Technical Report Listings first appeared on The Black Vault.