Layoffs Begin at the Blue Grass Army Depot as Chemical Weapons Destruction is Coming to an End

The Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant in Madison County is beginning it's closure phase according to Communications Manager , Mark York, for Bechtel Parsons Blue Grass, the joint venture that built and operates the plant. 

The work to destroy the World War II chemical weapons that were housed a the Blue Grass Army Depot is coming to and end so the 

The last weapon in the nation’s chemical weapons stockpile was destroyed at the Richmond facility in July 2023 where 523 tons of chemical weapons were destroyed. The demolition, all the necessary components, and people necessary were not going to be at the depot permanently. 

Five contractors have worked together to destroy the stockpile: Bechtel National, Parsons Corp., Amentum, Battelle Memorial Institute, and GP Strategies.

Four of those companies have filed notices of impending layoffs under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification, or WARN Act. 

At its peak, 1,500 people worked at the plant, and staffing currently stands at 1,179 people distributed across multiple companies. About half of them are from Madison and surrounding counties.

In a WARN notice on Feb. 21, Battelle said its 245 employees would have their positions eliminated over a 14-day period beginning April 24. 

Amentum, which provided equipment and testing for the rocket warhead containment system, said in a WARN notice filed on Jan. 27 that it will lay off 90 employees on March 27. 

Parsons Corp. expects to lay off its employees through a gradual reduction of the workforce over a two-year period, the company said in a WARN notice on Jan. 22. Effective Jan. 16, 11 employees were to be laid off.

The work of shutting the plant down is expected to be completed in 2027. A number of possible future uses for the site have been suggested.