- Tooele Army Depot detonates aging munitions to ensure safety and free storage.
- A colonel emphasizes the depot's role in national defense and environmental responsibility.
- Depot officials maintain community relations through notifications and environmental compliance efforts.
RUSH VALLEY, Tooele County — U.S. Army Col. Luke Clover promised a van full of reporters Wednesday that they will never forget the shock waves propagated by the open detonations that they had gathered to observe.
The explosions, as the colonel promised, were loud. They were teeth-rattling.
As good soldiers say: "That's affirmative, sir."
But Wednesday's media day at the Tooele Army Depot was about more than sending local journalists back to their newsrooms with a fun and "detonating" dispatch.
Clover and his associates are anxious to share the purposes behind the army depot's open detonations that folks across multiple Utah counties often hear — and feel.
"We want to share with the community what's going on out here … and to let everyone know what's going on out here in support of the national defense and the United States military," said Clover, who commands the 83-year-old depot.
Tooele Army Depot personnel, the colonel added, are performing essential missions.
First, as part of the U.S. Army's Joint Munitions Command, the ammunitions base conducts safe and environmentally responsible destruction of surplus or obsolete ammunition.
"We have a lot of World War II-era munitions that come through here for demilitarization that are no longer useful. Or there are munitions here that have been deemed hazardous or unsafe to use for our service members," said Clover.
Tooele Army Depot also maintains munitions — performing surveillance tests to ensure that the military weapons are safe for use.
"And when they're found to be unsafe, unstable or not operating in the way that they're supposed to, then they're deemed ready for demilitarization," added Clover.
Disposing of obsolete munitions also frees up storage space for modern munitions.
Rural Tooele County's 'perfect' environment for an essential mission
Established in 1942 while World War II was raging, the Tooele Army Depot is tasked with receiving, storing, maintaining, shipping, modifying and, of course, demilitarizing conventional munitions.
The depot also specializes in ammunition equipment prototype design, development and fabrication.
The weather and dry conditions found in Utah's West Desert region seems factory-made for the work being performed at the base.
Some depots in other, more humid areas of the country must deal with moisture seeping into their earth-covered magazines and storage areas. "But the environment here is perfect for that mission … to help maintain the longevity of the stockpiles," said Clover.
The region's natural environmental features can also help mitigate disasters, said Erin Trinchitella, Tooele Army Depot's industrial operations director.
"Part of our environment here, as you could see today, is soil," she said. "So if there is an accidental explosion, the soil here … helps absorb that."
Wednesday's media day occurred at a historic moment for the American military: Saturday, June 14, is the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army.
"We are extremely proud of the job that we do in support of not only the Department of Defense's munitions enterprise mission but also the overall mission of the United States Army and the other uniformed services: the U.S. Air Force, Navy, Space Force, Marines and Coast Guard," said Clover.
"We work with all of them, and we handle and maintain the munitions for all of those services."
Building and maintaining relationships
Depot officials say they are eager to be good neighbors in the Tooele County community and beyond.
To help keep local officials and residents abreast of daily detonation activities, Tooele Army Depot dispatches frequent emails alerting local jurisdictions of the day's operations.
Subsequent posts are added to the base's social media platforms — including Facebook, Instagram and X.
There's even a "noise complaint" hotline: 435-833-3300.
"We give people as much notice as possible that we are going to be detonating that day — and, along with that notification, we also include information for people to provide us with a noise report," said public affairs officer Wade Matthews.
"We're not afraid to take that information … we can use that information for making adjustments, if necessary," he said.
Ensuring environmentally sound detonations
Lonnie Brown, Tooele Army Depot's environmental management division chief, said the depot works "hand-in-hand" with Utah's Department of Environmental Quality, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Army to ensure environmental protections.
"We have several audits to verify that we meet within our permit standards — and we're being reviewed several times a year to make sure that those standards are met," said Brown.
The depot also performs ecological studies to help protect local wildlife — while sponsoring several projects to benefit species such as burrowing owls.
Tooele Army Depot also works with the EPA to test and monitor groundwater wells. "We find that there's no significant impact on these wells," said Brown.
'Demilitarizing' obsolete munitions: A delicate task
On Wednesday, reporters were given a rare glimpse of the lunar-like landscapes that double as explosion pits — and the precise task of preparing obsolete munitions for destruction.
Crews prepare the "donor" munitions before burying it in the explosion pit under at least 7 feet of soil.
The range area is then cleared, and firing lines are tied and finalized.
Detonation specialists, safely housed in a "shooter shack" located several hundred meters away from the blast site, manage all of the firing lines utilizing a lock box that's connected to a firing panel, which triggers the detonation.
Specialists executed several detonations Wednesday, with the "assistance" of several reporters.
Most recent Tooele County stories
Jason Swensen
