Arsenic and Old Land

By Daniel Walker Guido. Buried chemical agents including arsenic and other toxins such as mustard gas were found in Washington, in the Spring Valley neighborhood and the grounds of American University. Members of Congress and The Washington Post have called for an independent third-party investigation of the chemical munitions contamination of the area, which served as a chemical weapons testing ground during World War I. Meanwhile, the university recently filed an $86.6 million lawsuit against the Army for damages caused by the chemicals and Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) called for a General Accounting Investigation into why the problem remains at the site.