by Colonel Scott D. Kimmell (Retired)
To fight, survive, and win in operations against21st-century adversaries, we must leverage ingenuityand technology to develop comprehensive solutions.These solutions should provide situational understanding of potential chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear(CBRN) hazards; ensure protection with efficient protectiveequipment; and mitigate the consequences of contaminationwith limited time and resources. Developing capabilities toachieve these ends requires a comprehensive approach thatencompasses all warfighting functions, including protection,and these capabilities must be integrated across doctrine,organization, training, materiel, leadership and education,personnel, facilities, and policy (DOTMLPF-P). In coordination with the entire CBRN enterprise, the U.S. Army Chemical Regiment continues to make progress toward deliveringthe required capabilities to the warfighter. This article presents an update on five of the programs designed to do thatwithin and across our three core functions of assess, protect,and mitigate and provides a glimpse into future CBRN defense capabilities.
Assess
The Compact Vapor Chemical Agent Detector (CVCAD)is a networked, wearable capability designed to detect andpresumptively identify vapor hazards; it could potentiallyreplace the Joint Chemical Agent Detector. Initial prototyping of the CVCAD was recently completed, with the resultsused to provide input for the joint requirement. The CVCADwill be demonstrated at a Soldier touchpoint at Fort Carson,Colorado, and the feedback will be used to narrow potentialsolutions that are most likely to meet the capability needs ofthe joint force.
While the Army strategy for biological defense continues to evolve, development of the Joint Biological TacticalDetection System—a networked biological detection capability designed to provide warning—is nearing completion.The plan is for production systems to be included in a multi-Service operational test event next year and then to go on tofull-rate production and fielding beginning in 2026.
Protect
Shielding the individual Soldier from CBRN hazards hasalways been a top priority for the Army and the ChemicalRegiment. Current percutaneous protection is effective, butcumbersome and physiologically burdensome.The Uniform Integrated Protection Ensemble (UIPE)is being developed to decrease the degradation of an individual Soldier’s combat power. The UIPE is a two-piece,lightweight, chemically protective combat uniform thatis made of air-permeable material and has an aerosolliner treated with liquid repellent. It is slated to replacethe Joint Service Lightweight Integrated Suit Technology. The UIPE is in the final stages of development.Production-representative suits continue to be tested to determine where further improvements on the design and durability can be made. Limited production of this capabilityis expected in 2025. Once the suit meets the requirementsnecessary to support its intended use by the warfighter, full-rate production will begin.
Mitigate
In December 2023, the U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear School (USACBRNS) Commandant commissioned a decontamination working groupconsisting of representatives across all major commandsto assess current decontamination capabilities acrossDOTLMPF-P and determine how to best immediately improve readiness.
While still in the early stages of science and technology development, the Automated Decontamination System(ADS) program is exploring potential robotic integrationand capability to reduce time and manpower requirementsfor CBRN hazard contamination mitigation. These efforts,coupled with a complete assessment across DOTMLPF-P,are focused on how decontamination should be executedin 2040. Permission to move the ADS program into continued analysis and to research and gather information onpotential solutions and estimated costs for achieving ADScapability has been granted. The next major milestone willbe the receipt of permission for the materiel developers tobegin prototyping and testing solutions that have been identified to fulfill the ADS requirement.
Enable Capability Across Core Functions
Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear Supportto Command and Control (CSC2) is a joint effort that isunderway to integrate CBRN awareness and understanding across the common operating picture. This networkedcapability will be designed to synchronize and integrateCBRN data and information into the commander’s commonoperating picture at all levels from battalion to joint taskforce, allowing commanders to make proactive risk-based decisions in CBRN environments. CSC2 is expected to undergo an operational assessment before the end of 2024, with expected delivery to the Army in 2026. After its initial release,subsequent software updates will occur every 3 months inorder to improve the capability.
Way Ahead
The successful modernization of the CBRN defense capability is dependent on a better understanding of CBRN hazards and the consequences of contamination and exposurein operational environments. Neither dated Cold War erafield studies nor present-day laboratory experiments correlate well with future operating concepts or environments.Science-based studies are imperative in ensuring appropriate input for future solutions. As with other battlespacehazards faced by Soldiers, there are no absolutes withCBRN—only varying degrees of probability and consequences (expressed by risk). But, while CBRN is one of the eightforms of enemy contact, CBRN hazards are frequently misunderstood and generally neglected, but widely feared. Whydo CBRN considerations differ from those of other enemycontact forms? Simply put, they carry the stigma of being inthe “too hard to do” box and/or are assumed to be unlikelythreats. Neither is true, and perceptions must change.
Commanders must be enabled to make proactive, risk-based decisions in CBRN environments based on a betterunderstanding of the impacts of those decisions in time andspace. Capability modernization is contingent on integration of the three core functions, providing leaders with theability to reduce—not eliminate—risks. The developmentof capabilities across the core functions of assess, protect,and mitigate, woven together by DOTMLPF-P integration,provides the foundation for successful operations in futureCBRN environments.
Conclusion
Dismissing the CBRN myths of the past and replacingthem with an understanding of CBRN environments andpotential hazards is crucial to modernization. (Because theelimination of CBRN risk is unachievable, attempts at completely removing the risk are a waste of resources and time.)If we can provide a better understanding of the threat, trainand equip our force to operate in its proximity, and mitigatethe CBRN hazard risk to acceptable levels, then CBRN modernization will be achievable in the not-so-distant future. Aswith all forms of enemy contact, CBRN risk is inherent butmanageable. We must enable our leaders and their formations to manage that inherent risk in future CBRN environments.
Colonel Kimmell (Retired) is the deputy commandant ofUSACBRNS. He holds a bachelor’s degree in geology from Eastern Illinois University, Charleston, and master’s degrees in education, advanced military studies, and strategic studies. He isalso a U.S. Army War College graduate. Colonel Kimmell retiredfrom the U.S. Army after 30 years of service, with his last assignment being the assistant commandant of USACBRNS.
Army Chemical Review (ACR) (ISSN 0899-7047) is published annually in May by the U.S. Army Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear School (USACBRNS), and the Maneuver Support Center of Excellence, Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. ACR highlights unique Army chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear technical-response capabilities for supporting national countering weapons of mass destruction operations and conducting all-hazmat mitigation across the range ofmilitary operations anytime, anywhere.
The objectives of ACR are to inform, motivate, increase knowledge, improve performance, and provide a forum for the exchange of ideas. This publication presents professional information; but the views expressed herein are those of the authors, not the Department of Defense or its elements. The content does not necessarily reflect the official U.S. Army position and does not change or supersede any information in other U.S. Army publications. The use of news items constitutes neither affirmation of their accuracy nor product endorsem*nt.
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