Sunday, April 28, 2024
Sunday, April 28, 2024
Key Issues Optical clocks Prototype funding SPAFORGEN
The Air Force is revising its position on contamination found at its operational ranges, calling for the cleanup of contaminants where warranted rather than waiting until pollution migrates off-range, Defense Environment Alert reports this morning.
At the same time, the revision does not alter positions the military has taken on EPA and the Defense Department's cleanup authorities for such properties, according to an Air Force official. DEA further reports:
Air Force Assistant Secretary for Installations, Environment & Logistics Terry Yonkers said at a Nov. 29 forum that he committed to reassessing the Air Force's position on operational range contamination during discussions with EPA last year over a lengthy, ongoing debate on a cleanup accord for Tyndall Air Force Base, FL. The Air Force has had a policy of monitoring for contaminants and addressing pollutants only when they reach a range's boundaries, he said.
"I committed to reevaluating our position on our operational ranges. It really made little sense to me to wait for the contamination to reach the range boundary before reacting," he said in a keynote speech at the DOD-sponsored annual Partners In Environmental Technology Technical Symposium in Washington, DC.
Yonkers said he has directed cleanup managers to "close the loop" on ongoing preliminary assessments and site investigations and move to cleanup in cases where it is warranted. "This includes monitoring for perchlorate, RDX and other residuals from military munitions that may be migrating off our range boundaries," he added.
In a follow-up interview, Yonkers said the service has not been as methodical as in its other cleanup programs in investigating contamination on operational ranges. "The idea is to find what we can find and then clean it up, and not wait for it to migrate off the base boundary," he said.
At the same time, the Air Force is not altering its general positions on cleanup authorities or changing written policy, a second Air Force official said during the interview.