Has potential contamination from the Oily Waste Disposal Facility been characterized?
While the Oily Waste Disposal Facility (OWDF) is on the Red Hill property, this site is currently being investigated under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). Petroleum contamination at the OWDF was previously investigated and the extent and magnitude of petroleum contamination in soil and groundwater largely determined. However, recent detections of PFAS in groundwater at the OWDF and in the vicinity of Red Hill Shaft has led regulators to request the Navy conduct a PFAS investigation on and around the OWDF. Regulators will require the Navy to include contaminants from all sources when they evaluate risk and choose remediation methods. The Navy committed to providing a work plan for the investigation in early 2026.
Related Questions
- Is the Navy required to investigate and remediate all confirmed releases from the Red Hill Facility, even those before the 2021 JP-5 releases?
- Will remedial options besides natural attenuation be considered?
- Is the Navy currently considering any active remediation technologies?
- Where is the Navy required to sample for historical releases during site assessment?
- What data governance practices are in place to avoid irregularities and to build trust in the data?
- Is there a remediation standard the Navy must comply with?
- Did delays in reporting results between May and November 2021 prevent regulators from conducting in-depth analysis of water contaminants and impacts to Red Hill Shaft?
- Navy labs modified reports after they were issued – is this normal?
- Why would regulators allow a drinking water well to operate or reopen within a mile of the Red Hill Release?
- Why did the Navy’s lab change the sample matrix on the laboratory reports from “drinking water” to “groundwater” in September and October of 2021?
- Why does it take so long before laboratory reports are finalized?
- Why are sample numbers missing from the groundwater samples collected between May and November of 2021?