Navy Closure Task Force - Red Hill (NCTF-RH) continued safe and deliberate closure efforts in October, including tank cleaning, environmental assessment and remediation activities.
Tank 5 Degassing Operations: The Navy completed ventilation of Tank 5 on Oct. 21, 2024. Tank 5 is the fourth tank to be ventilated, which began Oct. 1 after notifying the Hawaii Department of Health (DOH). Throughout the ventilation process, NCTF-RH provided hourly updates of Air Quality Monitoring on its mobile app and daily summaries on its website (navyclosuretaskforce.navy.mil). The Navy is ventilating and cleaning the tanks in staggered pairs. Tank 6, which accompanied Tank 5 was completed Sept. 30.
Volatile organic compound (VOC) levels have consistently remained below DOH's regulatory standard limit of 38 parts per million (PPM) by volume throughout the ventilation process with an average of 0.1 PPM by volume total VOCs since start of ventilation. For questions or concerns, the public can contact the Navy Call Center at 808-210-6968.
EPA Inspection Report: The Navy received EPA's Inspection Report with results showing that all sampling conducted by the Navy and provided to EPA continues to demonstrate that the drinking water is free of JP-5 or any other fuel and meets all regulatory safe drinking water standards. The routine inspection assures the Navy system continues to meet state and federal environmental and drinking water statutes and regulations.
The Navy welcomed the week-long inspection as an independent assessment to ensure the integrity of the system long into the future. The Navy takes any detection of total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) or PFAS seriously.
In accordance with the Extended Drinking Water Monitoring (EDWM) Plan, the Navy performs additional forensic analysis to determine the source of any TPH detection, as many non-fuel related sources, such as lubricants used during normal water system maintenance operations, can cause a TPH detection. Since the EPA inspection, the Navy resampled its drinking water source multiple times, and results continue to meet safe drinking water standards. All data continues to be available to regulatory agencies and the public on the NCTF - RH mobile app and website.
Navy Proposes Adding Extended Drinking Water Monitoring into ACO: Following months of discussions with the EPA, the Navy has proposed adding the ongoing EDWM Plan as an enforceable work under the 2023 Administrative Consent Order for the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility Defueling, Closure and Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH) Drinking Water System. The EDWM was voluntarily initiated by the Navy earlier this year at the conclusion of the Long-Term Monitoring Plan in April and includes several goals, including testing 100% of homes on the JBPHH drinking water distribution system and other installation facilities, and increased frequency of source and priority area sampling.
Groundwater Flow Model: NCTF-RH hosted an informational webinar discussing its new groundwater flow model on Oct. 16. A recording of the webinar and an archive of previous webinars is available for viewing in the video libraries within the NCTF-RH mobile app, on the NCTF-RH website, or by visiting the NCTF-RH YouTube page.
The groundwater flow model includes information that helps demonstrate how contaminants move, change and interact with the environment over time. The model will be updated as additional data becomes available.
Open House: The Navy will host the next Open House at the Hokulani Community Center, 298 Main St, Honolulu, HI, on Nov. 14, from 5-7 p.m. The Open House will feature information about the command and RHBFSF environmental and remediation efforts and provide attendees an opportunity to meet staff and ask questions.
Engagements: In October, NCTF-RH leadership participated in the following engagement events:
- Hawaii State Department of Health's Fuel Tank Advisory Committee (FTAC) meeting
- FTAC Open House
- Met with the Hawaii Military and Community Relations Office and the Hickam Pearl Harbor Rotary Club
- Participated in six neighborhood board meetings
- Held four drinking water information booths
Additionally, Commander of NCTF-RH Rear Adm. Stephen Barnett, as well as Deputy Commander of NCTF-RH Rear Adm. Marc Williams, met with Acting Under Secretary of the Navy Tom Mancinelli and Acting Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment Deborah Rosenblum during their visit to Hawaii. They discussed environmental assessments, water monitoring initiatives, and the Navy's commitment to safely and deliberately close the RHBFSF.
NCTF-RH is committed to working with all government agencies and community stakeholders to safely and deliberately close the RHBFSF underground storage tanks and associated piping system, conduct long-term environmental remediation, and ensure continued access to safe drinking water in compliance with all Federal, State, and local laws, policies and regulations.
For more information about NCTF-RH, visit https://www.navyclosuretaskforce.navy.mil/ or download our free mobile app by searching for "NCTF-Red Hill" in the Apple App store or Google Play store. For imagery, video and other digital media please visit our DVIDS site here: https://www.dvidshub.net/unit/NCTF-RH.