New state law bolsters Red Hill fuel spill remediation efforts
A special state envoy has been tasked with better informing the public about contamination and remediation of Oahu's freshwater aquifer polluted by the Navy's Red Hill fuel storage facility.
Gov. Josh Green on Friday signed a bill into law that directs a state Department of Land and Natural Resources official to develop a public dashboard to display water test results from sources around the Red Hill facility, which is being decommissioned by the Navy under a closure plan anticipated for completion in 2028.
Act 197, which originated as House Bill 505, also includes a directive to develop a broader three-year public education program focused in part on efforts to remediate contaminated soil and water stemming from decades of fuel spills at the World War II-era facility. The Red Hill facility was built over 500 feet underground with tanks capable of storing 250 million gallons of fuel, 100 feet above the aquifer and connected to Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.
Heading up the initiative will be a Red Hill Water Alliance Initiative coordinator, a new position created within DLNR.
Funding for this position, an outreach coordinator and an administrative support specialist was appropriated by the Legislature last year. Recruiting efforts have been underway this year.
The envisioned work by the three-person team among other things is expected to facilitate implementation of recom mendations made in a November 2023 report from the Red Hill Water Alliance Initiative, or WAI, working group.
Another element in Act 197 establishes a special state financial account to receive contributions including appropriations and donations from the U.S. government, the state, the city and the public to address contamination from Red Hill and administered by the WAI coordinator.
Healani Sonoda-Pale, a leader of the Native Hawaiian organization Ka Lahui Hawai 'i, said the new law was a product of community organizing efforts over more than two years and is a testament to the people's power.
'We know that restoring our aquifer and holding the federal government accountable will be a marathon, not a sprint, ' she said in a statement.
The WAI working group formed in May 2023 was made up of state and city leaders including Green, Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi, Honolulu City Council Chair Tommy Waters, DLNR Director Dawn Chang, Honolulu Board of Water Supply Chief Engineer Ernie Lau and leadership in the Legislature.
The working group's final report criticized Navy statements over contamination levels, and contended that far more fuel had been spilled over the past 80 years from Red Hill than has been documented.
There have been 70 documented incidents over eight decades amounting to potential spills totaling 180, 000 gallons of fuel, including around 19, 000 gallons in a 2021 spill that contaminated a Navy well and water system on Oahu serving 93, 000 military members and civilians. The WAI report said total spill volume could be as high as 1.94 million gallons.
The working group's 2023 report also called for access to Navy monitoring wells, stepped-up testing and payment from the Navy to repair Oahu's compromised water system.
In direct response to the 2021 spill, BWS shut down several of its nearby wells to guard against fuel contaminating water distributed to other parts of the island.
BWS also filed a $1.2 billion claim with the Navy to recover costs of the water agency's response under the Federal Tort Claims Act.
The Navy has said it has a long-term commitment to protect Oahu's aquifer, environment and community members.
Lau told state lawmakers in January while testifying in support of HB 505 that in working on the Red Hill issue for 11 years, it's clear to him that a structure beyond existing regulatory framework is needed to restore land and water contaminated by Red Hill fuel.
The changes under HB 505 are intended to be part of the desired new structure.
Sonoda-Pale said at the same Jan. 28 hearing on the bill held by the House Water and Land Committee that special officials are needed to ensure that Red Hill disaster remediation is carried out.
'It's going to take decades, ' she said.
Alfred Medeiros told the committee that local government needs to do more to hold the Navy accountable for what he called crimes. 'Ola i ka wai. Water is life, ' he said.
Medeiros added that people may have forgotten that the Navy poisoned the public water supply and that much more work needs to be done.
'There's still sediment sitting in those tanks, ' he said. 'There's still procrastination … they (the Navy ) don't show up to meetings.'
Davie-ann Momilani Thomas told the committee that her family living in the Pearl City Peninsula community on the Navy water system still can't trust that their water is free of contaminants after cleanup efforts and monitoring by the Navy.
'I just want you all to know that I support this bill, because me and my family and many affected family members that are still living on the Navy interconnected plumbing pipes, we are still living off of bottled waters, ' she said. 'I do not trust our island water flowing through their (Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command ) plumbing pipes.'
Testimony on the bill at the hearing was all supportive except for one comment pertaining to the special fund, and included endorsements from DLNR, BWS, several organizations including the Sierra Club of Hawai 'i and about 55 individuals.
After five committee hearings, the House and Senate unanimously passed a final version of HB 505 on April 30.
During an initial House vote taken March 4, Rep. Garner Shimizu, whose district includes Red Hill, called HB 505 a thoughtful bill.
'It continues the monitoring of the conditions at Red Hill and helps assure proper coordination between federal, county and state agencies as well as champion public transparency, ' said Shimizu (R, Moanalua-Aliamanu-Foster Village ).
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