Statement from EPA Administrator Regan on the Department of Defense’s Announcement to Defuel and Close the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility
WASHINGTON (March 7, 2022) – EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan issued the following statement after the Department of Defense announced it will defuel and permanently close the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility on Oʻahu, Hawaii.
“I welcome this announcement from Secretary Austin and thank him for his leadership,” said Administrator Regan. “EPA is committed to working collaboratively with our state and federal partners to ensure clean drinking water for the people of Oʻahu. As the Department of Defense moves forward with the defueling and closure of the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility, EPA will continue to provide assistance and oversight. We will also work with the Department of Defense to make sure the public understands and has confidence in the process, knowing that EPA will remain involved.”
In recent weeks, Administrator Regan, Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe, and Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest Martha Guzman have all visited Oʻahu and the Red Hill facility to see firsthand the drinking water response activities, engage with the impacted community, and meet with local, state, and federal partners.
EPA has been on the ground with an emergency response team since the earliest days of the drinking water response at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH) and the adjacent Aliamanu Military Reservation and Red Hill Housing Army Complex. The agency will continue to partner with the Navy, Army, and the Hawaii Department of Health in the Interagency Drinking Water System Team (IDWST), which is working to restore safe drinking water to the affected residents and workers. As part of EPA’s ongoing regulatory and oversight responsibilities, EPA will continue with its underground storage tank investigation and Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) and Facility Response Plan (FRP) investigation at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam to assess compliance with regulations governing underground storage tanks, aboveground tanks, and associated fuel transfer piping. EPA will also oversee operations related to the newly announced defueling operation to ensure that it is conducted in an environmentally sound manner.
For more information on EPA’s role in the drinking water response at JBPHH, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/red-hill/drinking-water-emergency-joint-base-pearl-harbor-hickam-honolulu-hawaii.
For Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III’s statement on the closure of the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility please visit: https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2957825/statement-by-secretary-of-defense-lloyd-j-austin-iii-on-the-closure-of-the-red/.
WASHINGTON (March 7, 2022) – EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan issued the following statement after the Department of Defense announced it will defuel and permanently close the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility on Oʻahu, Hawaii.
“I welcome this announcement from Secretary Austin and thank him for his leadership,” said Administrator Regan. “EPA is committed to working collaboratively with our state and federal partners to ensure clean drinking water for the people of Oʻahu. As the Department of Defense moves forward with the defueling and closure of the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility, EPA will continue to provide assistance and oversight. We will also work with the Department of Defense to make sure the public understands and has confidence in the process, knowing that EPA will remain involved.”
In recent weeks, Administrator Regan, Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe, and Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest Martha Guzman have all visited Oʻahu and the Red Hill facility to see firsthand the drinking water response activities, engage with the impacted community, and meet with local, state, and federal partners.
EPA has been on the ground with an emergency response team since the earliest days of the drinking water response at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH) and the adjacent Aliamanu Military Reservation and Red Hill Housing Army Complex. The agency will continue to partner with the Navy, Army, and the Hawaii Department of Health in the Interagency Drinking Water System Team (IDWST), which is working to restore safe drinking water to the affected residents and workers. As part of EPA’s ongoing regulatory and oversight responsibilities, EPA will continue with its underground storage tank investigation and Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) and Facility Response Plan (FRP) investigation at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam to assess compliance with regulations governing underground storage tanks, aboveground tanks, and associated fuel transfer piping. EPA will also oversee operations related to the newly announced defueling operation to ensure that it is conducted in an environmentally sound manner.
For more information on EPA’s role in the drinking water response at JBPHH, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/red-hill/drinking-water-emergency-joint-base-pearl-harbor-hickam-honolulu-hawaii.
For Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III’s statement on the closure of the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility please visit: https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/2957825/statement-by-secretary-of-defense-lloyd-j-austin-iii-on-the-closure-of-the-red/.
For Immediate Release: February 4, 2022
Media Contact: Press@epa.gov
Statement by Regional Administrator Martha Guzman on the Drinking Water Emergency at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and the Plan for EPA Inspections
SAN FRANCISCO – EPA Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest Martha Guzman issued the following statement today regarding EPA’s ongoing efforts to ensure a safe drinking water supply at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility. The EPA announced its intent to conduct inspections at the facility within weeks.Statement from Regional Administrator Guzman:
EPA, an independent regulatory and executive agency, is committed to ensuring clean water for the residents of Hawaii and ensuring that the O’ahu aquifer is protected. The agency has been on the ground with an emergency response team since the earliest days following the November 2021 release and EPA Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe recently visited to see firsthand the ongoing work and engage with stakeholders. As Deputy Administrator McCabe has conveyed, EPA will continue to work diligently and leverage its authorities to ensure a safe drinking water supply.
As co-regulators with the Hawaii Department of Health, under the 2015 Joint Administrative Order on Consent (AOC), EPA has been engaged in a longstanding partnership with the state to require actions from Navy to take steps to ensure that the groundwater resource in the vicinity of the facility is protected and to ensure that the facility is operated and maintained in an environmentally protective manner, including groundwater monitoring and the completion of a comprehensive risk assessment. In connection with that ongoing work, the EPA and the Hawaii Department of Health are taking active measures in their oversight of the Navy’s groundwater monitoring to ensure the protection of the O’ahu aquifer.
Given the recent events impacting the drinking water supply, and EPA’s ongoing regulatory and oversight responsibilities related to the AOC, EPA will, within weeks, be conducting an underground storage tank inspection and a Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) and Facility Response Plan (FRP) inspection at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. The focus of the inspections will be to assess compliance with regulations governing underground storage tanks, aboveground tanks, and associated fuel transfer piping.
A copy of the letter notifying Navy of this action is available at: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2022-02/notice-of-inspection-at-joint-base-pearl-harbor-hickham-2022-02-04.pdf
More information about EPA’s actions with regard to Red Hill can be found at: https://www.epa.gov/red-hill
Media Contact: Press@epa.gov
Statement by Regional Administrator Martha Guzman on the Drinking Water Emergency at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and the Plan for EPA Inspections
SAN FRANCISCO – EPA Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest Martha Guzman issued the following statement today regarding EPA’s ongoing efforts to ensure a safe drinking water supply at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility. The EPA announced its intent to conduct inspections at the facility within weeks.Statement from Regional Administrator Guzman:
EPA, an independent regulatory and executive agency, is committed to ensuring clean water for the residents of Hawaii and ensuring that the O’ahu aquifer is protected. The agency has been on the ground with an emergency response team since the earliest days following the November 2021 release and EPA Deputy Administrator Janet McCabe recently visited to see firsthand the ongoing work and engage with stakeholders. As Deputy Administrator McCabe has conveyed, EPA will continue to work diligently and leverage its authorities to ensure a safe drinking water supply.
As co-regulators with the Hawaii Department of Health, under the 2015 Joint Administrative Order on Consent (AOC), EPA has been engaged in a longstanding partnership with the state to require actions from Navy to take steps to ensure that the groundwater resource in the vicinity of the facility is protected and to ensure that the facility is operated and maintained in an environmentally protective manner, including groundwater monitoring and the completion of a comprehensive risk assessment. In connection with that ongoing work, the EPA and the Hawaii Department of Health are taking active measures in their oversight of the Navy’s groundwater monitoring to ensure the protection of the O’ahu aquifer.
Given the recent events impacting the drinking water supply, and EPA’s ongoing regulatory and oversight responsibilities related to the AOC, EPA will, within weeks, be conducting an underground storage tank inspection and a Spill Prevention, Control, and Countermeasure (SPCC) and Facility Response Plan (FRP) inspection at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. The focus of the inspections will be to assess compliance with regulations governing underground storage tanks, aboveground tanks, and associated fuel transfer piping.
A copy of the letter notifying Navy of this action is available at: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2022-02/notice-of-inspection-at-joint-base-pearl-harbor-hickham-2022-02-04.pdf
More information about EPA’s actions with regard to Red Hill can be found at: https://www.epa.gov/red-hill