[CPEO-MEF] Community Perspectives on VOC Response at DOD Installations

[Lenny Siegel <lennysiegel@gmail.com>]

[To download the full 8-page report as a 1.9 MB PDF file, go to 
http://www.cpeo.org/pubs/DefenseVOCs.pdf]

Community Perspectives on VOC Response at Department of Defense 
Installations

Lenny Siegel
Center for Public Environmental Oversight
September, 2007

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are among the most common 
environmental contaminants at Department of Defense (DOD) installations. 
A recent survey of 440 active DOD installations showed that 
trichloroethylene (TCE) is found above its preliminary remediation goal 
(PRG) at 383 facilities and tetrachloroethylene (PCE) is found at 252. 
The same compounds are also prevalent at closed bases, formerly used 
defense sites, and contractor-owned facilities where the Department has 
liability. In 2003, the Air Force estimated that the Department-wide 
cost of cleaning TCE in soil and groundwater at more than 1400 
facilities, using the existing drinking water standard of 5 parts per 
billion, would exceed $5 billion. If regulatory agencies reduce the 
standard to 1 part per billion, a realistic possibility, costs could double.

Furthermore, the increasing national awareness of the vapor intrusion 
pathway - the migration of subsurface VOCs into overlying structures - 
has added challenges to the Defense remediation mission. The 
investigation and mitigation of the vapor pathway can significantly add 
to the cost of protecting public health, and cleanup decisions are being 
re-opened at a growing number of sites with remedies in place.

In view of these challenges, the Defense Department has been in the 
vanguard of the development, testing, and implementation of new 
technologies for the remediation of VOCs in groundwater and soil. As its 
vapor intrusion liabilities become more apparent, it is expected to 
focus more research dollars on that aspect of the problem as well.

CPEO Executive Director Lenny Siegel visited communities hosting Defense 
Installations and discussed VOC response technologies with community 
members. In the course of this project, he visited four bases with large 
environmental restoration programs, known contamination with TCE and/or 
PCE, and a history of significant community involvement and controversy. 
He talked with members of Restoration Advisory Boards and other 
community groups at the following installations:
* Camp Lejeune Marine Corps Base, North Carolina
* the Army's former Rocky Mountain Arsenal, Colorado
* former Kelly Air Force Base, Texas
* Otis Air National Guard Base, part of the Massachusetts Military 
Reservation
* former Moffett Field Naval Air Station, California. (Siegel has served 
on the Moffett Field Technical Review Committee and Restoration Advisory 
Board for more than 17 years.)
In addition, Siegel drew upon earlier visits to other military 
facilities and recent visits to contaminated civilian properties across 
the country.

...

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Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org


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