The Sierra Club says the Navy is not in compliance with a key aspect of a state emergency order on the Red Hill fuel storage depot. The Navy was required to submit documents to the state Department of Health last week on how it would safely defuel the facility.
In a letter to DOH from the environmental law firm EarthJustice, on behalf of the Sierra Club, attorneys contend the plan gives short shrift to defueling the facility.
They say it focuses on remediation measures and operational improvements that would allow the Navy to continue using the storage tanks.
EarthJustice attorney David Henkin says the DOH should reject the documents.
"Because if they don’t disapprove the submittals, the Navy is going to say 'Our course of action was acceptable to the department.' And it absolutely should not be. It focuses on the wrong questions, it makes unsupported assumptions, and most importantly it does not prioritize the prompt defueling, which is the only way that we’re going to feel safe, that our water supply won’t be contaminated," Henkin said.
The Sierra Club also contends the Navy did not get DOH approval of the contractor hired to do the work plan, which is required under the emergency order.
A DOH spokesperson said the department appreciates the Sierra Club’s input, and it is reviewing the documents and intends to hold the Navy accountable to the terms of the order.
The state handed down the order in December after thousands of residents in military communities on Oʻahu became sick due to fuel contamination in the Navy’s tap water.
The Department of Justice is appealing the order in federal and state court, but it remains in effect.
Listen to David Henkin's full interview from Feb. 9, 2022, on HPR's The Conversation.
