In the ongoing emergency arising from the Red Hill fuel-spill crisis, time is not on the side of Oahu residents, who are worried about the ongoing risk of wider contamination and the prospect of water shortages due to proactive closures of area wells.
That’s why the Navy’s appeal of the state Department of Health (DOH) emergency order, requiring the underground fuel tanks to be drained, is being met with fury from those who rightly see any further delay as an affront to the community. And joining the chorus should be the governor and mayor, to underscore the importance of getting resolution as quickly as possible.
In complaints filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court and state Circuit Court, the Navy argues that DOH exceeded its emergency powers to issue the order because it demands a response affecting the whole tank system, rather than a “direct action” remediating the current release of fuel and contamination.
But the Navy has not yet disclosed enough information about the problem, so defueling would be a reasonable precaution to take for the protection of the aquifer.
It was the 2014 spill of 27,000 gallons of fuel from the tanks, positioned 100 feet above Oahu’s principal drinking-water aquifer, that first put this issue at the center of attention.
The spotlight had faded over time. A memorandum of understanding between the military and federal and state regulatory agencies reached some agreement on ongoing, stringent monitoring of the tanks’ safety, but no solution on the longer-term disposition of the fuel facility.
Nor has it produced any clarity on exactly what went wrong last year in the May and November incidents believed to cause the contamination of potable water delivered through the Navy’s system.
This primarily affected military families living in housing areas served by the now-closed Red Hill well. But the shutdown of three nearby civilian wells to avoid drawing contaminants toward more homes could result in shortages in the hot summer months.
So it’s doubly concerning that the Navy would appeal the emergency order by the DOH, which plainly has authority to enforce environmental rules for the tank facility.
In advance of that appeal filing, Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks said the DOD wants to analyze the long-term need in the Pacific for the Red Hill facility, adding that the appeal “will afford us time to make evidence-based and transparent decisions.”
On the transparency point in particular, the Navy has little credibility. Last week officials indicated they would release only a summary of a long-awaited investigation into the precise cause of the contamination. After public pressure, Navy officials relented and said the full report would be released.
Great. Where is it?
The Navy’s halting and generally uncooperative response throughout this crisis shows disregard for the potentially devastating impact that further contamination could have on Oahu’s residents who depend on safe drinking water.
Gov. David Ige should counter it, and not only rhetorically. The fight to compel the Navy to comply with the order — on a timeline set by the state — merits whatever legal resources are required to make the strongest case.
Mayor Rick Blangiardi until now has deferred to the expert on the crisis, the Honolulu Board of Water Supply, to represent the city on this. Blangiardi needs to speak up now, advocating for a timely solution that protects a precious public resource.
An added dose of public pressure is due next week when the nonprofit Wai Ola Alliance is expected to file its own legal action.
“Doing the usual business, buying time, is not what the Navy should do,” said its attorney, Daniel Cooper.
Agreed. The duty to protect Oahu’s water is paramount, and it must be fulfilled now.
