CINDY ELLEN RUSSELL / JAN. 28
Hawaii Department of Health officials said today that they will reject the Navy’s plan for draining its Red Hill fuel facility because it lacks details. U.S. Navy officials led a media tour of the Red Hill Shaft in Halawa in January.
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Hawaii Department of Health officials say they will reject the Navy’s plan for draining its Red Hill fuel facility because it lacks details.
The Navy released the 20-page plan on June 30, in accordance with a department deadline, but noted in the document that it didn’t expect DOH would accept it and that it planned to submit supplemental information by September to help satisfy regulatory requirements.
“It’s like turning in a homework assignment you know is incomplete just to meet a deadline,” said Health Department spokesperson Katie Arita-Chang.
Under the Navy’s plan, more than 100 million gallons stored in the tanks would be drained by the end of 2024 — a timeline that has alarmed the Honolulu Board of Water Supply and environmental groups concerned that there will be more leaks at the aging facility.
The Pentagon ordered the Red Hill facility be permanently shut down earlier this year after fuel from the facility contaminated the Navy’s drinking water system, sickening residents.
