Navy removes toxic firefighting foam from Red Hill facility

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE / 2022

An estimated 1,300 gallons of aqueous film forming foam concentrate spilled from the fire suppression system at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility in November 2022. Crews excavated and removed contaminated soil from the spill site.

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The Navy as of Monday had removed just over 1,000 gallons of aqueous film forming foam concentrate — a toxic fire suppressant containing “forever chemicals” — from its AFFF system at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility.

The Navy announced Tuesday that the Navy Closure Task Force-Red Hill “safely removed” 1,012 gallons, or approximately 99%, of the concentrate that was loaded into its AFFF system, which was used primarily to combat fuel fires. Removal operations began last week after NCTF-RH received approval from the Environmental Protection Agency and the state Department of Health. Operations are scheduled to be completed as planned.

In November 2022 around 1,300 gallons of concentrated AFFF was spilled at the Red Hill facility. The firefighting foam contains perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, also known as “forever chemicals” because they degrade very slowly in the environment. Prolonged exposure to these chemicals has been linked to cancer and other health problems.

The November 2022 spill was eventually attributed to a contractor error and poor Navy oversight, according to a military report released in May.

The Navy’s most recent removal of AFFF concentrate is separate from the November 2022 spill, which was handled by the Joint Task Force-Red Hill along with the investigation into the spill’s origins.

Board of Water Supply Manager and Chief Engineer Ernie Lau said he will meet with NCTF-RH Commander Rear Adm. Stephen Barnett on Friday to discuss the removal in more depth.

“(The removal) removes another risk from being right over our aquifer of PFAS-containing substances,” Lau said. “I appreciate that, and I think (the Navy) needs to continue to do this work very carefully and expeditiously.”

The Red Hill fuel storage facility sits just 100 feet over a critical aquifer that most of Oahu uses for its drinking water. In November 2021, fuel from the facility leaked into the Navy’s Oahu water system, affecting 93,000 people, including service members and their families, as well as civilians who live in housing areas that use the system. In March 2022 the Pentagon announced it would defuel and permanently close the Red Hill facility after resisting for months a state emergency order to drain the facility’s tanks.

In March the Navy announced that it removed the last of the “accessible residual fuel” from the facility — having successfully removed over 104 million gallons since defueling began in October.