BENECIA UXO

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@igc.org>]

From: Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@igc.org>

UNEXPLODED ORDNANCE FOUND AT BENECIA DEVELOPMENT
Crews preparing land for a 120-acre residential development in Benecia, 
California have found unexploded ordnance, forcing a delay while the 
developer clears the property. The site, between San Francisco and 
Sacramento, is located on a portion of the former Benecia Arsenal, 
which was transferred in the 1960s. Thus far 60 inert, concrete-filled 
artillery rounds have been found in what appears to have been a small 
impact range, and at least three live rounds have been found and 
destroyed or removed by military ordnance specialists.
The formerly used defense site is not an active Army project. The 
developer - which probably has tens of millions of dollars invested in 
the 300-home project - has therefore contracted independently for UXO 
clearance. It has also agreed to fence and patrol the property. The 
community and the developer want the Army Corps of Engineers to certify 
that clearance is completed properly, but under current procedures the 
Army can only "review" the clearance.
This is a site, where, because of the value to the developer, it is 
unwilling to wait for government dollars. Although government cleanup 
funding is not a major issue, the government's role is still uncertain.
As urban areas expand into previously remote areas, we can expect more 
developers to run (literally) into old munitions. Earlier this year, 
for example, construction equipment set off a shell at the Lowry Range, 
east of Denver. In some cases, such as Benecia, developers will be 
willing to pay the price of rapid clearance, but in others they can be 
expected to bring significant pressure to bear (through local members 
of Congress) to force a prompt response by the Army Corps of Engineers. 
Since most of these sites pose a limited risk under current use, they 
are not scheduled for response.
We need a risk management approach that takes such land development 
into account.
Lenny Siegel