Re: Letter Calling For National Testing of Impact Areas

[Aimee Houghton <aimeeh@cpeo.org>]

Citizen involvement in the environmental investigation and cleanup at
MMR is very important. However, this e-mail contains some inaccurate
information. I have placed the correct information along side of the
original text.

Thank you for this opportunity to coorespond with you.

CPT James L. Boggess
Project Officer, Impact Area Groundwater Study
Massachusetts Military Reservation

> The following letter was generated by citizens working on a study of the
> Massachusetts Military Reservation Impact Area. A number of people from
> other bases added their signatures in support.
>
> ********************************************
> January 17, 1998
>
> Sherri Wasserman-Goodman
> Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Environmental Security
> The Pentagon - Room 3 - E808
> Washington, DC 20301-3400
>
> Carol Browner
> Administrator
> U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
> Headquarters Building--Waterside Mall
> 401 M Street, S.W.
> Washington, D.C. 20460
>
> Dear Ms. Browner and Ms. Goodman:
>
> We wish to bring to your attention the implications of results obtained so
> far from an EPA-supervised study of the soil and groundwater at the 2,200
> acre Camp Edwards impact area at the Massachusetts Military Reservation.
>
> Since the beginning of the study in the Summer of 1997, carcinogenic
> contamination has been documented in the soil and in the aquifer below the
> impact area and at firing positions. So far twenty wells have been found to
> contain explosives contamination and twenty-one wells still need to be
> completed.

(To date explosives and explosive-associated compounds have been
detected in eleven wells at eight locations. Eight of those wells at
seven locations were recently installed as a part of this
investigation. The remaining three wells were installed by the
Installation Restoration Program in response to Chemical Spill #19
(CS-19). These wells were known to have explosive compounds and were
re-tested to confirm those findings. )

> Numerous soil samples in the impact area have shown an array
> explosives, heavy metals, other inorganics, herbicides, and volatile
> organic compounds. Soil samples taken from the gunnery positions show
> chemical contamination from propellants.

(Analysis of soil samples from the artillery gun and mortar
positions, taken as a part of this investigation, has not been
completed. The soil results taken from the primary target locations
indicates that explosive compounds are rare, with only trace
detections at six out over 100 locations. Additionally, only trace
levels of a few pesticides, herbicides and volatile organic
compounds have been detected in any of the soil samples.)

> Moreover, the latest findings
> appear to confirm the existence of at least two plumes of

> explosives-related contamination spreading from the impact area toward
> remaining clean water supplies on Upper Cape Cod. As you may be aware,
> water supplies for the entire region of Upper Cape Cod have already been
> damaged by extensive groundwater contamination from Otis Air Base.

(Since the relationship between the detections has not been
completely established, it is premature to state that any "plumes"
exist. The Army National Guard is working with the U.S. Geological
Survey, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Massachusetts
Department of Environmental Protection to evaluate the data and
determine what additional investigation may be warranted.)

> It is now clear that artillery, mortar, and demolition practice threaten
> groundwater resources. Therefore we urge you, the officials most
> responsible for overseeing the environmental effects of military
> activities,to create pilot studies of the soil and water at each of the
> major artillery and mortar ranges in the United States. These studies would
> assess the danger posed by munitions firing and demolition at each of these
> ranges while providing data from a diverse set of conditions to augment the
> findings at the Massachusetts Military Reservation.

(The soil results indicate that the groundwater contamination is from
a source other than artillery and mortar firing. The trace levels of
explosives found in the soils at the target locations cannot account
for the detections of explosive compounds in the groundwater.)

> We would be willing to meet with you in order to discuss details of this
> proposal. Tribes, indigenous peoples and all other stakeholders should have
> a valid, active role in setting criteria and methodology for this testing.
> We look forward to hearing from you about this urgent matter.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Joel Feigenbaum
> Alliance for Base Cleanup (MMR)
>
 James Kinney
> Alliance for Base Cleanup (MMR)
>
> Richard Hugus
> Otis Conversion Project, Massachusetts Military Reservation (MMR)
>
> Paul Zanis
> MMR Impact Area Review Team
>
> Laura Olah
> Executive Director of Citizens for Safe Water Around Badger (CSWAB)
>
> Bill McGlinn
> Ann R. Miller
> Richard B. McGlinn
> David M.McGlinn
> Peter Strauss
> Rusty Gates
> R. Bruce Johnson
> Bob Linsenman
> Dan Drislane
> Edward McGlinn
> Lenny Siegel
> Grace M. Potorti
> Tess Nelkie
> Steve Southard
> Steve Sendek
> Skip Favro
> Ruth Favro
> Ron Weber
> Pat Dwyer
> Jim Schramm
> Jay Gleason
> Dan L. Alstott

CPT James Boggess, Project Coordinator