RE: Army Disbands the Fort Ord RAB

["Allen, Scott" <scott.allen@w-b-m.com>]

I was the Community Co-Chair of the Fort Ord RAB up to the time the Army
unilaterally decided to disband the RAB on May 12, 1999.  In response to
the Army's decision to disband the Fort Ord RAB, I would like to discuss
two issues.

Issue Number 1: 

What is the true reason that the Army decided to disband the Fort Ord RAB?

Answer: 

It's simple -- the RAB has been very effective.  That's right.  Despite
the Army's assertions that the RAB has been "ineffective," a review of the
facts shows just the opposite.  For example, consider the following:

As far back as early 1997, the Fort Ord RAB, by majority vote, passed two
resolutions:  (a) expressing the RAB's view that the Army's should remove
hazardous stormwater outfalls that discharge polluted waters into the
Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary and create safety hazards to
beach-goers;  and (b) expressing the RAB's view that the Army should
conduct its cleanup of unexploded ordnance (UXO) under the regulation of
EPA and the Superfund statute.  Although the Army refused to follow the
recommendations set forth in the RAB's resolutions, these resolutions show
that the RAB is capable of working together to express the RAB's concerns
over the Army's cleanup of Fort Ord.

When the Army began setting wild fires on Fort Ord, causing hazardous
smoke and ash to fill large portions of the Salinas Valley, the RAB acted
as a forum for outraged community members to voice their discontent with
the Army's disregard for the health of Salinas Valley residents.  Based on
the community discontent expressed at RAB meetings and in other public
fora, the Army has been sued once by the local Air Pollution Control
District and another such suit is now planned.  The U.S. EPA has also
directed the Army to halt its burning operations.

Furthermore, in early 1998, due to their dissatisfaction with the Army's
cleanup of UXO on Fort Ord, two current and former RAB members, together
with the Fort Ord Toxics Project and the California Public Interest
Research Group, sued the Army to require the Army to comply with Superfund
in the cleanup of UXO.  (Recall that, in 1997, the RAB passed a resolution
expressing its view that the Army must comply with Superfund when
conducting UXO cleanup -- but the Army refused to follow the RAB's
advice.)  The suit was successfully resolved in favor of the RAB members
in late 1998.  This success will ensure that Fort Ord is a safer place in
the future.

The Fort Ord RAB is by no means perfect.  However, when you look at the
facts, it is clear that the RAB has been very successful is serving as a
forum for community members to express their concerns over the Army's
cleanup of Fort Ord.

The Army is particularly keen to deprive the community of the RAB forum at
this time.  The Army is in the process of making many important decisions
regarding the cleanup and reuse of Fort Ord.  For example, the Army is
developing a work plan for the completion of a Superfund-required Remedial
Investigation/Feasibility Study (RI/FS) to address UXO throughout Fort
Ord.  As discussed above, the RAB and its community members have been
instrumental in requiring the Army to perform the RI/FS.  Now, however, by
disbanding the RAB, the Army has ensured that the community members will
not be able to participate in the development of this work plan within the
RAB forum.  This is completely unacceptable!!!!!!!

Rather than disbanding the RAB at Fort Ord, I suggest that the Army needs
to replace a number of its personnel at the installation, such as the BRAC
Environmental Coordinator, many of whom have been at the installation
since the RAB's inception.  I believe that those personnel have developed
personal animosity toward many members of the community, in particular
toward many members of the RAB.  As a result, it is apparent that those
personnel are not able to work productively in with RAB members or other
members of the community.

Issue Number 2:

Does the Army have the legal authority to unilaterally disband the Fort
Ord RAB in this manner?

Answer:

Absolutely not!  The Army is in violation of Congressional statute and
DoD's own policies regarding RABs.

Congress created RABs when it enacted the Defense Environmental
Restoration Program ("DERP"). According to DoD's own Guidance on the
Implementation of DERP (the "DERP Guidance"), "RABs . . . meet the
requirements of the DERP (10 USC Section 2705). . ." (DERP Guidance at
Section L.2.j.)

Congress originally enacted DERP as part of the Superfund reforms of 1986.
At that time, Congress was very unhappy with DoD's repeated failure to
adequately clean up military bases. As one of the keys to Congress' effort
to remedy this situation, Congress chose to give community members the
right to oversee every stage in the process of cleaning up military bases.
Congress believed that increased public scrutiny would create greater
pressure on DoD to comply with its legal obligations. One of the vehicles
for increased public scrutiny was the creation of RABs. Thus, Congress
established RABs to be environmental watchdogs, guarding against
environmental trespasses by DoD.  As discussed under Issue Number 1 above,
I believe that the Fort Ord RAB has been very effective in its role as a
watchdog of the Army's environmental cleanup of Fort Ord.

RABs are mandatory at Base Realignment and Closure installations.  (DERP
Guidance at L.2.a.(1).)  Fort Ord is a BRAC installation, and thus,
according to the DoD's DERP Guidance, Fort Ord is required to have a RAB.

The Army failed to follow proper procedures for disbanding the Fort Ord
RAB.  The DERP Guidance makes clear that the decision to disband a RAB may
not be a unilateral DoD decision. "The installation must make the decision
to adjourn a RAB with general agreement from the RAB members and in
consultation with the community as a whole." (DERP Guidance at L.2.l.) 
The Army never consulted the members of the Fort Ord RAB in deciding
whether to adjourn the RAB, and it certainly did not seek to obtain
"general agreement from the RAB members."  Nor did the Army consult with
the community as a whole in making its decision.

As the (former) Community Co-Chair of the Fort Ord RAB, I am extremely
disappointed at the Army's unilateral act of disbanding the RAB.  I call
for the Army to re-instate the Fort Ord RAB as soon as possible.

Scott J. Allen, (former?) Community Co-Chair, Fort Ord RAB