Open Detonation Soil Sampling at Fort Ord

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

SAMPLING FOR SOIL CONTAMINATION FROM OPEN DETONATION 
AT FORT ORD

As part of the clearance of ordnance at Fort Ord impact areas, the Army
plans to sample for soil contamination at consolidated open detonation
sites. Based upon previous sampling and the Army's "Bang Box" studies,
it plans to test for metals and nitroaromatic/nitramine compounds, but
not semivolatile compounds.

According to a paper presented at UXO Forum '99, "The primary goal of
the study is to determine a conservative (protective of human health),
upper-bound limit on the amount of OE [ordnance and explosives] that can
be demolished at a single location without approaching levels of concern
for potential contaminants in soil." That is, the Army plans to use
multiple detonation sites so soil contamination won't reach unacceptable
concentrations at any one site.

The good news is that the Army is taking soil contamination from UXO
[unexploded ordnance] disposal seriously. The bad news is that its
likely mitigation will not minimize the overall environmental load of
contamination; the Army just intends to spread it around.

(See Bruce Wilcor et al, "Evaluation of Potential Soil Contamination
from Open Detonation During Ordnance and Explosives Removal Actions,
Former Fort Ord, California")
-- 


Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 222B View St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/968-1126
lsiegel@cpeo.org
http://www.cpeo.org