[CPEO-MEF] Acevedo letters on Vieques/Culebra listing

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

[Letter from Resident Commissioner Anibal Acevedo Vila to U.S. EPA]


October 12, 2004

Docket Coordinator, Headquarters 
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
CERCLA Docket Office 
Mail Code 5305T
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, D.C. 20460

Attention Docket ID No. SFUND-2004-0011

To Whom It May Concern:

I write in support of the proposed inclusion on the National Priority 
List of the lands and waters on and around the former Atlantic Fleet 
Weapons Training Area (AFWTA), comprised of the islands of Vieques  and
Culebra and surrounding cays, in Puerto Rico.  On June 13, 2004, 
pursuant to section 105(a)(8)(B) of the Comprehensive Environmental 
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA, or "Superfund"),  the
Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Sila M. Calderón, 
designated the AFWTA as the facility in Puerto Rico that represented 
the greatest threat to public health or welfare or the environment in 
seeking this Superfund listing.  This designation is the proper step  to
achieving full cleanup of the lands and waters of the AFWTA, and  as an
elected representative of the people of Puerto Rico, I strongly  support
this designation.

Governor Calderón made this determination in accordance with section 
105(a)(8)(B) of CERCLA, which states that the President "shall  include
among the one hundred highest priority facilities one such  facility
from each State which shall be the facility designated by  the State as
presenting the greatest danger to public health or  welfare or the
environment."  The AFWTA complies with the CERCLA  definition of
"facility".  A facility, which is defined broadly in  the statute, can
include non-contiguous areas, and there is ample  Superfund precedent
for such application of CERCLA.  The historical  record of the military
training on the Vieques and Culebra ranges  shows that they were
operated as a single facility.  In Congressional  hearings, dating back
to 1970, Navy officials repeatedly asserted the  importance of combined
and integrated operations throughout the  AFWTA.  Bombing, shelling,
strafing, targeting, beach assaults,  munitions storage and transfer,
and maintenance operations occurred  concurrently on both islands
through these coordinated operations.   Similar contamination has come
to exist on both islands through these  coordinated, joint, and often
simultaneous military training  operations.

Issues have been raised, particularly by the U.S. Army, regarding the 
ability of the U.S. Government to clean up Culebra, as a result of  P.L.
93-166 (1973), which states that Culebra "shall not be utilized  for any
purpose that would require decontamination at the expense of  the United
States."  The CERCLA designation is proposed not as the  result of land
use, but rather because there is a release or  threatened release of
hazardous substances on Culebra, and the AFWTA  at large, which
represents the greatest threat to public health or  welfare or the
environment.  Further, CERCLA supercedes the 1973  legislation.  Section
120(h) of CERCLA was enacted for the very  purpose of resolving such
purported conflicts, and further, legal  precedent has found that, in
the case of conflicting statutes, repeal  of the earlier statute by
implication is appropriate.

Superfund listing for the AFWTA is important to achieve the necessary 
clean up of the lands and waters contaminated with releases or 
threatened releases of a hazardous substance from previous military 
training operations.  Those military exercises have left  contamination
from exploded and unexploded (UXO) munitions, including  but not limited
to TNT, RDX, HMX, Tetryl, HBX, PETN, heavy metals,  perchlorate,
phosphorus, depleted uranium, napalm, and chaff.   Maintenance
operations on the AFWTA left contamination of oils and  fuels, greases,
cleaning fluids and solvents, batteries, and other  hazardous
substances.  The existence of these hazardous substances,  including
UXO, represents significant threats to the public health.   Residents of
Vieques have been found to have higher incidences of  cancer and other
diseases than the other residents of Puerto Rico,  and, in peer-reviewed
studies, to have above-normal bodily  concentrations of mercury. 
Studies have found high concentrations of  munitions components and
heavy metals in marine life, vegetation,  soil and the water. UXO is
pervasive throughout Vieques and Culebra,  and is extremely hazardous to
residents, workers and visitors.   Though some UXO has been removed from
the surface of these former  ranges, hurricanes, changes in land use, or
increased human use could  increase the threat UXO poses.  On land, the
clean up must be broad,  include all affected lands, and strive to
remove all releases or  sources of threatened releases of hazardous
substances.  In the  waters, UXO is dangerous to boaters, fishermen and
divers, can damage  coral reefs, and can degrade into marine life and
the food chain.  So  as to protect public health from these threats, the
fullest CERCLA  clean up of lands and waters of the AFWTA must be pursued.

The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Army have engaged in 
discussions regarding a possible alternative clean up for Culebra.  
Under this scenario, the Superfund listing of Vieques would be 
finalized and proceed accordingly, while final Superfund listing for 
Culebra would be deferred.  This scenario is consistent with CERCLA.   A
clean up of the AFWTA portions of Culebra, outside of CERCLA, must  be
enforceable, comprehensive, and proceed within an established 
timeframe.  The Commonwealth will maintain the option of seeking  final
Superfund listing if agreement on such an alternative cannot be  reached.

Finally, as this listing proceeds and investigations and remediation 
commence, I urge the EPA to consult with and be inclusive of the  local
communities.  The residents of these islands have been impacted  for
decades by the military training, the resulting environmental  damage
and threats, and the effects to their quality of life, health  and
economy.  The EPA should provide local forums for discussion of  CERCLA
processes and goals, and to the extent possible, local  residents should
be involved in all steps of the planning, scoping,  investigation and
cleanup of the AFWTA.  This should include steps to  ensure compliance
with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and Executive  Order 13166, and
provide meaningful access and outreach to the  limited English
proficient population affected by this action.   Translation of
important documents and public announcements,  prominent display and
availability of those translations, and use of  translators and/or
interpreters at public events would be important  steps for meaningful
inclusion and participation of the community.

I appreciate the opportunity to provide these comments on the  proposed
Superfund listing of the AFWTA.  I look forward to working  with the
EPA, and all parties, to accomplish a complete and  comprehensive
remediation and clean up of the lands and waters of the  former military
training ranges of AFWTA.

 Sincerely,

Aníbal Acevedo-Vilá Resident Commissioner Member of Congress

CC: The Honorable Mike Leavitt, Administrator U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency



  

-- 


Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org
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