[CPEO-MEF] "Air Force insists it has [Kirtland Air Force Base] fuel issue under control, " Albuquerque, NM

[Lenny Siegel <LSiegel@cpeo.org>]

Air Force insists it has Albuquerque fuel issue under control
At Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., aviation gas and jet propellant  
have sunk into the aquifer, moving toward wells that help supply  
Albuquerque's drinking water.

By Michael Haederle
Los Angeles Times
September 3, 2012

KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE, N.M. - As environmental disaster sites go,  
it doesn't look like much. A scattering of rusting wellhead covers  
and a machine noisily sucking hydrocarbon vapors from the earth  
scarcely hint at what has grown into a $50-million headache.

But nearly 500 feet beneath this spot, a plume of aviation gas and  
jet propellant that leaked undetected for decades from an Air Force  
fuel depot has sunk into the aquifer, drifting toward wells that help  
supply Albuquerque's drinking water.

Base officials acknowledge that millions of gallons of fuel went  
missing, and although they don't know exactly how close the leading  
edge of the plume is to the municipal water supply, they insist that  
there is little likelihood of contamination.

"The Air Force absolutely owns this problem, and we're committed to  
remediating it," said Col. Jeffrey Lanning, who recently assumed  
command of the 377th Air Base Wing, which operates Kirtland.

But neighbors are mistrustful, with some accusing the Air Force of  
soft-pedaling the extent of the leak.

...

For the entire article, see
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-albuquerque- 
water-20120904,0,4824451.story


--

Lenny Siegel
Executive Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
a project of the Pacific Studies Center
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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