Ship repair and parts manufacturing are examples of industrial activities conducted on Hunters Point that used toxic chemicals and generated hazardous waste

Military bases are small industrial cities whose activities can include aircraft and warship operations, weapons, ordnance and equipment manufacture and maintenance, live fire practice and equipment training. Until the late 1970s, there were few laws regulating the disposal of hazardous waste by private industry and none applicable to the military. Many handling and disposal practices that were common in the past are illegal today. Hazardous wastes were routinely dumped in the ground without any form of containment, where they contaminated the soil and groundwater. Much of the contamination is similar to that found at industrial facilities that operated before modern environmental laws took effect.¹

Since 1978 a new set of requirements has been established regulating the military’s impact on the environment. Although the military still retains a substantial degree of immunity, there is a solid base of federal and state environmental regulations with which the military must comply.

Superfund Act

The federal Superfund Act, also know as the Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation & Liability Act (CERCLA), governs the cleanup of military bases.

Congress enacted CERCLA on December 11, 1980. This law created a tax on the chemical and petroleum industries and provided broad Federal authority to respond directly to releases or threatened releases of hazardous substances that may endanger public health or the environment.² One of the most important aspects of CERCLA is that it requires public input into the cleanup strategies used to respond to toxic and hazardous pollution. It also establishes parameters for what is considered an appropriate cleanup, and enables the public to sue when there is a valid disagreement over cleanup strategy. In 1986, Congress incorporated the Defense Department’s environmental cleanup program into the CERCLA process. In 1992, Congress passed the Federal Facilities Environmental Compliance Act. Since then all military base cleanup activities have been governed by the CERCLA process, while remaining subject to complying with other federal and state environmental regulations.

For more information:

• The Superfund Cleanup Process and public involvement in the process
• Overview of the Environmental Laws Governing Federal Facility Cleanup
• Military Base Cleanup : Step by Step (100KB PDF) - A fact sheet from the Community Window on the Shipyard that provides a general overview of the federal process for cleaning up a contaminated military base in the U.S.
• Cleanup efforts at Hunters Point Shipyard

Other web sites with information on military base cleanup:
http://www.calepa.ca.gov/publications/factSheets/1997/military.htm

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¹⁾ www.calepa.ca.gov/publications/factSheets/1997/military.htm

²⁾www.epa.gov/superfund/action/law/cercla.htm