5 reasons to support SB2774 to shut down Red Hill
/And therefore support SB2774, which requires the Navy to relocate its fuel at the Red Hill Facility away from O‘ahu’s drinking water by 2028.
We are asking water drinkers to help save SB2774. This bill is vital because it provides a clear end date to the operation of the massive, leaky Red Hill tanks and provides the justification needed for the Navy to begin the federal funding procurement process for relocation.
The bill has not been heard in the Senate CPH Committee and will miss the legislative deadline if it is not re-referred. Please call Senate President Kouchi and ask that he remove the CPH committee referral to keep SB2774 alive. Act for Oʻahu’s water security future and call and email Sen. Kouchi at 586-6030 or senkouchi@capitol.hawaii.gov.
You can say something like this:
“Hi, my name is ____ and I am a resident of ____. I’m calling to request President Kouchi’s help on SB2774, a bill that is so important to protecting O‘ahu’s drinking water. I strongly support SB2774 to send a signal to the Navy that more urgent action needs to be taken at Red Hill. SB2774 needs a re-referral to meet crossover deadline and I am asking Senate President to remove the CPH committee referral to keep SB2774 alive and continue this important discussion.”
#1 The Red Hill tanks have a history of leaking and they are corroding.
Navy documents have revealed that there have been more than thirty leaks from the Red Hill facility, the largest leak of 27,000 gallons occurring in 2014 after routine maintenance. Soil samples taken from beneath 19 of 20 of the tanks show petroleum-based staining and petroleum-based chemicals have been repeatedly detected in nearby groundwater monitoring wells. Every sample of steel liner tested during the 2018 Destructive Analysis Testing showed some presence of corrosion, with one sample measuring only 49% of its original ¼ inch width.
#2 The Red Hill tanks continue to threaten our water.
The Navy’s risk assessment shows the tanks currently have a 27.6% chance of leaking up to 30,000 gallons each year and the facility will chronically leak 5,803 gallons every year. Meanwhile, the tanks are located only 100 feet above an aquifer that provides drinking water from Hālawa to Hawai‘i Kai. This level of risk to our water is unacceptable, as none of the leaked fuel can be cleaned up before reaching our aquifer.
#3 The Navy has selected the least protective, least costly upgrade option for the Red Hill tanks while asking for 25 more years to come up with a solution.
Under the Administrative Order on Consent, the Navy evaluated six tank upgrade options and selected the option of maintaining status quo at Red Hill, while committing to ”double wall secondary-containment equivalency” or relocation “around 2045”. The Navy has already considered many different tank upgrade technologies such as patch plates, epoxy and urethane coating, aluminum and ceramic spray coating, fiberglass, rubber and a plastic “bladder” liner, carbon fiber sheets, weld overlay, concrete, ceramic tile, carbon steel, and stainless steel. There is no current technology that can feasibly double-wall the tanks.
#4 The State Department of Health has primary jurisdiction to regulate the Red Hill tanks.
The Department of Health is constitutionally and legally obligated to protect our drinking water from contamination. In 1989 the legislature codified HRS§342L, the underground storage tank law, to give DOH the tools it needed to protect our water supply. In 2002, the U.S. EPA delegated authority to the state to regulate all underground storage tanks, even the tanks at federal facilities. Furthermore, the Administrative Order on Consent specifically reserved the state's right to amend state laws and regulations to ensure that future drinking water sources are well protected.
#5 Relocation away from drinking water is the only long term solution to protect O‘ahu’s water.
Due to the location of these tanks 100 feet above our water, we should not allow these massive, leaky tanks to continue operating after 2045–even with upgrades. It is time to start planning now for the relocation of the Navy’s fuel. The funding that is currently used to maintain the existing Red Hill Facility should be reallocated towards building a new storage tank system that does not jeopardize our drinking water. SB2774 provides a clear end date to the operation of these massive, leaky tanks and provides the justification needed for the Navy to begin the federal funding procurement process for relocation.