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Island Restoration The Department of Defense has also been responsible for environmental cleanup at the Pribilof Islands. The U.S. Army occupied the islands during World War II and left behind debris and thousands of fifty-five-gallon drums. In 1985, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers identified twelve sites (referred to as formerly used defense sites or FUDS) at St. Paul and St. George Islands requiring cleanup.32 The Corps summary of work stated that the drums were somewhat consolidated at dump sites on the islands. Though many drums appeared to be empty, they had at one point contained petroleum, oils, and lubricants. Hence, it was possible their contents leaked to the soils on which they were deposited. At St. Paul Island, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers 1985 document identified the following sites for cleanup:
On St. George Island, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers identified the following sites for cleanup:
In 2001, the U.S. Navy additionally identified the former radio station complex on St. Paul Island as a FUDS.
The fact that some of the Pribilof Islands' FUDS became contiguous with NOAA Two-Party Agreement sites complicated cleanup issues. Section 3(f)(2) of Public Law No.104–91, as amended by Public Law No. 106–562, which authorizes the funding for NOAA’s Pribilof Islands cleanup activities, stipulates: “None of the funds authorized by this subsection may be expended for the purpose of cleaning up or remediating any landfills, wastes, dumps, debris, storage tanks, property, hazardous or unsafe conditions, or contaminants, including petroleum products and their derivatives, left by the Department of Defense or any of its components on lands on the Pribilof Islands, Alaska.” The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers conducted debris cleanup on St. Paul and St. George Islands in the mid-1980s (Chase Construction Inc. 1986). NOAA, in an effort to meet its legal obligations to clean up contamination and debris consistent with statutory requirements and constraints, made efforts to discern and address contamination caused by it and its predecessor agencies. Though both NOAA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers contributed to the Pribilof Islands cleanup, disagreement existed at least through 2007 regarding remaining debris and associated cleanup responsibilities (NOAA 2004a; NOAA 2004b; NOAA 2005a). Causes of Environmental Contamination NOAA Actions to Restore the Pribilof Islands Completion of Corrective Actions
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NOAA created this product in partial fulfillment
of a memorandum of agreement between it and the Alaska State Historic
Preservation Officer. |
