 |
|
Topics
|
Island Restoration The Introduction briefly mentioned that a general lack of concern over environmental protection resulted in uncontrolled petroleum product releases and the accumulation of solid wastes. The reliance on petroleum fuels for home heating, electrical generation, and automotive needs began in the early 1900s, and increased in the mid-1960s when coal as fuel went by the wayside. Uncontrolled releases occurred at tank farms, underground storage tanks, and corroded fuel transfer lines. Waste oils accumulated in barrels deposited on the tundra. Corrosion, dumping, and bullet holes in the barrels led to soil and groundwater contamination. Household and industrial waste dumps and landfills dotted the islands. These problems could not hide forever from the nation’s relatively newly acquired awareness of environmental quality. One of the earliest documented discussions of contamination on the Pribilof Islands came from an investigation undertaken in October 1983 by Carl Harmon (1984) of the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation. NOAA first surveyed sites on the Pribilof Islands for debris and contamination in 1990, in response to concerns expressed by local entities regarding lands either transferred under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act or scheduled for transfer under the Transfer of Property Agreement (see Document Library; and, NOAA 1984) between NOAA and local entities. Steve Buckel, a NOAA civil engineer, traveled to the Pribilof Islands to evaluate the sites brought to NOAA’s attention. In his report, Buckel stated, “It became evident during the site surveys that the scope of the compliance problems were far more extensive than was originally anticipated…” (Buckel 1990). Subsequently, NOAA initiated a preliminary assessment intended to present information concerning past NOAA activities and report on the Pribilof Islands’ site conditions (Ecology and Environment 1993). NOAA contractors conducted environmental assessments to sample, consolidate, and inventory fluids from drums, vehicles, and other containers at several sites on the islands (Harding Lawson Associates 1993; Woodward-Clyde 1994). By the mid-1990s, NOAA requested expanded site inspections to determine the nature and extent of chemical contamination on St. Paul and St. George Islands (Woodward-Clyde 1994; Woodward-Clyde 1995; Hart Crowser 1997). The results of these investigations provided the basis for the direction ascribed in the TPA signed by NOAA and the State of Alaska (NOAA 1996). NOAA agreed to identify, assess, remedy, and monitor environmental contamination at twenty sites on St. Paul Island and twenty-two sites on St. George Island under the TPA (TPA Attachment A-Source Areas). Since 1996, some of the sites in Attachment A have been subdivided. Sites have also been added to the list of source areas. In conjunction with environmental restoration actions, the TPA called on NOAA to establish a restoration advisory board (RAB) and to maintain an administrative record.
Causes of Environmental Contamination NOAA Actions to Restore the Pribilof Islands Completion of Corrective Actions Department of Defense Environmental Restoration Responsibilities
|
 |
NOAA created this product in partial fulfillment
of a memorandum of agreement between it and the Alaska State Historic
Preservation Officer. |
