My area of interest is mainly focused on environmental studies; therefore, in most of the posts on this blog, I will be referencing topics of sustainability, effects on the environment, and climate change adaptation to the current events of military operations.
For today’s post, I will be discussing a military operation that has caused an environmental and social consequence that was brought up by James Cerone in Episode 1 of the WJI podcast in December of 2021.
In November of 2021, residents around the base of Joint Base Pearl Harbor Hickam in Hawaii were noticing issues with their water supply. Many residents noticed a gasoline-like odor from their tap water, and some were having health issues such as nausea, vomiting, and skin irritations from using their water. After investigation, it was discovered that the underground fuel storage tank that was installed during the WWII era back in the 1940s, near the Red Hill Shaft watershed, was leaking into a Honolulu water source causing contamination to the drinking water that supplies thousands of residents from Pearl Harbor military housing as well as Honolulu residents. The Hawaii Department of Health called on the U.S. Navy to take action and responsibility to fix this issue as soon as possible. In the meantime, residents were being relocated to hotels and were provided with bottled water for their daily water usage.
The Honolulu water crisis has demonstrated the importance for military bases to remain vigilant in maintaining their equipment and facilities on a schedule not only to prevent negative impacts on the local communities and environment but also to avoid significant costs related to mitigating the impacts. Based on an article from Federal News Network (2018), Jared Serbu mentioned, “Among the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force, the package provided $9.9 billion in facilities sustainment, restoration and modernization (FSRM) funding for 2018”. But even such a large fund is not enough to fix deteriorating buildings or avoid these kinds of incidents if preventive maintenance and infrastructure updates are not appropriately scheduled and completed.
An apprentice in the WJI, Ayla Rich, is creating an Operations Consequence Assessment Tool (OCAT), with guidance from faculty of the Coast Guard Academy and UMass Boston to assess the operating environment within the different bases across the country, and to further explore the different areas military operations can affect in the surrounding communities. Improved assessment of military operations and analysis of potential social, economic, or environmental risks to the surrounding communities can help avoid potentially costly results due to inattention. Not only that, but it may also work to sustain strong relationships with the local communities, bringing positive results and avoiding or mitigating potential social, environmental, or economic consequences as a whole.
Alfonseca, Kiara. “Navy to Comply with Orders amid Hawaii Water Contamination Crisis.” ABC News, ABC News Network, 11 Jan. 2022, https://abcnews.go.com/US/navy-comply-orders-amid-water-contamination-crisis/story?id=82196196.
Serbu, Jared. “Congress Gives Dod Big Boost for Facility Upkeep, but Not Enough to Fix Deteriorating Buildings.” Federal News Network, 3 Apr. 2018, https://federalnewsnetwork.com/dod-reporters-notebook-jared-serbu/2018/04/congress-gives-dod-big-boost-for-facility-upkeep-but-not-nearly-enough-to-fix-deteriorating-buildings/.