The Adak Restoration Advisory Board (RAB) met for its regular monthly meeting on June 28, 2000, at 6:30 p.m. (Adak time) and 7:30 p.m. (Anchorage time). The RAB met at the CSO Conference Room, Bob Reeve High School, Adak, Alaska. Others participated by telephone conference from Anchorage, Alaska.

Administrative Note: The summary of discussions during RAB meetings is not intended as a transcript of the meeting. A recording of the RAB meeting is obtained at every meeting and in the event that a more complete transcript of a discussion is needed for a specific issue, this recording can be accessed. While participants at RAB meetings are strongly encouraged to review the meeting minutes prior to finalization of the minutes, it is recognized that there is the possibility that participants in the discussions have not reviewed the minutes to confirm that they accurately reflect the content of the discussion.

1. Welcome, Introductions, and Meeting Purpose

   Ms. Villa called the meeting to order at 6:50 p.m. A quorum was present.

   1. Approval of Agenda.

      The agenda was approved.

   2. Approval of 4/15/00 Meeting Minutes.

      IT WAS MOVED by Ms. Griswold AND SECONDED by Ms. Vessel that the minutes of the April 15, 2000 meeting be approved as written. THE MOTION PASSED with unanimous consent with the following two corrections:

      Page 3, third paragraph, third line from the bottom should read: "Mr. Gates added that even though a sentinel well may not detect petroleum contamination, it does not rule out the possibility that product could have migrated from into Sweeper Cove to a and to different areas.

      In addition, at page 7, second paragraph, fourth line should read: "Mr. Gates agreed did not agree and noted with the exception of Clam Lagoon Minefield."

   3. General Announcements.

      There were no general announcements.

   4. Administrative Issues

      Ms. Villa said that many community people were unhappy with the late cancellation of the on-island meeting. Ms. Villa said she had received apologies from the agencies and the Navy. Mr. Murphy said the Navy had apologized to the Adak RAB members. Circumstances did not allow travel to the island. The next RAB meeting will be on Adak.

      Ms. Villa said she received no reply from Linda Henrikson about further participation in the RAB. Laura and Carl Calugan resigned from the RAB. Ms. Villa requested that Ms. Hendrikson be removed from the RAB for cause.

      There are currently 12 voting RAB members (Roy Ehrhart, Chris Gates, Mary Grisco, Charlotte Griswold, Agafon Krukoff, Keith Martin, Pam Miller, Mike Mitchell, Ed Nash, Patty Vessel, and Cathy Villa). Six voting members are required to establish a quorum.

   5. Project Updates and Questions and Answers
      
      
      1. Update on Petroleum Issues

         Mr. Walker briefly updated the RAB on non-petroleum related issues. The shoreline restoration at Metals Landfill is complete. 85% of the debris was to be removed, however, 98% of the debris was actually recovered.

         Fertilization of existing landfills is nearing completion, including Metals, Roberts, Palisades and White Alice. A cap is being installed at Roberts Landfill. Additional asbestos material discovered last year was placed in the landfill and capped. In the next few weeks, the last portion of the cover will be installed and hydro seeded. Mr. Gates asked where the cap cover material came from? Mr. Walker said two sources met the permeability requirements. One was in Robert's Landfill, which was used for the original cap. The second source came from material within the fuels area.

         Rommel stake removal continues. Additional equipment was needed to recover stakes from the Shagak area. A truck/dump vehicle arrived last week, which will help facilitate the work.

         A contract will be awarded in the next couple of weeks to remove petroleum-contaminated soil from under living unit 160D. Limited soil removal was performed last year. Furthermore, additional contaminants near the contractor's camp will be removed and analyzed. Six inches of soil will be removed throughout the Rot Lot (scrap vehicle yard).

         Approximately 300 cubic yards of petroleum-contaminated soil will be generated this season. That material will be warehoused and stored until next season when a treatment facility becomes available.

         Mr. Walker expects the foaming of the A1 pipeline to begin in mid-July. The line was purged and cleaned a couple years ago. There are ongoing problems that need correction prior to foaming. Specifically, a seep was discovered and the pipe must be re-cleaned.

         During the demolition of Old Robert's Housing last season, 13 unregulated underground storage tanks (UST's) were discovered. Those UST's will be foamed this season. Mr. Oates requested further discussion before work begins.

         There are seven active passive recovery sites that have met the requirements. URS is preparing shutdown reports on the passive recovery systems. The reports should be completed in approximately four weeks.

         Five above ground storage tanks will be cleaned in July.

         A pilot study is ongoing at the NMCB site. Two recovery systems are being reviewed to replace the pump and treat system. A focused feasibility study will be performed. The systems will recover product and not process water. Mr. Gates asked if the systems would work for solvents? Mr. Walker said they considered whether there was a d-naphtha problem, but there does not appear to be one. However, systems that will work on solvents are still being considered.

         There is a seep at Norpac Hill that has been there for a number of years. There is not a recoverable amount of product. Last year, there was a limited but unsuccessful attempt to find the source. Further excavation will be performed this summer to find the source.

         Action Item: Mr. Gates will provide a list of questions to Mr. Walker regarding the NMCB site and Norpac Hill.

         The fourth round of petroleum sampling and monitoring is being conducted by URS. Completion is expected in mid-July. Low levels of product were found in two wells at Arctic Acres (previously listed as a natural attenuation site). Recovery operations will begin there. Mr. Gates asked if it was significant that Arctic Acres is near Norpac Hill? Mr. Walker said he did not think so because there are old storage tanks right above it. One well had between four tenths of a foot to five tenths of a foot (4/10' - 5/10') of product. The other well had three one hundredths of a foot to four one hundredths (3/100' - 4/100') of a foot of product. Mr. Walker said one well had a passive skimmer and the other would get a "sock."

         Mr. Walker said the focused feasibility study, the pilot study and the post-recovery monitoring are currently being worked on for SWMU 62. So far, the systems have been in place about a week and are doing well.

         SWMU 17, the old power plant system, will be re-evaluated for a new system that focuses on the product, rather than pump and treat.

         The tanker shed and Yakutat are operational. There were problems over the winter with lines freezing, etc. In February or March both systems came online. Work should be complete at the end of September when shutdown reports will be prepared. A "shutdown report" establishes the recovery process endpoints, which allow the system to be closed down. Many in-place systems are interim actions that must be "shutdown" in order to go on to the focused feasibility study and remedial action.

         There are a number of problems with the south runway. The sheen at airport ditch is being evaluated. A focused feasibility study for the area may be conducted. The first step will be to select a solution to address the seepage going into the airport ditch. Mr. Walker said the boom currently being used could not continue much longer.

         Mr. Walker discussed the John Curtis matter. Mr. Walker recently read the Naval Investigative Service (NIS) report and other related documents. Mr. Curtis was found guilty and incarcerated for allowing petroleum to be discharged into a waterway. The documents indicated two sizeable petroleum releases in the late 1980s. The estimated release was between 500,000 to 1,000,000 gallons. A large volume of petroleum went out through the storm drainage systems to Sweeper Cove. The Navy initiated a contract to URS to delineate the impacted area. Several recommendations came from that sampling. Several years later, EMCON collected over 500 soil samples. Mr. Walker said that over 700 wells have been drilled throughout the base and no free product was detected. He said there is nothing that would lead the Navy to believe that there is any free product remaining. However, there is staining in the south runway area. It was recommended that the Navy continue monitoring the area, which they did. A focused feasibility study will be conducted and an attempt to prevent migration into the airport ditch will be undertaken.

         Mr. Keith Martin said he did not believe the boom worked because it does not work in over 10 knots of wind. The sheen is often outside of the boom. He said the boom also does not work if there is more than three knots of current. Mr. Martin said he felt a lot of frustration because the Navy did not accept the community's input regarding the source of the powerhouse spill and seepage for quite some time until recently when the NIS report was read.

         Mr. Walker disputed Mr. Martin's opinions regarding the boom at Sweeper Creek. The mouth of Sweeper Creek was boomed in January, which was when the seep was first detected in that area. There also had been boom placed in other sections of Sweeper Cove and Traffic Circle. A new seep appeared in January, which required additional boom. Mr. Walker agreed there were problems with the boom in the winter months. Mr. Walker said the boom in airport ditch appears to be working fine. The whole area will be addressed in the same focused feasibility study. Mr. Walker said until he read the NIS report about five weeks ago, in his mind, the spill facts had not been substantiated. Mr. Murphy said that Mr. Walker could not be held to facts outside of his knowledge. Mr. Murphy added that the Navy was well aware that there was a spill in the 1989/1990 time frame that resulted in the prosecution of John Curtis. The Navy has never represented that there was not a spill that occurred. He said the Navy just did not have enough specific information to respond intelligently.

         Mr. Walker said the location where the John Curtis spill originated on the pipeline is known. Mr. Walker said the John Curtis spill is one of the contributors to the petroleum at south runway. Mr. Gates asked whether the specific quantity of spill was documented. Mr. Walker said he read a spill estimate of approximately 68 gallons per hour over a year's time.

         Action Item: Mr. Walker will provide to Mr. Murphy the titles of specific materials he reviewed regarding the John Curtis matter so the references can be included in the RAB materials.

         Action Item: Mr. Walker will ask legal counsel whether a public version of the NIS/John Curtis report could be distributed to the RAB.

      2. Proposal to reduce monitoring of landfills - Deferred
         
         

         Mr. Murphy presented a slide presentation regarding OUB. (See slides).

         Action Item: Comments regarding the preliminary assessment (PA) are needed from the RAB and community members by September 30, 2000.

         Mr. Oates added that the work done by the Navy to date has exceeded the established benchmarks. There is a much higher level of confidence this year as opposed to last year.

         Action Item: RAB members should provide Mr. Murphy with comments/input regarding land end use plans by the end of July 2000.

         Mr. Gates said he had attended the OUB project team meetings and noted that the geo-technical work was slower than anticipated. Mr. Gates asked if the goal of walking 900 transect miles could be accomplished this season. Mr. Murphy said the field team had only been working a couple weeks. The method utilized this field season is more rigorous. Unless production methods are improved, it is unlikely that the planned scope of work will be completed this field season. Ms. Carr added that additional investigation would occur next summer. Mr. Murphy agreed and said that even if the 900 transect miles were completed this field season, there would still be additional work for the 2001 field season and possibly beyond.

         Ms. Villa asked how the archeological sites were being handled? Mr. Murphy said that the ordnance investigation teams would be briefed in more detail in order to identify the area's past cultural uses. Archeological experts will be on island in the next few weeks to educate the ordnance investigation teams.

         Mr. Gates said that Laura Calugan was the community contact on the OUB project team, and asked if another member could be appointed since she is no longer on the RAB? Ms. Villa said she had been filling that role.

         Mr. Gates said TAC submitted over 100 comments to the team regarding this year's work. The two main concerns were minefield no further action (NFA) sites and archeological sensitivity. Mr. Gates suggested discussing the minefield issues further. Mr. Gates said he completely disagrees with the term "thorough understanding" as used in the newsletter.

         Mr. Martin said he was certain that the community did not want any unexploded ordnance (UXO) left on the island. Mr. Murphy said it would be dishonest to say at the end of the OUB process that all ordnance was removed. He said it would be an unrealistic objective regardless of how much money or resources is devoted to the problem. The OUB project team's goal is to cleanup ordnance contamination to an acceptable degree of certainty to allow reuse. Mr. Oates added that all ordnance found would be removed. There will always be a potential that items were not found during the investigation. There is a limitation on what can be done with today's technology.

      3. Update on Tribal Consultations Process for OUA
         
         

         Mr. Oates said he met with API/A in mid-May and discussed monitored natural attenuation in OUA. Mr. Oates said he felt API/A was satisfied that ADEC and EPA had worked very rigorously with the Navy to develop a plan that addresses these sites and their cleanup goals. Another meeting is not yet scheduled to address the remaining topics. API/A will contact Mr. Oates when they are ready to schedule additional discussions.

         Mr. Gates asked if the EPA had answered API/A's February questions? Mr. Oates said API/A had agreed to meet in person to address their concerns rather than send letters back and forth. The meeting regarding monitored natural attenuation was a result of that agreement.

         Mr. Murphy said the Navy and API/A have been working on an agreement to support API/A's participation as part of the OUB project team. All 12 tribes have given their written approval, and funding should be available soon. This would not constitute tribal consultation, but rather provide funding (about $56,000) to allow API/A to participate on the OUB project team.

      4. Proposal to reduce monitoring of landfills - Deferred
         
         

         Ms. Villa said she thought the TAPP Grant paperwork was complete. Mr. Murphy said he believed the contract had been awarded, but he would confirm that.

   6. Public Comments.

      Ms. Villa said she heard that Reeve would not be able to fly in after August 1, 2000 when instrumentation is removed from the airport. Mr. Gates said the FAA installed a new DMA system. There should not be any impact to Reeve or others. Mr. Martin said the airport manager told him that it would be illegal for Reeve to fly. Mr. Gates said there should be no effect. These concerns should be addressed through the Reuse Authority.

   7. Set Date and Tenative Topics for Next Meeting

      Mr. Gates requested a discussion about the recommendations given by EMCON and URS regarding the John Curtis spill.

      Further discussion on OUB no further action sites and general status update.

      Reductions to the landfill-monitoring requirement.

      Update on the petroleum sites.

      Mr. Oates would like to discuss the foaming of the three UST's found under Old Robert's Housing.

   8. Meeting Adjourned.

      The next meeting was scheduled for August 23, 2000 in Adak at 6:00pm (7:00 pm Anchorage). The meeting was adjourned at approximately 9:37 p.m.

   BACKGROUND INFORMATION | ENVIRONMENTAL SETTING | BASE REALIGNMENT AND CLOSURE | ENVIRONMENTAL RESTORATION | UNEXPLODED ORDNANCE ISSUES | CHEMICAL AND PETROLEUM CLEANUP | GLOSSARY OF TERMS | ADAK MAPS | INSTITUTIONAL CONTROLS | WEBSITE MAP | | WHAT'S NEW? | NEWSLETTERS & FACT SHEETS | TECHNICAL DOCUMENTS | RESTORATION ADVISORY BOARD MINUTES | WHERE TO GET MORE INFORMATION | INFORMATION REPOSITORY | LINKS OF INTEREST | HOME