The meeting was held at the Adak City Hall, Adak Island, AK, with telephone tie-in with the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation Offices in Anchorage, AK. The following were in attendance:

1. Welcome and Opening Remarks:

Cathy Villa called the meeting to order at 7 P.M. (Anchorage Time). A quorum was present. The agenda was approved with the exception of the Institutional Control Management Plan update, Ms. Kelly was unavailable due to the meeting date change. The meeting minutes from the March 13, 2002, RAB were approved as written.

2. Future RAB Meeting Locations:

Cathy Villa proposed making Adak the sole venue for future RAB meetings. When the Adak RAB began, there wasn't a city at the time. Ms. Villa suggested that the time was right to move the meeting locations to Adak. The RAB members voted 7-0 in favor of the proposal. Mark Murphy stated that the Navy would continue to provide phone lines for interested stakeholders in Anchorage to participate, however, there would not be a special effort made to provide a meeting location in Anchorage. There is a possibility that the ADEC offices may continue to be used if the remedial project manager is available.

3. RAB Co-Chair:

   Cathy Villa proposed that the RAB co-chair reside on Adak since that would be the meeting venue. She stated that the community would be able to follow the cleanup process more closely. Cynthia Galaktianoff was voted the new community co-chair by a vote of 7-0. Mark Murphy thanked Ms. Villa for her commitment to the RAB and noted that replacing her is a difficult task. Mr. Murphy offered the Navy's assistance to Ms. Galaktianoff for any preparation work she may require and to assist with the transition of co-chairs. He thanked her for her interest and her dedication as a RAB member to date. Cathy Villa suggested reviewing the RAB by-laws and updating them if necessary.

4. Monitored Natural Attenuation Presentation:

   Said Seddiki, Remedial Project Manager for long-term monitoring on Adak, presented an overview of the ongoing monitored natural attenuation.   Mr. Seddiki stated that natural attenuation has the ability to break down chemicals without human involvement. The destruction of chemicals, such as gasoline, includes the use of microbial activities that essentially feed off of the contaminant as a food source. He said there are other ways besides biological activity that can break down the chemicals. Another way is that the chemicals can bind to the soil which keeps them from becoming mobile and migrating further into the environment. Other ways are evaporation of the chemical, which changes it from a liquid to a gas where it often is broken down by photolysis (sunlight).

   Mr. Seddiki noted that at Adak, the chemicals, primarily fuel constituents, are dissolved in the groundwater. He said the dissolved petroleum is eaten by the bugs in the groundwater and destroys them into more harmless chemicals. He said the Navy is monitoring the progress of the natural attenuation by evaluating the conditions more favorable to microbial activities. In essence, they are collecting data to evaluate the long-term effectiveness of natural attenuation parameters as well as the chemical data to ensure there is stability in the groundwater plume. He said the Navy is evaluating those conditions at the following sites:

   • Amulet Housing, Well AMW 706 area
   • Amulet Housing, Well AMW 709 area
   • Antenna Field (UST's ANT-1, ANT-2 ANT-3)
   • Former Power Plant Building (T-1451)
   • Housing Area (Arctic Acres)
   • ROICC Contractor's Area (UST ROICC-8)
   • Runway 5-23 Avgas Valve Pit
   • SWMU 14-Old Pesticide Storage and Disposal Area
   • SWMU 15- Future Jobs/DRMO
   • SWMU 60- Tank Farm A
   • SWMU 61, Tank Farm B

   The Navy has been collecting data for two years at most of the sites. The record of decision (ROD) stated that the data will be evaluated for five years to ensure the remedy is effective. He said if the natural attenuation processes cannot meet the 75-year cleanup requirement in the record of decision, the Navy will evaluate enhancements. He said right now the Navy is looking for evidence that there is declining petroleum concentrations or that there is stability in the groundwater petroleum plume. As an example, Mr Seddiki showed a number of slides regarding the ROICC 08-202 location which depicted a graph showing that benzene at that site is being sufficiently consumed by microbes. He mentioned that so far, all the wells at the ROICC area exhibited analytical results that are all either below the OU A ROD cleanup criteria.

   He said that in order to ensure the anticipated performance objective of the remedy, the Navy is taking a closer look at the characteristics of the different sites. The intent is to determine the effectiveness of the natural attenuation over time. He said that in order to do this, the Navy may be adding additional monitoring wells this year. The US Geological Survey is also evaluating the data and they are making suggestions on where to place additional wells at some of the sites. This effort should produce additional data needed to ensure monitored natural attenuation is working on Adak.

   Mike Mitchell asked how the Navy can be sure that MNA is working if data is showing a "flat line" or "stable trend"? Mr. Seddiki responded that a stable trend is a good sign that the microbes are destroying the contaminants. He said that the various parameters, the MNA parameters combined with the chemical parameters will show whether or not the remedy is working properly.

   Dr. Scrudado asked how Navy was determining if the biological process was working on MNA verses other processes? Mr Seddiki said that the Navy will be collecting additional data this summer to answer that question. Right now, there is insufficient data to make a trend analysis, and the additional information will be useful over time. He said the Navy has requested the US Geological Survey to assist with the interpretation of the data, as well as providing recommendations for additional well locations.

   Elim Yoon offered that additional contaminants are being tested and there will be a complete list of sampling parameters included in the work plan which is due out mid summer.

5. Marine Monitoring Results:

   Mark Murphy handed out a report regarding the Marine tissue monitoring. He said he would update the RAB later regarding Jim Estes' and US Geological Survey's monitoring efforts.

6. TAPP Grant Renewal:

   The RAB community members held a discussion regarding their interest in obtaining a technical advisor in fiscal year 2003. There was a decision by the community members to not renew the TAPP grant. The rationale was that there appeared to be sufficient oversight provided by EPA, ADEC, and USGS. Cathy Villa thanked Dr. Scrudato for his efforts to date.

7. Planned Field Work on Adak, 2002 Field Season:

   Mark Murphy provided a brief summary of the work planned by the Navy for the 2002 field season. He explained that the schedule may change if there were unforeseen conditions that may arise in the future.

   UXO Investigation and Remediation: Mark Murphy stated that the Navy plans to complete the remedial actions at the OU B-1 sites as the highest priority for the 2002 field season. Finger Bay 03, Combat Range 03, and Blind Cove 01 sites remain to be completed in Parcel 1A, which is the first parcel of real estate planned to be transferred to The Aleut Corporation (TAC) under the Land Transfer Agreement. After these sites are completed, the contractor will begin work on the Mount Moffet sites in Parcel 1B, which is also planned to be transferred to TAC in the future. EFA NW also plans to complete Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study (RI/FS) work in Operable Unit B-2 (generally in the Parcel 4 area). The UXO field work will begin in late May and will end no later than the end of October, depending on the extent of work required. The general approach will be the same as for the past few field seasons on Adak. Foster Wheeler Environmental Corp is the prime contractor for this year's field work. At its peak, the Adak UXO field crew for 2002 will be approximately 40 people.

   Cabin Demolition: Demolition of approximately 52 cabins is planned to occur during the 2002 field season. These structures are located in various areas throughout the northern portion of the island. All demolition debris from the structures is to be disposed of in Robert's Landfill in a cell specifically designated for inert demolition debris. The work is scheduled to begin in June and will be finished by September. A total of approximately 20 personnel are expected to be on island to support this work, which is being done by Bristol Environmental.

   Lead-Based Paint Abatement: Based on the results of the recently completed Lead Based Paint (LBP) Survey and Risk Assessment (April 2002), the Navy has chosen abatement as a permanent solution to LBP-associated hazards. The LPB will be removed from or painted over on door jambs and trim in selected Kuluk Bay houses. The applicable requirements for this work are outlined in Title X, Section 1013 (also known as HUD guidelines) and 24 CFR 35, Subpart A, B,C, and R; 40 CFR 745; and the Lead Based Paint Guidelines for Disposal of Department of Defense Residential Real Property. The Navy is currently in the process of selecting a contractor to perform the work, which is expected this fall.

   Petroleum Projects Focused Feasibility Studies (FFS): The focused feasibility studies are underway are underway for the 14 free product recovery sites which have met their recovery endpoints. The remedial action objectives for these sites are the same as expressed in the Operable Unit A Record of Decision (dated 9/99). A draft version of the FFS's for these sites is expected to be released at the end of summer 2002.

   Pipeline Removal: The Navy plans to gather additional information this field season to close approximately 36,800 linear feet of abandoned petroleum pipeline (diesel, gasoline, Avgas). More detailed information concerning the condition and location of the pipeline, and the process to be used for performing the cleaning, is required before the job can be performed properly. Once the necessary information has been obtained, a plan for closure of the pipelines will be prepared so that the closure can be completed in the 2003 field season.

   Free Product Recovery: Free product recovery efforts will continue this field season. Free product recovery endpoints have been reached at the Tanker Shed. Completion of post recovery monitoring at SWMU 62 is anticipated this field season. Petroleum product recovery efforts at other sites will begin in May and are planned to continue until November.

   Power Plant Interim Remedial Action: Interim remedial actions to re-contour surface water drainage around the power plant site are planned for this field season. A technical memorandum describing the interim remedial actions was submitted to ADEC in early May 2002. The remedial action will be performed by Bristol Environmental. The work will be scheduled within the June to September time frame, and is expected to take about 4 weeks to complete.

   Transit Bridge Seep: This field season, the Navy will continue to address the petroleum sheens at the Transit Road Bridge. Bristol Environmental will conduct the work, which is expected to take about 2 weeks. Picture 1, Picture 2

   Monitoring: Groundwater monitoring efforts for petroleum and CERCLA sites, as well as landfills, will be conducted by Integrated Concept Research Corporation (ICRC) during the 2002 field season. The field effort for this year's monitoring will begin in September. A report on last year's monitoring efforts is expected to be submitted to regulatory agencies this spring.

   Biological monitoring will again be performed by the Biological Research Division of USGS (Jim Estes). Fish and shellfish will be sampled from Sweeper Cove and Kuluk Bay.

8. Next Meeting Date:

   The next Adak RAB meeting is scheduled September 18, 2002.

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