Report finds CE on track with environmental cleanup goals

Published Sept. 15, 2010
By Albert Aguilar
72nd Air Base Wing Civil Engineer Directorate

TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- A team of Air Force and consulting scientists reviewing the environmental cleanup program at Tinker AFB has found that base officials managing environmental cleanup are exceeding key milestones.

The accelerated progress made at Tinker means base environmental officials have already complied with the Air Force's goal to 'remedy-in-place' by 2012 at all sites and are moving towards finalizing cleanup efforts.

The expert review was part of a program sponsored by the Air Force Center for Engineering and the Environment to assist bases by providing an intensive evaluation of cleanup efforts to ensure they are protective, efficient, timely, and that decision-makers are informed. The Tinker Environmental Restoration Program Optimization review included input from Tinker officials, and will result in accelerated closure of sites that are poised to enter the final stages of environmental cleanup.

The restoration program team of engineers, scientists, regulatory specialists and water experts tour base sites where contamination is being addressed, study reports, and perform new analysis of information. In addition, they collaborate with base officials in discussing the recommendations with regulators and can also get out in the field to measure results upon request.

The team recognized the aggressive cleanup actions already taken at Tinker which are well ahead of the Air Force's goal for remedy-in-place by 2012. They also recognized "best practices" occurring at Tinker and provided important recommendations for improving the restoration program. For example, although Tinker's environmental well sampling program is considered excellent, the team did suggest additional benefits could be attained by further reducing sampling from some wells that track the movement of contaminants underground and to stop sampling for others that no longer warrant careful tracking.

The team evaluating Tinker AFB also recommended considering alternative cleanup methods for two sites and to revise cleanup plans filed with the state and federal regulators at two others. At three other sites, the team urged the base to consider halting cleanup efforts and allow natural chemical breakdown processes to achieve goals.

The base's approach to cleaning up areas contaminated with solvents has been very effective to date according to the team's advisers who urged the base to continue to develop the program with an eye towards final closure with regulatory approval. After more information is collected, the development of long-term monitoring plans to ensure the sites meet compliance goals set by State of Oklahoma regulators will be possible, the advisers said.

According to the base, one of the most valuable contributions of the evaluation team was providing guidance for the new 'conceptual site model' template, which depicts the types of soil and the movement of underground water and pollutants, and allows for site-specific models to be integrated with the existing base wide conceptual framework. CSMs can be critical decision-aids as cleanup efforts move ahead, according to the ERP-O team, noting that Base environmental staff has an excellent institutional understanding of groundwater systems underlying Tinker AFB.

Tinker officials are successfully working with cleanup contractors and both state and federal regulators and possess sophisticated knowledge of the base's geology and the performance of its cleanup systems, the team found. As their work approaches finalization and more data is collected, the Tinker environmental team can now begin planning for the future by preparing exit strategies, which are plans to closeout cleanup efforts. The process is challenging because of the need to meet both state and federal standards.

"The ERP-O team noted that Tinker's restoration personnel have incorporated ERP-O objectives in their day-to-day operations and already met the ERP-O goals of improving performance, management, and engaging regulators to achieve program goals," said James Benson, AFCEE restoration program management office representative. "AFCEE is available to provide support to the base in addressing any remaining issues with the relevant authorities."

The team recommended that planning now for closeout is warranted, given the progress made at Tinker. This year, the team plans to visit bases in Alaska, Washington, Florida and many other areas, including some overseas locations.

The team led to the closure of 45 specific polluted sites at Air Force bases in the last two years, and have sped up the pace of closures by a minimum of five years across the board, according to Air Force cleanup experts. The reviews promote cost-effective cleanups with an emphasis on effectiveness. This ensures cleanups are protective and promote a range of other health, community, administrative, and pollution-reduction benefits.

For more information on ERP-O programs, see the program description on the AFCEE web site: http://www.afcee.af.mil/resources/restoration/erp-o/index.asp

Editor's note: James Benson, AFCEE/PMO and Mark Rodriguez AFCEE/TDV also contributed to this article.