THE SENATE	S.C.R. NO.	103
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021		S.D. 1
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE CONCURRENT

RESOLUTION

 

 

URGING THE UNITED STATES MILITARY TO CLEAN UP MUNITIONS AND EXPLOSIVES OF CONCERN IN HAWAII UNDER THE MILITARY MUNITIONS RESPONSE PROGRAM.

 

 

     WHEREAS, certain areas of the Hawaiian Islands were used for military training exercises that resulted in large quantities of munitions and explosives being deposited in the ground; and

 

     WHEREAS, Congress established the Military Munitions Response Program in 2001 under the Defense Environmental Restoration Program to address munitions-related concerns, including explosive safety, environmental and health hazards from releases of unexploded ordnance, discarded military munitions, and munitions found at locations other than operational ranges on active bases, Base Realignment and Closure installations, and Formerly Used Defense Sites properties; and

 

     WHEREAS, the Military Munitions Response Program provides a focused program to address the challenges presented at sites called munitions response sites; and

 

     WHEREAS, munitions responses are response actions, including investigation, removal actions, and remedial actions, that address safety, human health, or environmental risks presented by munitions and explosives of concern; and

 

     WHEREAS, munitions and explosives of concern are specific categories of military munitions that may pose unique explosives safety risks, such as:

 

     (1)  Unexploded ordnance, as defined in 10 U.S.C. 101(e)(5);

 

     (2)  Discarded military munitions, as defined in 10 U.S.C. 2710(e)(2); or

 

     (3)  Munitions constituents, such as TNT and cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine (RDX), as defined in 10 U.S.C. 2710(e)(3), present in high enough concentrations to pose an explosive hazard; and

 

     WHEREAS, wherever possible, the remedial action for subsurface munitions and explosives of concern should be to restore the land; and

 

     WHEREAS, this process involves identifying munitions and explosives of concern and detonating them in a controlled manner; and

 

     WHEREAS, land use controls, such as fencing to restrict access to land, rather than restoration of the land, should only be used when remedial action is not technically possible; and

 

     WHEREAS, Bellows Air Force Base sits largely on ceded lands along the shoreline in the middle of Waimanalo; and

 

     WHEREAS, part of Bellows Air Force Base was previously used as an urban warfare training facility and is contaminated and unsuitable for use if the land is returned to the State; and

 

     WHEREAS, land use controls, such as fencing off the area, instead of restoration were selected as the treatment plan for the Bellows Air Force Base site; and

 

     WHEREAS, it is best for land formerly used for military training purposes, including Bellows Air Force Base, to be restored rather than merely fenced off, which deprives residents of surrounding communities of the ability to enjoy and make productive use of the land; now, therefore,

 

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2021, the House of Representatives concurring, that the United States military is urged to clean up munitions and explosives of concern in Hawaii under the Military Munitions Response Program; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that, wherever possible throughout Hawaii, the remedial action for subsurface munitions and explosives of concern should be to restore the land, instead of simply restricting access to the land; and

 

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Concurrent Resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States, United States Secretary of Defense, Commander of the United States Indo-Pacific Command, members of Hawaii's Congressional delegation, and Governor.

Report Title: 

Military Munitions Response Program