Did the DoD force the US EPA to remove any reference to the radioactive contamination at George AFB?

Why did the US EPA, the agency charged with protecting the environment and public health, remove any reference to the radioactive contamination at George Air Force Base from its website?

George AFB’s southeast disposal areas (SEDA) radioactive disposal site is only ¼ mile upstream of the supply wells for George AFB, Adelanto, private homes, and ranches, posed a significant threat to the local water supply. The toxins seeping from this unlined and unpermitted radioactive waste site likely contributed to numerous health issues experienced by base personnel and the surrounding community. The impact on the local community was devastating, with some families losing as many as seven children due to repeated and prolonged exposure to various toxins. The effects of these exposures include congenital disabilities, miscarriages, stillbirths, infant mortalities, preterm births, low birth weights, and childhood cancers. This is because the developing fetus is particularly vulnerable during the first 12 weeks (first trimester) when all major organs and body systems are forming and can be harmed by exposure to toxic substances or radiation.

1991, the US EPA confirmed that George AFB’s soil and groundwater were contaminated with radioactive waste and posed a potential health risk to base personnel and the surrounding community.

Threats and Contaminants
Groundwater and soil are contaminated with heavy metals including lead, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and radioactive wastes. Potential health risks exist
through direct contact with or accidental ingestion of contaminated groundwater or soils.

• 1991-09-xx EPA – GAFB – National Priorities List Sites CA and HI (PDF – .104 MB)
• 1991-09-xx EPA – National Priorities List Sites California and Hawaii – Full report (PDF – 5.33 MB)

2024, US EPA’s George Air Force Base “Contaminant List” does NOT mention radioactive waste or isotopes.

https://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/SiteProfiles/index.cfm?fuseaction=second.contams&id=0902737

2024, California Water Board lists radioactive isotopes as a potential contaminant of concern as the soil, groundwater, and the base water supply may be contaminated.

POTENTIAL CONTAMINANTS OF CONCERN.

ASBESTOS CONTAINING MATERIALS (ACM), AVIATION, BENZENE, CHLORDANE, DIESEL, EXPLOSIVES (UXO, MEC), GASOLINE, HEATING OIL / FUEL OIL, MTBE / TBA / OTHER FUEL OXYGENATES, MUNITIONS DEBRIS (MD), NITRATE, OTHER INSECTICIDES / PESTICIDE / FUMIGANTS / HERBICIDES, OTHER PETROLEUM, OTHER SOLVENT OR NON-PETROLEUM HYDROCARBON, POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBS), POLYNUCLEAR AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS (PAHS), RADIOACTIVE ISOTOPES, TETRACHLOROETHYLENE (PCE), TOLUENE, TRICHLOROETHYLENE (TCE), VINYL CHLORIDE, WASTE OIL / MOTOR / HYDRAULIC / LUBRICATING, XYLENE

POTENTIAL MEDIA OF CONCERN

AQUIFER USED FOR DRINKING WATER SUPPLY, CONTAMINATED SURFACE / STRUCTURE, INDOOR AIR, SOIL, SOIL VAPOR

https://geotracker.waterboards.ca.gov/profile_report.asp?global_id=T10000001963

1971, George AFB was notified by HQ USAF that its radioactive waste burial sites were to be accounted for, fenced off, and marked.

Radioactive Waste Disposal (HQ USAF SCA 71-28)

1972, USAF Radioisotope Committee report “Burial of Radioactive Waste in the USAF“ 

George AFB was one of forty-six Air Force bases (page 4) and nine former ACE facilities (page 32) that notified HQ USAF that they had radioactive materials disposal/burial sites per HQ USAF SCA 71-28.

• • Separate letters pertaining to sensitive or classified information are being sent, as all material in this report is unclassified.
    Page 8, paragraph (g)
  • Burial of Radioactive Waste must be identified in the Base Master Plan, and the information must be provided to the USAF Radioisotope Committee AFLC (SGPR), Wright-Patterson AFB. Page 2, paragraph 3

USAF Radioisotope Committee, “Burial of Radioactive Waste in the USAF,” Wright-Patterson AFB, 15 March 1972.

1979, John Richard Sabol, J.D., P.E., conducted a radiological survey of the George AFB radioactive disposal site. He found 18 to 20 barrels of an unknown radioactive material in the Southeast Disposal Area (SEDA). The Air Force failed to disclose this to the Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) for its 1998 George AFB Public Health Assessment or make his reports available in the George AFB CERCLA Administrative Record. I have filed several FOIA requests and appeals to get these records released, but they have all been denied by the Air Force.

… Sometime in 1979, I did drilling work in a remote desert wash south of the large base bomb dump south of Air Base Road. Within the S.W. portion of Section 36 T6N, R5W, there was located a radioactive site clearly marked and fenced. Subsequent drilling with a 91/2 auger showed x- ray film, glass, wood, A-C gages and other material stored in 55 gal drums. We also found a large area where hydrocarbons cleared from the bottom of bulk storage tanks had been buried. Because of the remoteness of this site and the fact that hazardous wastes had been disposed of over the years, it is possible that other hazardous material placed there escaped our preliminary investigations. …

Dr. John R. Sabol Letter # 1 – 28 June 1996 – PDF
Dr. Sabol’s curriculum vitae (CV) – PDF

1983, George AFB Master Plan Southeast Disposal Site (SEDA) Radioactive Disposal Site

GAFB Master Plan Radioactive Disposal Site (PDF 2.8 MB)

The George AFB Southeast Disposal Area’s unlined and unpermitted radioactive disposal site is approximately 1/4 of a mile upstream of the old supply wells for George AFB, Adelanto, the Victor Valley Country Club, and current supply wells for private homes and ranches. The Air Force owned and operated the George AFB and Adelanto supply wells.

The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) built the Victorville Federal Correctional Complex on the property containing George AFB’s radioactive disposal site.

• 10/5/1994 AF transfer letter of Parcel K to BOP

Early Generation Nuclear Weapons at George AFB

In 1963, George AFB was one of 35 bases that had Fighter Interceptor Squadrons with air-to-air nuclear weapons for stopping enemy bomber attacks. Because the early generation nuclear weapons (non-sealed pit) required regular onsite maintenance, a considerable amount of radioactive contamination/waste was generated during the polonium-beryllium (Po-Be) initiators’ replacement. Additionally, the Air Force has not acknowledged or released any radiological surveys or remediation of the nuclear weapons maintenance and storage facilities at George AFB (building 753 and the Missile Compound).

Paper No 20 Nuclear Armament and Manned Interceptors, 1951-1963 Partial Release.pdf

George AFB’s Atmospheric Nuclear Weapons Testing Decontamination Centers for aircraft, crews, and equipment

Approximately 100 aircraft from George AFB participated in the open-air atomic test at the Nevada Test Site (NTS). Once they returned to George AFB, they were decontaminated at the HOT Wash Rack. These radioactive decontamination and decommissioning (D&D) centers generate an enormous amount of highly radioactive material (RAM), including decommissioned clothing, equipment, aircraft, radiologically contaminated soil, and water. There is NO record of an assessment or the cleanup of the contamination at the site in the Air Force AFCEC CERCLA Administrative Record for George AFB.

 

SHOTS ANNIE TO RAY – 17 MARCH – II APRIL 1953 (DNA 6017F)

Project 6.11

… Approximately 10 seconds after the shot, dive brakes were retracted, normal fighter formation was resumed, and the aircraft proceeded directly to George AFB, California, for decontamination and debriefing (33-34; 70). … Page 136 & 137

https://www.dtra.mil/Portals/125/Documents/NTPR/newDocs/ANTHReport/1953_DNA_6017F.pdf

Operation UPSHOT-KNOTHOLE – March-June 1953 (AD A951616)

Shot 2

… At approximately H / 15 sec normal fighter formation was resumed and all aircraft proceeded directly to George AFB for decontamination, interrogation, and removal of temperature tapes and VHF crystals. Landing time was H / 00:50. … – Page 14

Shot 9

… At approximately H / 15 sec normal fighter formation was resumed and all aircraft proceeded directly to George AFB for decontamination, interrogation, and removal of temperature tapes and VHF crystals. Landing time was H / 00:50. … – Page 15

https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/tr/pdf/ADA951616.pdf

SHOTS ENCORE TO CLIMAX – 4 JUNE 1953 (1953_DNA_6018F)

Project 6.8

Fifteen seconds after the shot, normal fighter formation was resumed, and all aircraft returned directly to George AFB for decontamination and debriefing (3; 45; 51; 104). Page 60

Project 6.11

They then flew back to George AFB for decontamination (104). Page 61

https://www.dtra.mil/Portals/61/Documents/NTPR/2-Hist_Rpt_Atm/1953_DNA_6018F.pdf

Shots BOLTZMANN TO WILSON – 28 MAY – 18 JUNE 1957 – 8 MAY (DNA-6008F)

Project 53.9, … Upon completion of the run, they returned to base for decontamination procedures (5; 24).” – Pages 105 and 106
http://www.dtra.mil/Portals/61/Documents/NTPR/2-Hist_Rpt_Atm/1957-DNA-6008F.pdf

Nevada Proving Grounds, March-June 1953, Project 6.11. Indoctrination Of Tactical Air Command Air Crews In The Delivery And Effects Of Atomic Weapons

… were retracted, normal fighter formation was resumed, and all aircraft proceeded directly to George AFB for decontamination, interrogation, and …
www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a951616.pdf – 268k – 1953-12-01

Shots DIABLO to FRANKLIN PRIME – 15 July – 30 August 1957 (DNA-6006F)

Pro,ject 53.9
… Upon completion of the run, the aircraft returned to George AFB for decontamination (1; 3). Page 37 & 74

www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a118683.pdf – 1090k – 1981-09-29

The Air Force routinely withheld information from Federal, State, and Local regulators, contractors, and the public.

“All activities supporting the nuclear defense program are highly classified to protect national security. Since this included weapons maintenance waste materials during the period involved, information on the amounts and locations of this waste was not found in the historical records searches originally performed as a basis for cleanup. The recent availability of the documents from the Cold War era has led to the discovery of locations where low-level radioactive waste from weapons maintenance activities may have been buried in the [Weapons Storage Areas] WSAs.
Page 1, column 2
Buried Radioactive Weapons Maintenance Waste – Air Force Real Property Agency (AFRPA) – 8 May 2003

Did the DoD force other federal to suppress information about the nature and extent of the contamination at its bases?

McClellan Air Force Base, CA

Norton Air Force Base, CA

The US EPA has scrubbed any record of radioactive waste being at Norton AFB from its website.

Site Description
The 2,003.acre Norton Air Force Base site began operations in 1942 and has served as a major overhaul center for jet engines and the general repair of aircraft. The site formerly had the responsibility of providing maintenance and logistics for liquid.fuel intercontinental ballistic missiles. Past hazardous waste management practices may have contributed to existing
contamination problems throughout the base. The practices include burial of drums and other unspecified materials; disposal of waste oils, solvents, and paint residues into landfills, unlined pits, ponds, and drying beds; storage in leaking underground tanks; and spills of gas, oils, solvents, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and acids. There are more than 20 areas of contamination on the base including two landfills, six discharge areas, four chemical pits, a fire training area, a fuel spill area, a PCB spill area, a chemical spill area, two waste storage areas, an underground storage tank area, and a low-level radioactive waste burial site. Well water is used by approximately 11,000 people who live or work on the base.
page 133

Full report – 1991 US EPA – National Priorities List Sites California and Hawaii – Full report (PDF – 5.33 MB)

The new US EPA Contaminant List for Norton AFB fails to list any radioactive material
https://cumulis.epa.gov/supercpad/SiteProfiles/index.cfm?fuseaction=second.contams&id=090

Seneca Army Depot, NY

At Army’s Request, EPA Deletes Website Reference to Request for PFAS Tests of Creeks in Former Seneca Army Depot
Peter Mantius – 07/10/ 2024
https://waterfrontonline.blog/2024/07/10/at-armys-request-epa-deletes-website-reference-to-request-for-pfas-tests-of-creeks-in-former-seneca-army-depot/

Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, NC

Camp Lejeune Report Author Says Redactions Compromise the Science, Sen. Burr Calls for IG Investigation
By Dana Liebelson – 03/08/2012
“Today, accusations were released from the author of the report on the Camp Lejeune water contamination, detailing how the scientific integrity of the report was compromised by redactions requested by the Navy/Marine Corps and granted by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). ..”
https://pogoblog.typepad.com/pogo/2012/03/camp-lejeune-report-author-says-redactions-compromise-the-science-sen-burr-calls-for-ig-investigation.html

The Air Force withheld information from the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs.

1992, the Senate investigated radiological contamination in the United States.

During this Senate investigation, the Air Force failed to disclose that George Air Force, CA, had a “HOT” wash rack where aircraft were decontaminated.

During this investigation, the Air Force failed to disclose that Norton AFB, CA, had a “HOT” wash rack where aircraft were decontaminated.

Question 6: …
How do you account for the fact that EPA determined, from a review of Air Force documentation, that washdown activities did take place at  Norton, and yet you neglect to even mention Norton in your written or oral testimony?…   Page 354
The full document Radiological contamination in the United States
Hearing before the Committee on Governmental Affairs
United States Senate, One Hundred Second Congress, second session
April 9, 1992

Air Force Says Supreme Court Gave It Right to Poison Drinking Water
By Edith Olmsted – 08/12/2024
https://newrepublic.com/post/184799/air-force-supreme-court-chevron-arizona-water

US air force avoids PFAS water cleanup, citing supreme court’s Chevron ruling
EPA says Tucson’s drinking water is contaminated but air force claims agency lacks authority to order cleanup
By Tom Perkins – 08/12/2024
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/aug/12/air-force-epa-water-pfas-tucson