Navy Creating Observe-Up Water Monitoring Plan After Pink Hill Incident

The Navy is working with the state Division of Well being and the Environmental Safety Company to develop an Prolonged Consuming Water Monitoring Plan, the Navy introduced in a information launch Wednesday.

The creation of the plan comes after the Navy gathered a workforce of “consuming water specialists ” two weeks in the past to research the origin of low-level detections of whole petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH ) within the Joint Base-Pearl Harbor Hickam water system, following an inflow of faucet water and air high quality complaints from residents. The Navy additionally mentioned it might prolong operations of the Pink Hill Medical Clinic, which have been scheduled to finish March 24, in response to the complaints.

The Navy activated a “Swarm Group “—composed of members of a number of Navy Instructions, DOH, the EPA and extra—to “reinforce the Navy’s dedication ” to discovering the reason for the TPH detections, create plans to handle the detections and develop a “follow-on, voluntary consuming water monitoring plan.” This Prolonged Consuming Water Monitoring Plan will probably be knowledgeable by suggestions from the Navy’s earlier two-year Lengthy-Time period Monitoring plan, which ends in late March.

“We hear and perceive the neighborhood’s considerations, and I would like the neighborhood to know that the Navy will voluntarily proceed to watch the consuming water system after the LTM program ends subsequent month, ” Rear Adm. Steve Barnett, commander of Navy Area Hawaii, mentioned within the information launch. “The well being of our army members, households and neighbors served by the JBPHH consuming water system is paramount and we’re doing this to proceed to go above and past to make sure their security and well-being.”

The Navy mentioned it, together with DOH, will acquire extra water samples from properties and the Waiawa shaft this week.

Based on the information launch, water within the Navy’s water system “continues to fulfill federal and state protected water consuming requirements, ” because it has all through the Navy’s two-year Lengthy-Time period Monitoring plan. The Navy has accomplished virtually 8, 100 water high quality assessments since March 2022.

The Navy additionally assembled a workforce of medical specialists from the Protection Well being Company, the Navy and Marine Corps Power Well being Safety Command and DOH in response to the inflow of medical complaints reported amongst neighborhood members. Navy Medication representatives are “intently monitoring ongoing reported medical signs, ” the discharge mentioned. These with well being considerations are inspired to contact their major care supplier.

Residents can name the JBPHH Emergency Operations Heart at 808-449-1979 to schedule a water high quality check.

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