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Air Force moving forward with clean up at Tyndall

  • Published
  • Air Education and Training Command Public Affairs
RANDOLPH AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  Air Force officials announced plans to continue with environmental cleanup efforts in place at Tyndall AFB.

Terry Yonkers, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Installations, Environment and Logistics, directed the work move forward expeditiously within the framework established by the Defense Environment Restoration Program because, "we take our responsibility for the stewardship of environmental protection on our installations seriously."

Tyndall AFB has had a robust environmental clean-up program that through research and analysis has allowed the Air Force to clean contaminated sites for the protection of the community and restore the land for Tyndall's use. Sites range from old landfills, underground tanks, aircraft crash sites, to old chemical storage areas.

"We know that we have an incredibly important national resource at Tyndall," Mr. Yonkers said. "It's important we care for the environment in and around our installations, even improving it where we can. Cleaning and maintain our bases is a top Air Force priority."

To date, an estimated $42.7 million has been spent to cleanup Tyndall AFBs contaminated sites. The Air Force has identified 80 sites that are in various stages of investigation and remediation. Of these sites, 25 have completed investigation and cleanup and received "No Further Action" determination from the Environmental Protection Agency and/or the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

"The Air Force is proceeding with the cleanup to meet our environmental and public health responsibilities," Mr. Yonkers said. "The Air Force has an obligation to remove the known contamination which may present an unacceptable risk to human health and the environment."

Tyndall AFB is on an aggressive schedule to have remedies in place at 30 sites by 2014, meeting the Department of Defense Installation Restoration Program cleanup goal. For the 11 Military Munitions Response Program sites, Tyndall AFB is developing a plan to expedite and cleanup well ahead of DoD's proposed goal for having remedies-in-place by 2020. Once all cleanup actions are in place, environmental monitoring and land use restrictions where contamination could not be entirely removed will continue to ensure long-lasting protection. The Air Force intends to use performance-based contracting mechanisms to take advantage of economies of scale to reduce costs, limit the need for long-term monitoring and leverage the expertise of contractors to make the best recommendations for closing these sites as quickly as possible.

"It's a team effort, from senior leadership to our lowest ranking airman; everyone takes their responsibilities for environmental compliance seriously," Mr. Yonkers said. "Controlling and preventing air, land and water pollution directly impacts everyone's quality of life."

Cleanup of the Tyndall AFB Elementary School is an example of teamwork involved in protecting human health and the environment.

The school was constructed in 1953 on a portion of one of the World War II gunnery ranges. When lead shot contamination was identified, the Air Force quickly removed the contaminated soil in the schoolyard and replaced it within four months of identifying the risk. Tyndall officials are working closely with involved agencies and environmental organizations to finish the investigation and cleanup of this site.

Testing and training ranges at Tyndall AFB is an integral part of the base's roll as the Air Force's premier training center. In addition to its primary mission of training personnel to fly and maintain aircraft, Tyndall hosts activities such as pre-deployment and small arms qualification training for Airmen slated for deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan.

As part of range sustainment initiatives, like periodic unexploded ordnance removal, the Air Force initiated an Operational Range Assessment Program in 2007 to proactively search for migration of contamination off active ranges. To date, the Air Force has completed evaluations at approximately 120 ranges and range complexes and has not found any contamination migrating off range. The evaluation of Tyndall's ranges is scheduled to take place in September 2010.

In addition to the Air Force commitment to cleanup Tyndall AFB, Air Force officials have conducted a range of community involvement activities to solicit community input and to ensure the public remains informed about site activities throughout the site cleanup process. Outreach activities have included public notices and information meetings on cleanup progress and other activities.

The Air Force has will continue to keep appropriate federal, state and local officials apprised of the work as it progresses. Additionally, Air Force officials plan to provide regular updates on the status of the various projects to the public through the media and other public venues.

The Air Force is fully committed to the protection of human health and the environment, and to full compliance with applicable laws, at all of its facilities, for all programs, including cleanup.