News of the Arroyo


Title:

Senator Dianne Feinstein Urges Department of Defense to Clean Up Perchlorate Contamination

Subtitle:

Date:

2003-03-18

Summary:

March 18, 2003 -- Senator Feinstein has urged the Department of Defense to clean up perchlorate contamination from DoD facilities at a hearing of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction.

Author:

Senator Dianne Feinstein

Publication:

Office of Senator Feinstein

Content:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, March 18, 2003
Contact: Howard Gantman or Scott Gerber 202/224-9629
http://feinstein.senate.gov/
Senator Dianne Feinstein Urges Department of Defense
to Clean Up Perchlorate Contamination

Washington, DC – At a hearing of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) today urged the Department of Defense to clean up perchlorate contamination from the Department’s facilities, or those of its contractors. Senator Feinstein is ranking member of the Military Construction Subcommittee.
Widely used during the Cold War, perchlorate is a primary ingredient in rocket fuel. According to a recent report by the California Department of Health Services, perchlorate has been detected in 292 groundwater wells operated by 80 different agencies throughout California. The following is the prepared text of her statement:
“I want to turn to the problem of perchlorate, a primary ingredient in many rocket propellants, munitions and explosives. Perchlorate has contaminated drinking water supplies in 22 states including California, Colorado, Massachusetts and Maryland. Perchlorate can impair thyroid functioning, and may affect the physical and mental development of children.
The situation is particularly serious in California, where state health officials have detected the presence of perchlorate in 292 groundwater wells operated by 80 different water agencies. The problem is most severe in Southern California, where 267 of the contaminated wells are located. All of us in the Senate should be aware of the problem of perchlorate contamination of the nation’s drinking water.
I first expressed my concern for this problem in November of last year with letters to Secretary Rumsfeld and Administrator Whitman. On December 19, 2002, I held a meeting with local, state, federal water officials, regulators and military and other stakeholders in Southern California
In December I received a letter from the Secretary of the Army, in response to my letter to Secretary Rumsfeld. This letter did not answer my request that the Department help remedy the problem, rather it focused on one particular site of perchlorate contamination and denied the Department’s responsibility for the contamination at this site.
I sent another letter to Administrator Whitman on January 7, 2003 and I met with Administrator Nastri of the Ninth District of EPA on January 28, 2003. To date, I have not received a response to this second letter
To the best of our knowledge, nearly all perchlorate has been produced by the Department of Defense and its contractors and in the country’s space program. This means that the Defense Department is directly or indirectly responsible for most of the perchlorate contamination. Unless the federal government takes positive action, we will be sticking many small communities with a huge problem that they did not create. This is not acceptable.
I want to emphasize that perchlorate is a serious problem across the country, not just in California. For example, in Texas, a Congressionally-mandated study is under way to assess perchlorate contamination in the Bosque and Leon River watersheds from the Naval Weapons Industrial Reserve Plant in McGregor. Nine western Texas counties where the Department has tested rockets have recently found perchlorate contamination in their groundwater.
I urge the Defense Department to take action to clean up perchlorate in Texas, California, and other states. We need to see action taken now and not several years down the road.”

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