Installation Restoration
The Defense Environmental Restoration Program (DERP), established
in 1984, is the comprehensive Department of Defense (DoD) program to identify
and remediate past hazardous waste or contaminated sites at its installations
and formerly occupied properties. The Installation Restoration Program (IRP) is
the major element of the DERP and is the program through which DoD
installations meet the requirements of these laws:
- 1976 - Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)
- 1980--Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and
Liability Act (CERCLA),
- 1984 - Federal
Hazardous and Solid Waste Amendments (HSWA) to RCRA
- 1986--Superfund
Reauthorization and Compensation Act (SARA)
- 1987--Executive
Order 12580
The IRP is funded by a special appropriation called the Defense
Environmental Restoration Account (DERA). The IRP differs from the other
environmental compliance programs in that it focuses on past operations,
generally prior to 1980.
DPW-ENRD manages Fort Rucker's IRP. Fort Rucker partners on its IRP issues
regularly with the Corps of Engineers, investigative and remediation
contractors, the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM), and the
EPA. An Installation Action Plan (IAP) is reviewed and updated annually to
reflect the site and issues which require attention. Fort Rucker's
Restoration/Clean-Up Program operates in accordance with an ADEM issued RCRA
Hazardous Waste Corrective Action Permit. Fort Rucker currently has 12
sites that are undergoing investigation, remediation or long-term monitoring.
Under the RCRA regulations, all investigative, assessment, and
cleanup activities consist of these basic steps:
- RCRA Facility
Assessment (RFA). This is the initial screening phase in which site visits,
historical data searches about land use or past site activities, and often
on-site sample collection takes place to determine potential problems.
- RCRA Facility
Investigation/Corrective Measures Study (RFI/CMS). The RFI is a detailed
study that includes soil and water sampling to determine the extent of
contamination. It also includes a health assessment which seeks to
estimate risks to human health and the environment as a result of the
contamination. The purpose of the CMS is to identify alternatives for
remediation or cleanup of the site. After a public comment period, the
proposed plan is recorded in a document called a Statement of Basis.
- Corrective
Measures Implementation (CMI) and Interim Measures (IM). The CMI is the
final remedy taken to eliminate the environmental contamination such as
removing waste or contaminants from a site or treating waste or
contaminants on-site. The IM may be required or undertaken over the short
term to address the contamination before the complex, full-fledged CMI begins.
If investigation shows that significant contamination is present,
a site may be placed on the National Priorities List (NPL). This is a docket in
which both private and federal sites are prioritized for cleanup funding based
on a release or the potential for release of contaminants. No Fort Rucker sites
are on the NPL.
AR 200-1 requires that Army Installations establish an
Administrative Record File in order to provide public access to
information about clean-up activities at the installation. An
Administrative Record File contains documents that support the clean-up
remedy that was chosen for each site and other applicable information. The
Administrative Record File is located in building 1121.