The Navy introduced Tuesday that it has awarded a contract to Hawaii-based Nakupuna Cos. to develop a public outreach program to search for proposals on methods to repurpose the underground Crimson Hill Bulk Gas Storage Facility after the navy removes the roughly 104 million gallons of gasoline saved within the facility’s growing old World Battle II-era tanks.
“Nakupuna and its staff of sub-consultants will solicit and take into account all concepts obtained from the neighborhood with an emphasis on residents on Oahu, ” the Navy stated in a Tuesday information launch. “Primarily based on this enter, the Navy will meet with the Environmental Safety Company ( EPA ) and Hawaii Division of Well being (DOH ) to pick the highest 5 concepts, from the general public, with probably the most advantage and profit for additional consideration. The highest 5 concepts might be additional evaluated on feasibility contemplating environmental, engineering, upkeep, security, price and profit. The ultimate evaluation might be introduced to the state, DOH and EPA for evaluation and consideration.”
In its information launch, the Navy referred to as Nakupuna “a Native Hawaiian-owned and native small enterprise.” Representatives of Nakupuna couldn’t be reached for remark and didn’t reply to an e mail from the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, however based on the corporate’s web site it was “established to offer knowledge-based providers to Division of Protection and authorities purchasers ” and maintains places of work in Hono lulu and Washington, D.C., in addition to in Colorado, Virginia, Pennsylvania and South Carolina.
In accordance with knowledge from the Hawaii Protection Economic system venture, Nakupuna’s subsidiaries have obtained not less than $8, 842, 500 in navy contracts since 2020.
The Crimson Hill tanks sit simply 100 toes above a important aquifer that almost all of Honolulu depends on for clear ingesting water. In November 2021, gasoline from the power leaked into the Crimson Hill water nicely, contaminating the Navy’s Oahu water system, which serves 93, 000 individuals—together with each navy households and civilians who stay in former navy housing areas. After initially resisting a state emergency order to defuel the tanks, the Pentagon in March introduced it will defuel and completely shut down the power.
Navy officers later stunned native officers and neighborhood members once they stated they had been already exploring methods to “re-objective ” the power after it is defueled. Although navy officers have touted the potential of “helpful reuse ” of the Crimson Hill facility, reception has been lukewarm at finest from native companies and neighborhood organizations. The Honolulu Board of Water Provide and the Hawaii chapter of the Sierra Membership have each raised security issues, and state Division of Well being officers have stated it isn’t clear Hawaii state regulation would allow reuse.
Throughout a November information convention on Oahu, Meredith Berger, assistant secretary of the Navy for power, installations and setting, advised reporters, “We are going to proceed to verify we’re protecting of the setting, of the individuals and of the neighborhood, and we’re not—I wish to make certain that is very clear—we’re not going to pursue any helpful reuse choice that will comprise potential contaminants, and not one of the choices that we now have laid on the desk can be a gasoline reuse.”
However throughout a November assembly of the state’s Crimson Hill Gas Tank Advisory Committee, BWS Supervisor and Chief Engineer Ernie Lau stated, “If the tank liners are nonetheless there, the pipes that transfer gasoline to and from Pearl Harbor, if all the things remains to be there in place, we’re just one diploma of freedom from getting again to gasoline storage over the aquifer.”
Protection officers have been hesitant to debate particular reuses of the Crimson Hill facility however have floated the concept of utilizing it as a hydroelectric plant to offer another power supply, an concept that has been floated previously. Throughout a November information launch marking the anniversary of the water disaster, Navy Area Hawaii Rear Adm. Stephen Barnett stated “there’s quite a lot of good concepts and issues that folk are recommending ” however didn’t provide specifics.
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