Pentagon to permanently close Navy fuel tank that leaked petroleum into Hawaii water supply

The Pentagon is permanently closing a U.S. Navy fuel storage tank in Hawaii that leaked petroleum into the Pearl Harbor water supply, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin announced Monday.

The World War II-era Red Hill bulk fuel storage facility sits above an aquifer that supplies nearly 20% of the drinking water for urban Honolulu – including Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam. Officials are investigating what they believe was a jet fuel spill in November 2021 that contaminated the tap water, displacing thousands of military families.

After nearly 1,000 households complained about their tap water smelling like fuel or of ailments like stomach cramps and vomiting, the Hawaii Department of Health found that the petroleum level in a water sample was 350 times what is considered safe in drinking water, and “gasoline range organics” 66 times the safe level.

Petroleum can cause vomiting, diarrhea, headaches and confusion if ingested, inhaled or exposed to skin.

'LOVE OF LAND': As Hawaii declares climate crisis, schools hope Indigenous knowledge will save the islands

“Centrally-located bulk fuel storage of this magnitude likely made sense in 1943, when Red Hill was built,” Austin said in a statement. “And Red Hill has served our armed forces well for many decades. But it makes a lot less sense now.”

“Moreover, when we use land for military purposes, at home or abroad, we commit to being good stewards of that resource. Closing Red Hill meets that commitment,” he said.

The Navy suspended the fuel tank’s use in December, and agreed to drain the tank system in January after initially resisting.

Thousands of military and family members were displaced from their homes due to the fuel leak, and thousands of Hawaiians remain waiting for clearance to drink tap water.

The Pentagon’s move to defuel and permanently close the Red Hill facility came after many local government officials called for the tank’s closure, and also follows an order from Hawaii's Department of Health to drain fuel from the tanks.

Hawaii Gov. David Ige applauded the decision.

“Our national defense begins with the health and safety of our people, and there are better solutions for strategic fueling today than there were when the Red Hill storage facility was built,” Ige said in a statement.

U.S. Congressmen Kaiali?i Kahele said Monday was a day of “both relief and celebration."

“The community has been loud and clear: ola i ka wai. Water is life,” Kahele said in a statement.

CLIMATE POINT: Subscribe to USA TODAY’s free weekly newsletter on climate change, the environment and the weather

He also called on the Department of Defense to guarantee funding for full remediation of Oahu’s aquifer that sits atop the fuel tank.

“While today is truly a day to celebrate, we must do so with cautious optimism,” Kahele said. “For while today may signal the end of the Red Hill as a fuel storage facility, it is only the beginning of the hard work ahead. We must hold the Navy accountable.”

The Red Hill well contains 20 large underground fuel tanks that date back to World War II. An assessment team will now determine how to shut down the tanks and remove fuel in an environmentally safe way.

By the end of May, the government will provide a plan of action with milestones to fully defuel the facility, the Pentagon said.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Navy fuel tank that tainted Hawaii water will be shut down: Pentagon