109th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 4778
To require the Secretary of the Army to conduct a survey and monitoring
of off-shore sites in the vicinity of the Hawaiian Islands where chemical
munitions were disposed of by the Armed Forces, to support research regarding
the public and environmental health impacts of chemical munitions disposal
in the ocean, and to require the preparation of a report on remediation
plans for such disposal sites.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 16, 2006
Mr. ABERCROMBIE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Armed Services
A BILL
To require the Secretary of the Army to conduct a survey and monitoring
of off-shore sites in the vicinity of the Hawaiian Islands where chemical
munitions were disposed of by the Armed Forces, to support research regarding
the public and environmental health impacts of chemical munitions disposal
in the ocean, and to require the preparation of a report on remediation
plans for such disposal sites.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the `Hawaiian Waters Chemical Munitions Safety
Act of 2006'.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Until 1970 the United States Armed Forces routinely dumped military
chemical munitions in ocean waters.
(2) According to the report entitled `Off-Shore Disposal of Chemical Agents
and Weapons Conducted by the United States', which was prepared by the
Army's Historical Research and Response Team in 2001, chemical munitions
were dumped at a minimum of three locations near the Hawaiian Islands,
and the weapons disposed of at these sites included 1,100 one-thousand
pound cyanogen chloride bombs, 20 one-thousand pound hydrogen cyanide
bombs, 125 five-hundred pound cyanogen chloride bombs, 15,000 one-hundred-and-fifteen
pound mustard gas bombs, 31,000 mustard gas-filled mortar shells, 1,000
one-ton containers of mustard gas agent, 190 one-ton containers of lewisite
agent, 16,000 one-hundred pound mustard gas bombs, and 4,220 tons of various
ordinance filled with hydrogen cyanide.
(3) The report also specified that chemical munitions were dumped off
the coasts of Alabama, Alaska, California, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi,
New Jersey, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia.
(4) The lack of research into the effect of long-term seawater exposure
on chemical munitions and the potential risks to the public and the environment
has created significant public concern in Hawaii, especially among communities
near coastal military facilities and military munitions disposal areas.
(5) The dumping of chemical munitions in the ocean is now prohibited by
the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act of 1972 (33 U.S.C.
1401 et seq.).
(6) The United States is a signatory of both the Convention on the Prevention
of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter, with annexes,
done at Washington, London, Mexico City, and Moscow December 29, 1972,
and entered into force August 20, 1975 (26 UST 2403) and the Convention
on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use
of Chemical Weapons and on Their Destruction, with annexes, done at Paris
January 13, 1993, and entered into force April 29, 1997 (commonly known
as the `Chemical Weapons Convention').
SEC. 3. RESPONSE TO DISPOSAL OF CHEMICAL MUNITIONS WITHIN HAWAIIAN WATERS.
(a) Survey and Identification of Disposal Sites-
(1) SURVEY REQUIRED- The Secretary of the Army shall conduct a survey
of all underwater sites within 12 miles of the Hawaiian Islands where
chemical munitions are known or believed to have been disposed of by the
Armed Forces between 1941 and 1972.
(2) SURVEY PURPOSE- The purpose of the survey is to characterize the location
and size of the disposal sites, the types and numbers of chemical munitions
at the sites, and the condition of chemical munitions at the sites.
(3) REPORT REQUIRED- Not later than September 30, 2009, the Secretary
of the Army shall submit to Congress a report containing the results of
the survey.
(b) Identification of Navigational Hazards- The Secretary of the Army shall
cooperate with the Secretary of Commerce to ensure that nautical charts
and other navigation materials for Hawaiian coastal waters include hazards
to private activities and commercial shipping or fishing operations identified
as a result of the survey conducted under subsection (a).
(1) MONITORING REQUIRED- Within one year after the completion of the survey
required by subsection (a), the Secretary of the Army shall implement
the appropriate monitoring mechanisms to recognize and track the potential
release of hazardous chemical agents into the marine environment from
the disposal sites covered by the survey.
(2) ELEMENTS- The monitoring regime shall include appropriate sampling,
testing, and evaluation of Hawaiian coastal waters for signs of contamination
from chemical munitions that may pose a risk to public health and the
marine environment.
(d) Research- The Secretary of the Army, acting through the Office of the
Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations and Environment, shall
establish a program to conduct research and provide research grants for
the purpose of studying the long-term effects of seawater exposure on chemical
munitions, potential public health risks associated with ocean disposal
of chemical munitions, and the environmental impact of the ocean disposal
of chemical munitions.
(1) REPORT REQUIRED- Within one year after the completion of the survey
required by subsection (a), the Secretary of the Army shall submit to
Congress a report containing the following:
(A) An analysis of the feasibility of implementing multiple remediation
measures at the disposal sites covered by the survey.
(B) Cost estimates for such remediation measures.
(C) An analysis of the public health and environmental safety risks
of the disposal sites.
(2) SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS- The feasibility analysis required by paragraph
(1)(A) shall take into account the cost of remediation measures, the public
health and environmental damage risk of remediation measures, and the
risk to personnel engaged in remediation measures.
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to
carry out this Act.
END
