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Thursday, April 07, 2011
Public's Fuel Spill Silence Deafening
By Roger Mickelson
Albuquerque resident
It was ironic that the Albuquerque Journal published new information about the 8-million-gallon fuel spill flowing from Kirtland Air Force Base toward the city water table on the 22nd anniversary of the 11-million-gallon oil spill in Prince William Sound in Alaska. The 1989 spill triggered extensive public outcry, massive response operations and the federal Oil Pollution Act of 1990.
The KAFB spill has been known for about 12 years, although estimates of the volume of aviation fuel and other contaminants in the ground were initially understated and then reluctantly revised upward as the New Mexico Environment Department became involved. The fuel plume has moved slowly in the time since it was found, but it has spread steadily from the old fueling location on the base well into "civilian territory."
In our case, public knowledge and concern have been limited to periodic meetings at which KAFB officials insisted on "characterizing" the spill in great detail, with almost no efforts to begin early remediation (e.g., pumping fuel and water from clearly contaminated areas).
The most vocal critics were those community spokespeople most directly affected by the spill in the area just north of KAFB and east of the VA hospital. Their objections and concerns weren't taken very seriously by KAFB officials at the hearings that I attended.
But it affects us all — unless you don't drink or otherwise use tap water via the Water Utility Authority system.
The water table is about 450 feet below the surface, and the fuel has leaked onto the surface of that water, as well as permeating the soil above as it spreads toward the water table level.
KAFB will tell you that its contractor is taking prudent steps to fully identify the extent of the spill, and the base is working with the Environment Department on plans to eventually remediate the situation, with the commitment of several million dollars in federal funding.
The Exxon-Valdez spill resulted in widespread public objections and, finally, a federal law. "Our" spill is only 75 percent the size of the Alaskan spill, but where is the 75 percent outcry and federal involvement?
My supposition is that the earlier spill was "corporate," while the 12-year-old spill is "government."
Does that really make a difference?
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