The Navy’s massive underground Red Hill fuel facility is a “ticking timebomb” over Oahu’s major water supply and should be shut down, a Hawaii state hearing officer recommended Monday.
“This is a long-standing issue. The tanks were built in the 1940s and were not made to last forever. Over the years, more than 180,000 gallons of fuel have leaked from the tanks and tests show they are corroding underground. A mere 100 feet below the leaking fuel tanks is the Southern Oʻahu Basal Aquifer – the primary source of drinking water for Oʻahu. This aquifer alone provides drinking water for over 400,000 Hawaiʻi residents and visitors from Hālawa to Hawaiʻi Kai.”