Navy On The Defensive As Criticism Of Red Hill Fuel Facility Intensifies … Residents and regulators are worried that the Navy’s fuel storage facility could leak into a major Oahu aquifer. Despite a string of mishaps, the Navy says it can operate safely.
Dozens of Oahu residents expressed alarm on Thursday about the U.S. Navy’s continued operation of its Red Hill underground fuel tanks and demanded the shutdown of the facility to protect urban Honolulu’s drinking water supply.
The remarks were shared at the biannual meeting of the Hawaii Department of Health’s Fuel Tank Advisory Committee, a group of local, state and federal officials that was formed in the aftermath of a 27,000-gallon spill in 2014 to study the Navy’s operations and provide recommendations to the Legislature.
“I want to be able to trust the Navy with the massive responsibility of properly maintaining these tanks, but I just can’t and that makes me really upset and sad,” resident and committee member Ashley Nishihara said.
