Statutory Cleanup Authorities

For many years, DOD addressed potential risks from munitions on former training ranges and disposal sites without a consolidated effort in place to track progress and costs. Numerous factors determine the degree of risks at an individual site, such as the type of munitions present, whether munitions are located at or below the surface, the accessibility of a site, the proximity of munitions to populated areas, human health and environmental risks from potential exposure to munitions contaminants, and whether cultural or ecological resources are present. (See CRS Report RS22065, Military Base Closures: Cleanup of Contaminated Properties for Civilian Reuse , by [author name scrubbed].) Issues for Congress

Members of Congress, states, communities, and environmental organizations have expressed concern about the adequacy and pace of the cleanup of munitions and related contamination at the current inventory of sites, and have questioned whether munitions may be present at other sites not yet identified. Many of these properties ceased to be used for military purposes decades ago and have been put to a variety of civilian uses, including residential use in some cases. There has been less concern among the public about munitions sites on active installations, primarily because these sites pose little, if any, immediate safety risks to the general civilian population.
How to address safety, health, and environmental risks from potential exposure to abandoned or discarded military munitions has been a long-standing issue. There has been particular concern among the public about such risks at older decommissioned military properties that have been in civilian use for many years, and at closed military bases still awaiting redevelopment. Many of these properties contain former training ranges and munitions disposal sites where the extent of unexploded ordnance (UXO) and related environmental contamination is not fully understood. The approval of another round of military base closings in 2005 raised additional concerns about munitions risks on certain bases, and whether cleanup challenges may limit their civilian reuse. This report discusses the potential hazards of military munitions and related contamination, the authorities of the Department of Defense (DOD) to address these hazards, the status and costs of cleanup efforts, and issues for Congress.