No known or suspected hazard. However, the military services and the Corps also  can consider other factors, such as military mission needs, land reuse  plans, and stakeholder concerns, in determining which sites to clean up  first. The Military Services and the Corps Do Not Track MMRP Staffing Levels, and the MMRP Receives a Small Share of DOD’s Environmental Restoration Funds

According to a senior DOD official, DOD does not require the military  services or the Corps to track the time they spend working on MMRP  activities separately from the time they spend working on other  environmental restoration program activities. As a result, we were unable  to determine the staffing levels dedicated to the MMRP. It is the  responsibility of the military services and the Corps to make decisions  about how to prioritize that funding among their environmental programs,  such as the IRP and MMRP. Between 2002 and 2008, the military services  and the Corps directed most of their IRP and MMRP environmental  restoration funds to their respective IRPs—a total of about $9.7 billion  compared with the approximately $1.2 billion they directed to their  respective MMRPs (see fig. Most Sites That DOD Has Reported as Response Complete Did Not Require Cleanup, and Cleanup Priorities Are Still Being Determined for the Majority of Sites

DOD reported to Congress that it had achieved response complete at more  than one-third of its munitions response sites by the end of fiscal year  2008. According to DOD, most of these sites did not require cleanup under  the MMRP. However, for the  majority of sites in the MMRP inventory, the military services and the  Corps are still in the process of gathering information necessary to assess  the sites’ relative risk levels in order to set cleanup priorities. The Air Force estimates that  site cleanup will be complete in fiscal year 2010. Land reuse plans. DOD Has Not Established a Key Performance Goal for Its MMRP at FUDS, as Required by Law, and Has Not Determined and Reported on the Feasibility of Interim Goals

DOD has not yet implemented the statutory requirement contained in the  fiscal year 2007 National Defense Authorization Act to establish a key  performance goal for reaching remedy in place or response complete at  munitions response sites on FUDS, although DOD has established the  required performance goals for active and BRAC 2005 sites. DOD Collects Limited Data on Factors That Can Affect MMRP Project Duration, and Incomplete Data Prevent an Assessment of the Accuracy of Its MMRP Cost Estimates

DOD collects data on two of the many factors that can influence project  duration at munitions response sites. Without DOD guidance on how to determine which sites to sequence first  for cleanup, we are concerned that the military services and the Corps  could use inconsistent processes for making these decisions. Implementing these requirements would provide DOD,  Congress, and the public better information to track progress toward  cleaning up munitions response sites. As a result, it is not  possible to assess the accuracy of the cost estimates for activities  conducted during these phases. Recommendations for Executive Action

To improve consistency, transparency, and management of the MMRP, we  recommend that the Secretary of Defense take the following three actions:    develop guidance for the military services and the Corps that establishes a  consistent approach for how factors other than relative risk should be  considered in munitions response site sequencing decisions;   establish and report to Congress (1) a goal for achieving remedy in place  or response complete for FUDS, as required by law, and (2) such interim  goals as DOD determines feasible for the remedy in place or response  complete goals at munitions response sites on active and BRAC 2005  installations and FUDS; and   establish a process to ensure the completeness of site-level obligated  funds data in DOD’s Knowledge-Based Corporate Reporting System  database. Appendix I: Objectives, Scope, and Methodology

The National D we assess the (1) Military Mu and funding levels; (2) progress the Department of Defense (DOD) has  made cleaning up munitions response sites; (3) extent to which DOD has  established performance goals for the MMRP; and (4) extent to which  DOD collects data on factors influencing project duration, as well as the  accuracy of its cleanup cost estimates. In addition,  we reviewed key laws, regulations, policies, and guidance from DOD, the  military services (Army, Air Force, and Navy), and the U.S. Army Corps of  Engineers (Corps). type of hazard.
Why GAO Did This Study

The Department of Defense (DOD) established the military munitions response program (MMRP) in 2001 to clean up sites known to be or suspected of being contaminated with military munitions and related hazardous substances. Cleanup of sites on active and base realignment and closure installations is the responsibility of the military service--Air Force, Army, Navy, or Marine Corps--that currently controls the land, and the Army has delegated execution of cleanup of formerly used defense sites (FUDS) to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps). GAO was mandated to assess the (1) MMRP staffing and funding levels; (2) progress DOD has made in cleaning up munitions response sites; (3) extent to which DOD has established MMRP performance goals; and (4) extent to which DOD collects data on factors influencing project duration, as well as the accuracy of its cleanup cost estimates. GAO analyzed MMRP data and DOD documents and interviewed officials from DOD, the military services, and the Corps.

What GAO Found

The military services and the Corps do not track the time that staff work on MMRP activities separately from the time they spend on another environmental restoration program--the Installation Restoration Program (IRP). Consequently, it is not possible to determine the staffing levels for the MMRP. In addition, obligated funds for the MMRP increased from $95 million in fiscal year 2002 to approximately $284 million in fiscal year 2008, and the military services and the Corps directed 11 percent of their total MMRP and IRP environmental restoration funds to the MMRP during the period--a total of about $1.2 billion to the MMRP compared with $9.7 billion to the IRP. DOD reported to Congress that it had completed its cleanup response for 1,318 of its 3,674 sites by the end of fiscal year 2008; however, for 1,234 of these sites, DOD's response was an investigation that determined cleanup was not necessary. The remaining 84 sites were cleaned up because of such factors as imminent danger to public safety and pressing military mission and land reuse needs. In addition, the military services and the Corps are still in the process of gathering information necessary to prioritize most sites in the MMRP inventory for cleanup. When this process is complete, the military services and the Corps will consider this information along with other factors, such as land reuse plans, to determine which sites to clean up first. However, DOD has not issued guidance on how factors other than risk should be considered when making decisions about which sites to sequence first for cleanup, and the Air Force, the Army, and the Corps have begun to independently develop their own approaches. Using varying approaches could lead to inconsistent sequencing decisions. DOD has not yet established a performance goal for implementing the cleanup remedy (referred to as "remedy in place") or achieving the cleanup objective (referred to as "response complete") at munitions response sites located on FUDS, as required by the fiscal year 2007 National Defense Authorization Act. The act also directs DOD to report on interim goals it determines feasible for achieving the performance goals, but DOD has not yet done so. Performance goals are important because they are used to track progress toward cleaning up munitions response sites. By establishing goals, DOD would have better information with which to measure MMRP progress. DOD gathers data on two of the factors--site size and type of hazard--that can influence project duration at military munitions response sites. As would be expected, these data indicate that the larger the munitions response site and the more complex the type of hazard, the longer it takes to clean up the site. In addition, because data on funds obligated to complete specific phases of the cleanup process are not included in DOD's database for many munitions response sites, it is not possible to assess the accuracy of the military services' and the Corps' cost estimates for the MMRP.