Text
only of letters sent from the Committee on
Energy and Commerce Democrats |
March 3, 2004
General Michael W. Hagee
Commandant, U.S. Marine Corps
The Pentagon
Washington, D.C. 20301
Dear Commandant Hagee:
In 1989, Camp Lejeune, North Carolina was listed on the Superfund National
Priorities List (NPL). Recently, the Washington Post printed an extremely
disturbing story concerning the failure of the Marine Corps to notify military
families about elevated levels of chlorinated hydrocarbons, trichloroethylene (TCE),
and tetrachloroetheylene (PCE) in their drinking water. The Committee on Energy
and Commerce has jurisdiction over both the Safe Drinking Water Act and the
Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act of 1980, as
amended. Therefore, to gain a fuller understanding of the contamination that
exists at Camp Lejeune, its notification procedures, and any remedial action
that may be necessary, I request responses to the following questions and
information requests no later than March 17, 2004:
1. Please provide any documents that relate to any discussion of whether or
when to notify military personnel and family members that received drinking
water from contaminated wells with elevated levels of PCE or TCE.
2. Why did the Marine Corps apparently wait from 1980 -- when the
contamination was discovered -- to 1985 to close the contaminated drinking
water wells?
3. Is there any evidence that contamination of the drinking water wells
with TCE, PCE, or other contaminants was detected prior to 1980?
4. Please provide any documents that relate to the actual decision to close
the drinking water wells in 1985.
5. When were the military families first notified by the Marine Corps of
the elevated levels of TCE and PCE in their drinking water?
6. Were any drinking water wells at the Rifle range closed at any point? If
so, please provide the reason for the closure and any test results related
thereto.
7. Has the Marine Corps conducted sampling at Camp Lejeune for perchlorate,
TNT, RDX, HMX, or other military munitions constituents in the (a) soil, (b)
surface water, or (c) groundwater? If so, please provide the results of any
such sampling.
8. Specifically, has the groundwater under the "operational
ranges" at Camp Lejeune been sampled for perchlorate, TNT, RDX, or HMX?
If so, please provide the sampling results.
9. What is the Marine Corps policy with respect to taking remedial action
for constituents of military munitions that have been discovered in the
groundwater at its facilities when there is no legally promulgated maximum
contaminant level (MCL) under the Safe Drinking Water Act?
10. A news broadcast on February 12, 2004, quotes a memorandum from the
Agency of Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) as stating "we
have sent Camp Lejeune several requests for information and, in most cases,
the responses were inadequate and no supporting documentation was
forwarded." Please provide a copy of each ATSDR request letter and the
responses (and supporting documentation) from the Marine Corps.
If you have any questions, please contact me or have your staff contact
Dick Frandsen, Senior Minority Counsel, Committee on Energy and Commerce, at
202-225-3641.
Sincerely,
JOHN D. DINGELL
RANKING MEMBER
COMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND COMMERCE
cc: The Honorable Joe Barton, Chairman
Committee
on Energy and Commerce
The Honorable Paul E. Gillmor,
Chairman
Subcommittee
on Environment and Hazardous Materials
The Honorable Hilda L. Solis,
Ranking Member
Subcommittee
on Environment and Hazardous Materials
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