HEALTH CONSULTATION
BULLEN POINT RADAR INSTALLATION
(a/k/a USAF - DEWLINE SITE POW-3)
DEADHORSE, YUKON-KOYUKUK COUNTY, ALASKA
BACKGROUND AND STATEMENT OF ISSUES
The Bullen Point radar installation, also known as the United States Air Force (USAF) POW-3 Distant Early Warning (DEW) Line Site is undergoing review by a mini-Regional Decision Team to determine whether any changes have occurred at the site which would warrant a change in site listing. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has asked the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) to review existing site information to determine what public health issues, if any, exist at the site. Of particular interest is whether polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) found at the site may be impacting area wildlife, which serve as a food source for Arctic Circle native populations.
The Bullen Point radar installation was operated as an auxiliary DEW Line station from 1953 to 1971 when it was deactivated. The installation is located at 70o10'N, 146050'W, Section 32 Township 10N Range 21E, Umiat Meridian, on Mikkelson Bay on the east central shore of the Beaufort Sea (Figure 1). The installation occupies 620 acres of low lying tundra. The maximum elevation on Bullen Point is 18 feet (average 6 feet) above mean sea level, and drainage is radially away from the high points. Due to permafrost 6 feet or less below ground surface and proximity to the coast, groundwater at the installation varies from brackish to saline. An unnamed freshwater lake was located up gradient from the installation and was used as a drinking water supply when the station was active. The dam constructed to create the unnamed freshwater lake was breached when the station was deactivated.
Inactive structures at the installation now include a radome, four 30-foot communications antennae, a module train of 10 buildings attached to the radome, two pumphouses, a warehouse, seven diesel oil tanks, a 250,000-gallon water storage tank, two barge docks, roads, gravel pads, and a 3,500-foot airstrip. A technical services building and a short range radar tower have recently been constructed. The short range radar will be operated as an unmanned system.
Bullen Point is in a remote and unpopulated area. The nearest populated area is Dead Horse located approximately 40 miles to the west. Native residents of the North Slope, largely Inupiats, follow a lifestyle that includes a significant subsistence component; much of their food consists of mammals (whales and caribou), aquatic life (arctic cisco and arctic char), and birds (ptarmigan and duck) that are abundant in this area of the Arctic. The climate is generally harsh (summer temperatures of 30oF to 46oF), and the soil and surface water are frozen for approximately nine months of the year. The site is occasionally used as shelter for transient native hunters and fishers, and as a drop-off point for fly-in hunting and fishing.
Five sites within the installation were investigated during a 1993 Remedial Investigation (RI). These are the Inside Transformer (OT04), POL (petroleum, oil, and lubricants) Tanks (ST05), Old Landfill/Dump Site East (LF06), Fuel Storage Area (ST09), and Drum Storage Area (SS10) (Figure 2). Sixty seven soil, water, and wipe samples were collected to determine the nature and extent of contamination at the five sites. Thirty five samples were analyzed for PCBs. Table 1 lists the contaminants of concern along with their maximum concentration, as identified in the Draft Final Risk Assessment for each of the above five sites.
The Old Landfill/Dump Site East (LF06) is located on the shore of a lagoon that opens to the sea. The landfill has been covered with soil and graded; however, erosion by ocean waves has caused rusty metal debris (mostly flattened drums) to become exposed along approximately 500 feet of shoreline.
Table 1
Contaminants of Concern* at Bullen Point Radar Installation
| Site | Media | Chemical | Maximum Concentration |
Units |
| Inside Transformer (OT04) | Soil | Aroclor 1254 | 0.9J | mg/kg |
| wipe -floor | Aroclor 1254 | 391.1 | µg/100 cm2 | |
| POL Tanks (ST05) | Soil | DRPH | 5,860 | mg/kg |
| GRPH | 170 | mg/kg | ||
| Water | DRPH | 423,000 | µg/L | |
| GRPH | 723 | µg/L | ||
| Benzene | 2 | µg/L | ||
| Old Landfill/Dump Site East (LF06) | Water | DRPH | 1,870 | µg/L |
| Fuel Storage Area (ST09) | Soil/Sediment | DRPH | 3,830J | mg/kg |
| GRPH | 406 | mg/kg | ||
| Water | DRPH | 554 | µg/L | |
| Drum Storage Area (SS10) | Soil | DRPH | 775 | mg/kg |
| J - Result is an estimate GRPH - Gasoline Range Petroleum Hydrocarbons µg/100 cm2 - micrograms per 100 cubic centimeters |
DRPH - Diesel Range Petroleum Hydrocarbons mg/kg - milligrams per kilogram µg/L - micrograms per liter |
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