The 3,440-acre former Plattsburgh Air Force Base is located in Plattsburgh, New York. The site is located in a mixed use area consisting of industrial and commercial enterprises, as well as private residences. It is bordered on the north by the Saranac River and the city of Plattsburgh, and on the south by the Salmon River. Lake Champlain, located east of the base, forms approximately one mile of the base boundary.

The base began operations in 1955 as a Tactical Wing under the Strategic Air Command of the United States Air Force. It continued operations under that mission until 1991, when it was reassigned as an Air Refueling Wing. The base closed under the Department of Defense (DoD) Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) program in 1995. Prior to construction of the Air Force Base, the area occupied by the former base was used by various components of the U.S. military dating back to the Civil War. A history of the site is available on the Plattsburgh Airbase Redevelopment Corporation’s (PARC’s) website at http://www.parc-usa.com.  

Former Air Force base operations, including aircraft operation, testing and maintenance, firefighting exercises, the discharge of munitions, and landfill operations, generated hazardous wastes that contaminated soil, sediment, surface water, and groundwater.  Cleanup has been ongoing since the 1980’s and is nearly complete.  Under current conditions at the site, potential or actual human exposures are under control.