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Please click here to see any active alerts Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin traveled to Maui and EPA staff to survey recovery efforts following the 2023 Maui wildfires The wildfires affected approximately 1,550 parcels and 2,200 structures and local government partners on response and recovery efforts Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) tasked EPA with removing hazardous material providing water infrastructure technical assistance and delivering  sustainability assistance during the recovery process.  “The wildfires in Maui brought deep devastation and disruption to everyone in this community the Kupuna and County officials persevered together to begin rebuilding the lives of residents while respecting the cultural practices that are deeply interwoven in the rich history and identity of this area but the community is heading in the right direction I am proud of all the support EPA has given and will ensure swift and efficient response efforts to future disasters,” said Administrator Zeldin.  "The costs of Maui recovery have been reduced because of local engagement with the Native Hawaiian Kupuna and the County of Maui Integrating a local workforce and respecting local cultures and values avoided millions of dollars of needless administrative delays Administrator Zeldin has been clear that the EPA needs to be better and less expensive as we respond to disasters but Maui will come back stronger after this tragedy," said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Josh F.W Zeldin began his day by meeting with local Kupuna and community members in Lahaina who were essential to helping local and federal partners understand the cultural and native practices of Hawaii Local officials then took Administrator Zeldin on a tour on Front Street to view the effects of the destructive fires Zeldin then walked streets where homes were rebuilding and the Wahikuli Houselots Subdivision where residents are still in temporary housing There is an EPA-funded project to provide sewer service for residents here as well He concluded by visiting the Central Maui Landfill Permanent Disposal Site which will intake all the debris from the Temporary Disposal Site from the wildfires Staging areas are essential to the hazardous material removal process and enable residents to rebuild their homes faster Once the staging areas are no longer needed for cleanup EPA will sample the soil in staging areas to ensure no negative impact to the property and provide the owner with a summary report On Saturday, March 22, 2025, Administrator Zeldin toured the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility this facility is designed to store up to 250 million gallons of fuel in 20 steel-lined tanks a fuel leak caused contamination to the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickman (JBPHH) and the Army’s Aliamanu Military Reservation water supply another fuel incident occurred where a pressure surge caused a pipeline joint failure releasing fuel beneath the underground storage tanks pushing the fuel toward the Red Hill drinking system The Hawaii Department of Health issued emergency orders that ultimately required the defueling and permanent closure of Red Hill EPA executed an Administrative Consent Order under the imminent and substantial endangerment provisions of the Safe Drinking Water Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act with the Navy and Defense Logistics Agency to oversee the defueling and closure of Red Hill and implement improvements to the JBPHH drinking water system Administrator Zeldin met with the Hawaii Department of Health (DOH) Director and Environmental Management Division Administrator to discuss ways that EPA and Hawaii DOH can continue to work together to ensure safe and clean land Phone: (714) 647-5481 E-mail: JGuevara@santa-ana.org has submitted an application to redevelop an existing 14.58-acre industrial site currently developed with 3 large-scale industrial office buildings total 212,121 square feet The proposed project will demolish the 3 industrial buildings and remove all of the existing improvements pavement and parking lot and would redevelop of the entire site with 1,100 multi-family residential units and up to 80,000 square feet of commercial retail and restaurant space The development would consist of three mixed-use buildings that would be 6-stories in height and one residential building that would be 5-stories in height Each of these buildings would have an adjacent parking structure Two parking structures would provide 7-levels of above ground parking and two parking structures would provide 6-levels of above ground parking the Project would develop two one-story retail/restaurant commercial buildings and a surface parking lot along Redhill Avenue The main vehicular access to the project site and parking facilities would be from two driveways on Warner Avenue and one driveway on Redhill Avenue The Project would provide open space and recreation amenities for residents that would include 5.75 acres of exterior open space recreation area as well as interior amenities and private residential areas The project site currently has a General Plan Land Use designation of Professional & Administrative Office (PAO) and is zoned Light Industrial (M-1) Implementation of the proposed project would require a General Plan Amendment to change the land use designation to District Center (DC) and an Amendment Application (AA) zone change to a designation of Specific Development (SD) Get directions to City Hall This content is for decoration only skip decoration News | Apr 28 Editor’s note: This story was updated to correct the name of one of the dogs involved Gabriel Velasquez is pretty sure he passed out a time or two climbing to find his phone Finding his missing phone meant he’d survive were out on a late-night drive on the back side of Gypsum’s Red Hill the night of April 23 and the Jeep’s right wheels caught the road’s soft shoulder and the vehicle rolled several times into a sagebrush ravine Both men and Velasquez’s three dogs were ejected from the vehicle and Velasquez and Jaramillo were badly hurt Velasquez used his Garmin Fenix smart watch to try to connect with his phone “I mustered every bit of strength I could” to climb back up the hill to find the phone to call 911 Velasquez said he’s driven in the area before and said it’s unlikely anyone would have spotted them Gypsum Fire Chief Justin Kirkland said the first 911 call came in at 12:16 a.m An Eagle County Sheriff’s deputy was first on scene at 12:56 a.m. with six Gypsum firefighters on scene a few minutes later The back side of Red Hill is “huge,” he said “There’s a lot of places to get lost.” And the place where Velasquez said they were didn’t match the GPS coordinates sent by his phone Add in the fact that the vehicle had left the road Eagle County Paramedics determined that the men were badly enough injured to require helicopter rescue That required creating a landing zone for two aircraft Velasquez said it seemed like everything went fairly quickly By the time Jaramillo and Velasquez landed in Grand Junction Velasquez was “covered head to toe in blood,” he said just that “I knew I was in a better place than laying in that field.” Join the 17,000 readers who get the news from us daily Sign up for daily or weekly newsletters at VailDaily.com/newsletter Jaramillo suffered a broken neck in the accident and as of Monday was still recovering in the hospital Velasquez on Monday was recovering at home a collapsed lung and a partially torn-off ear he and his friend both believe “somebody was looking out for us.”   Easter events in the Vail Valley Church services An Easter tradition that’s been going on for over 30 years is the Vail Mountain Easter Sunrise Service bright and early on Sunday morning Après Madness Championship Party at Avanti F&B The NCAA College Basketball Tournament may have crowned a champion on Monday but Friday is when you can congratulate this year’s winner of Vail’s own form of competition:.. Après at The Amp For its third year in a row Ford Amphitheater has proven that it’s not just a summer venue the Swedish pop band that took the world by storm in the 1970s and early 1980s with its hits “Waterloo,” “Take a Chance on Me” and “Dancing Queen,” will virtually.. Project Funway Get ready to be wowed by the fashions at Project Funway which returns to Dobson Arena again this Saturday One of the most creative fundraisers in the Vail Valley Legacy Minerals has received a vote of confidence from Red Hill Special Report: Legacy Minerals has received a vote of confidence in its Thomson gold-copper project in northwest NSW after Red Hill Minerals acquired a net smelter royalty covering the project The 1.5% net smelter royalty over licences EL 9190 and EL 9194 was awarded to Eastern Metals as part of the company’s $200,000 acquisition of the project in 2024 This NSR has now been purchased by Red Hill (ASX:RHI) for $220,000 plus GST which hints at its confidence in the emerging belt-scale exploration opportunity Ongoing exploration and review of historical work by Legacy Minerals (ASX:LGM) which can purchase the royalty back for $6m has demonstrated the potential for large-scale intrusion-related gold-copper systems across the project There is also strong evidence that other such systems are present at similar targets across the project which has similar characteristics to other major intrusion-related gold-copper districts such as Winu recording revenue of $3.35m from the Onslow iron project in the March 2025 quarter and it acquired a 2% gross revenue royalty over the Sandstone gold project in late April 2025 it sold its 40% interest in the Red Hill iron ore joint venture to Mineral Resources (ASX:MIN) for $400m in cash and a 0.75% royalty “We are pleased to see Red Hill Minerals acquire the Thomson royalty The acquisition supports our team’s view that the Thomson project presents a large-scale gold and copper discovery opportunity,” managing director Christopher Byrne said He added that recent results were comparable to several pre-discovery holes for significant intrusion-related gold deposits including De Grey’s Eagle deposit within the Hemi discovery The 5500km2 Thomson project offers LGM the opportunity to be the first mover in exploring a new intrusion-related gold and copper mineral system belt a coincident zone of elevated magnetic and gravity data that extends over a strike length of about 1000m in an east-west direction Previous explorers completed a single line of induced polarisation dipole-dipole over the highest magnetic feature and identified a zone of increased chargeability coincident with the elevated magnetic data While a deep 641.8m hole drilled by others failed to encounter massive sulphide base metals a company review concluded that the potential for intrusion-related deposits had not been sufficiently considered or tested historically Further sampling is planned further up hole in a historical hole that returned 377m at 0.1g/t gold from a down-hole depth of 225m including better results of 7m at 1.2g/t gold from 287m and 41.95m at 0.4g/t from 420m the Cut-B anomaly exhibits coincident elevated gravity and magnetic data which indicates a close spatial relationship between magnetic material and dense material This target strikes east-to-west more than ~900m While historical drilling to test the top of the main magnetic anomaly has returned some intriguing gold the adjacent gravity feature appears to remain untested LGM recently drilled two 600m deep holes at the F4 and Cut-B anomalies Initial observations at F4 indicate that the magnetic feature has been caused by hydrothermal pyrrhotite-bearing quartz veins and is not a lithologically derived magnetic feature Core processing and sampling are underway with results expected in six to eight weeks This article was developed in collaboration with Legacy Minerals a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing This article does not constitute financial product advice You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions Investor Guide: Gold & Copper FY2025 featuring Barry FitzGerald Get the latest breaking news and stocks straight to your inbox company profiles and industry insights from Australia’s best business journalists – all collated and delivered straight to your inbox every day Red Hill Water Crisis Already a Honolulu Star-Advertiser subscriber? Log in now to continue reading public outrage over the Navy’s contamination of a major aquifer spewed as vehemently as the jet fuel that gushed out of the Red Hill bulk storage facility The Navy abruptly shut its fuel- contaminated Red Hill Shaft as well as its nearby Aiea-Halawa Shaft out of precaution That’s left the Waiawa Shaft as the sole source of potable water to the Pearl Harbor-Hickam water system that serves 93,000 the outrage has mostly dissipated — but the public should be no less vigilant to demand safe water from the two long-closed shafts the Navy received “conditional approval” to reactivate its Aiea-Halawa Shaft from the state Department of Health (DOH) which laid out a dozen conditions to be met the Navy has begun a lengthy process to reactivate its tainted Red Hill Shaft which involves a draft environmental assessment (DEA) on proposed construction of water treatment facilities to remove toxins from this shaft’s water before it goes to users The public should engage this week on the Red Hill Shaft DEA which has a Sunday deadline for comments; view the report at 808ne.ws/redhillshaftDEA In a nutshell: The Navy proposes to build an interim granular activated carbon (GAC) water treatment facility at the now-defunct Red Hill fuel facility to reconnect water from its Red Hill Shaft to the Pearl Harbor- Hickam water system water pumped from this shaft goes through an emergency GAC water treatment facility then is discharged into Halawa Stream; the new treatment plants would eliminate the emergency one and the water-wasting discharges The DOH issued its conditional approval on Feb but it took over a month before even avid stakeholders learned of the shaft’s imminent reopening That included the Community Representation Initiative (CRI) a key group created under a consent order forged after the Red Hill fuel disaster between the DOH military and Environmental Protection Agency “Communities served by the Navy’s water system have not been informed or meaningfully engaged in the process of reopening the Navy’s Aiea-Halawa Shaft,” noted the Sierra Club of Hawaii “These residents have the right to know about the conditions and concerns of their drinking water.” Also unfortunate is that the Honolulu Board of Water Supply (BWS) was not included in this decision-making process despite its nearby well and concerns over contamination migration “All groundwater wells in the Red Hill area are vulnerable to contamination whether it be Navy or BWS wells,” the water board said “Failure to understand the nature and extent of the Red Hill contamination creates uncertainty for well owners operating in this region.” Some reassurances are in the DOH’s conditional approval which states that no undue fuel has been detected in Aiea-Halawa Shaft water samplings GAC treatment and disinfection of this shaft’s water are being required as is Navy reporting on the effectiveness of sampling results and of efforts to remove per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances aka “forever chemicals,” which have been linked with fuel-firefighting foam Another condition requires the Navy to immediately notify DOH of any condition that has the potential to contaminate the water source and pose a threat to human health within 24 hours of discovery That latter condition must be an imperative — in tandem with notice to the public in an equally urgent manner Approval to reopen the Aiea-Halawa Shaft is a major milestone in the Red Hill saga the DOH said: “ … while state law does not require such an announcement the Department of Health strongly encourages the Navy to share this information with the public.” It shouldn’t take a state law to do the right thing And it’s disingenuous to rely on the Navy “to share” — it should of course — given its known predilection to understate Red Hill’s fuel dangers The Navy now says it will inform the public before the Aiea-Halawa Shaft is reconnected to its drinking water system But as steps advance to bring Oahu’s compromised water shafts back online state health officials and other leaders must be vocal and vigorous in protecting this island’s water EPA is pleased to present an application developed to provide you with a simple way to view up-to date information about groundwater quality around the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility in Hawaiʻi The application combines multiple historical and current data sets that the Navy has made available online By combining the data and displaying it in maps the application makes it easier to understand information that is currently provided as individual reports The application also lets you filter the sampling results by a variety of features so as you select information using one filter the application changes the options available in other filters and table are also filtered to show only the information you want to see The graph shows how the concentrations of the selected analytes changed over time The table can be downloaded so you can see additional details or use the data in your own reports EPA regularly pulls laboratory results directly from the Navy’s Electronic Data Management System into the application so the groundwater sample results will be kept current and relevant This will allow you to view the latest validated Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility sampling data and compare current groundwater sample results to results collected during previous groundwater sampling events This frequency may change as the project progresses The Red Hill Groundwater Results application has five main parts you’ll see four features – a map on the left a white “Concentrations Over Time” square to the right and a table and instructional tabs at the bottom you’ll notice tools that are available when you use the map Other basic features like the option to return to “home zoom” or view the legend are available in a menu at the upper right A menu at the upper left allows you to use drawing tools on your map You can also click on any well (blue point feature) and a new menu will pop up Click “Select” to view all the sample results for that well on the table then use filter bar at top to filter for an analyte or analytes of interest (even “select all” This will render a graph of the selected analytes for your selected well.) The dashboard includes several iterative filters that you can access on the top menu bar The order that you select the filters affects how they work and tables will change based which filters you select and in which order you choose your filters Available filters and how you might use them are described below: Investigative stories and local news updates Coverage of the Hawaiʻi State legislature in 2025 Award winning in-depth reports and featured on-going series Get the week’s news delivered straight to your inbox UPDATED: The federal inspector general found numerous failures in the Navy’s handling of fuel water and toxic “forever chemicals” at Pearl Harbor Congressional representatives called the Navy’s conduct “outrageous and unacceptable.” A new military report released Thursday blames the fuel contamination of Pearl Harbor’s drinking water on Navy mismanagement at the Red Hill fuel depot and leaders’ failure to prepare for leaks the Navy contaminated a water system used by more than 90,000 people living and working around Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam women and children sought medical care for diarrhea Some who used the water say they remain sick to this day Disaster response and the subsequent effort to close Red Hill has cost taxpayers more than $2 billion.  whose family was sickened after drinking and bathing in fuel-tainted water said the reports validate what impacted families already knew “This is the government saying: We messed up,” she said The inspector general also faulted Red Hill’s managers for their handling of toxic firefighting foam that leaked at Red Hill four times between 2019 and 2022 military officials were not able to show they properly reported or cleaned up those spills contains so-called “forever chemicals” known as PFAS that don’t break down in the environment and pose serious health risks even in small quantities.  The inspector general made 38 recommendations including appointing a single accountable fuel leader for the military base conducting a review of leak detection systems and updating response plans.  The office is also calling for a review to determine if anything illegal occurred in the installation of Red Hill’s $50 million fire suppression system as required by the contract specifications Military investigators previously identified that decision as a factor that contributed to the fuel leak.  The military should determine whether any laws regulations or contracting requirements were violated or funds wasted and “take appropriate action based on the results of the review,” the report said.  To prevent similar disasters from happening elsewhere the inspector general said the Navy should study other locations where its infrastructure poses a threat to drinking water and develop plans to mitigate risks to those water systems Hawaii’s congressional delegation requested the inspector general evaluation Ed Case and Jill Tokuda said the reports make clear the military failed to properly manage fuel and water operations at Red Hill and Joint Base Peal Harbor-Hickam for decades “It’s outrageous and unacceptable,” they said “The Navy must take full responsibility for its failures and immediately implement the recommendations from the Inspector General in order to address the ongoing impacts to public health and the environment.” The delegation said it would continue to provide oversight over the Navy and Department of Defense to ensure they fully comply with the reports’ recommendations the Navy said the reports align with previous evaluations of the contamination event and support corrective actions that are already underway “We appreciate the insights provided by the Inspector General’s evaluation and will continue to work diligently to address recommendations to enhance public trust,” the Navy statement said Red Hill is made up of 20 gigantic underground tanks connected by miles of pipelines and tunnels With a capacity of 250 million gallons of fuel it was long considered the military’s largest gas station and was held up by the military as an engineering marvel.  Its position above Oahu’s aquifer the island’s primary drinking water source particularly after a leak of 27,000 gallons in 2014 the Navy maintained that incident was a fluke and the facility was safe.  Hundreds of military families were sickened and packed public meetings to express their outrage about the leak and what they felt were the military’s efforts to downplay it.  Indeed, the Navy initially fought to keep Red Hill in operation Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin ordered its closure the Navy had removed the majority of the fuel from Red Hill and spread it out among locations in West Oahu Thousands of military family members sued the federal government in 2022 over the debacle and are awaiting a ruling from a federal judge who will determine monetary damages.  Feindt’s family is part of that lawsuit her husband and their two young children have attended some 600 medical appointments for gastrointestinal Aside from a court judgement, she would like to see the Navy officials responsible for the Red Hill debacle be punished. The only such discipline the Navy has announced is the censure of three retired officers A letter of censure does not involved any loss of pay or rank “I hope this report will serve as the basis for a whole lot of accountability whether that be criminal or administrative,” she said “If this report doesn’t produce accountability I don’t know what the hell else will.” With most of the fuel removed from Red Hill, the Navy is now working to remove residual fuel and sludge from the tanks and pipelines and permanently close the facility by 2027 The Navy has pledged Red Hill will never again be used to store fuel.  You can read each of the three Inspector General reports here: Civil Beat’s community health coverage is supported by the Cooke Foundation, Atherton Family Foundation and Papa Ola Lokahi Unfortunately, being named a finalist for a Pulitzer prize doesn’t make us immune to financial pressures. The fact is, our revenue hasn’t kept pace with our need to grow, and we need your help Civil Beat is a nonprofit, reader-supported newsroom based in Hawaiʻi. We’re looking to build a more resilient, diverse and deeply impactful media landscape, and we hope you’ll help by supporting our essential journalism Civil Beat has been named the best overall news site in Hawaii for the 14th year in a row by the Society of Professional Journalists Hawaii Chapter Red Hill CUSD 10 is one of the school libraries that Secretary of State and State Librarian Alexi Giannoulias has awarded more than $1.3 million to  throughout Illinois The district received the minimum award of $850 awarded in the spring of every fiscal year support school library services for Illinois students enrolled in kindergarten through 12th grade Resources and services provided through the grant include library books “Illinois students deserve to have access to quality library resources books and online services at our public schools,” Giannoulias said “Libraries serve as places of knowledge learning and discovery and this funding will help equip them to educate and inspire our future generations.” school districts receive $0.885 per student for their enrollment at each school having a qualified library Funding for the program originates from the General Revenue Fund and is appropriated by the Illinois General Assembly Click Here for your 5 day Forecast The Red Hill Community Representation Initiative was formed in the aftermath of the 2021 Red Hill fuel spill in an attempt to give a voice to residents with a vested interest in the review of the fuel storage facility the group has had a rough go of it from the beginning — and its involvement in the process recently took a new contentious turn chair of the Red Hill CRI and specialist with Earthjustice said a Trump administration memo limiting external communications has affected talks over the Red Hill controversy "I find it disconcerting that the EPA staff are severely limited in their freedom to speak to the public that they are serving military just put out another invitation to a town hall So it looks like the Navy folks get to speak freely to the public however they want don't have that freedom and flexibility at this stage," she said Townsend said that as federal agencies figure out what's happening the CRI will continue to share information as best it can she added that before the Trump administration it was hard to figure out what was going on in the federal government — and now it's "infinitely harder." "Our government really should be working on our behalf and these kinds of limitations on who they can speak to just go to further foment the distrust and the schism between the public and the government," she said Townsend said that there was a meeting scheduled with the Navy for Feb 6 — but the logistics didn't come together in time and the CRI was unable to finish that conversation with the EPA once the order was issued "The Navy was supposed to meet with the public in December and at the very last minute they decided not to attend and so we had high expectations for our next get-together "We're hoping that whatever additional delays have been added to the process for the EPA to work out these details with members of the public hopefully it'll be done in time for there to be a meeting in March with the Navy," she said Townsend said it has been nearly a year since the last open conversation with the Navy "The island of Oʻahu's water supply is at serious risk federal government isn't a trusted ally in finding a solution to our problem HPR reached out to the EPA and Navy for clarification on the next CRI meeting The Navy said it has a webinar scheduled for Feb. 24 and an open house scheduled for March 12 This interview aired on The Conversation on Feb Administrator Michael Regan and Regional Administrator Martha Guzman Discuss EPA’s Response to the Drinking Water Emergency (Feb 24 Free viewers and readers are available to access documents on our website. If you encounter issues with assistive technology, please contact us Most drinking water in Oʻahu is provided to consumers by public water providers. As directed by the Safe Drinking Water Act drinking water is tested at least annually by water providers for a wide variety of contaminants More information on drinking water safety and testing can be found on the Hawai'i Department of Health’s Safe Drinking Water Branch website Citizens connected to municipal water supplies in the area around Red Hill receive their drinking water from either the Honolulu Board of Water Supply or the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam Water System (JBPHHWS) All drinking water supplies in the vicinity of Red Hill continue to meet all federal drinking water standards Annual Water Quality Reports can be found at the Honolulu Board of Water Supply website or the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam Water Quality Information site EPA is pleased to present an application developed to provide you with a simple way to view up-to date information about groundwater quality around the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility in Hawaiʻi. Learn more at the Groundwater Results Application living on Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH) and the Army's Aliamanu Military Reservation and Red Hill Housing reported petroleum odors coming from residential tap water supplied by the U.S Residents reported health issues arising from the contaminated drinking water many of whom relocated to temporary housing during the drinking water crisis The source of the petroleum was the nearby Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility one of the Navy's groundwater sources for the Joint Base Pearl Harbor Hickam drinking water system Army and the Hawai’i Department of Health (DOH) by forming an Interagency Drinking Water System Team (IDWST) to restore safe drinking water to the affected residents and workers completed drinking water restoration in March 2022 the Navy was required to continue testing the affected drinking water area and continue work to cleanup the Red Hill drinking water well and impacted soil and groundwater Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) National Enforcement Investigations Center (NEIC) conducted public water system inspections at the U.S Navy’s Joint Base Pearl Harbor Hickam (JBPHH) and the U.S Army’s Aliamanu Military Reservation (AMR) to determine compliance with the requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) and its implementing regulations EPA provided its inspection reports to the U.S Army have failed to adequately operate and maintain their public water systems serving JBPHH and AMR Army have taken steps to address EPA’s concerns and have submitted documentation of their compliance activities including photographic documentation and plans for implementation of structural controls to prevent animals from nesting inside the JBPHH’s finished water storage tanks and to remove excessive vegetation from around the tanks Army have submitted plans they will take to address EPA’s findings and Navy received an increased number of complaints being reported by residents served by the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam public water system EPA conducted a complaint investigation and published its findings on December 18 The report investigates complaints received by EPA and subsequent follow-up from the Navy The report also articulates areas of concern and recommendations for corrective action by the Navy the EPA sent a letter to Navy providing the expectation that the Navy renew their Drinking Water Long-Term Monitoring Plan (LTMP) beyond the current February 2024 expiration date EPA was notified of twenty-eight complaints with actionable contact information from residents served by the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam public water system (JBPHH System) and the Aliamanu Military Reservation public water system (AMR System) EPA conducted an investigation from February 14-16 2024 and published their findings and recommendations on Mach 21 EPA is working with the Navy and DOH to develop a LTMP that will be more responsive to complaints by water system users and identify the root cause of these complaints EPA conducted public water system inspections at the U.S and maintenance observations which are expected to be addressed by the U.S EPA also conducted source-water sampling for PFAS at JBPHH’s active drinking water well (the Waiawa Shaft) and two inactive wells (Red Hill Shaft and Aiea-Halawa Shaft) EPA sampled for PFAS at AMR’s drinking water distribution system which receives its drinking water supply from the JBPHH system EPA collected drinking water samples for a subset of analytes listed in Navy’s Extended Drinking Water Monitoring Plan from drinking water wells and various homes and priority buildings in the JBPHH and AMR distribution systems All EPA sampling results may be found in the inspection reports Below are links to the SDWA inspection reports for both JBPHH and AMR public water systems EPA has withheld release of some information in the JBPHH and AMR inspection reports that contain personally identifiable information and/or defense critical infrastructure security information For the latest updates, news releases, and resources for residents, please visit the U.S. Navy's Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH) Water Updates website View the latest post system flushing status and drinking water sampling data at the Interagency Drinking Water System Team (IDWST) Flushing and Sampling Data website For additional information please visit the U.S. Army and Hawai'i Department of Health websites Following the fuel spill that contaminated the Navy’s drinking water system and poisoned thousands of people in 2021 this week marked one year since the Navy Closure Task Force - Red Hill took over this next phase of the cleanup and shutdown New U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin posted a video on X on Wednesday laying out what he said was the “largest deregulatory announcement in U.S the EPA said it will be reconsidering rules regulating hazardous air pollution and narrowing the definition of waterways that receive protection under the Clean Water Act The EPA's mission when it was formed was to protect the environment It remains to be seen how these changes under the Trump administration will affect efforts and oversight at the Red Hill Fuel Storage Facility The Conversation spoke to Honolulu Board of Water Supply Chief Engineer Ernie Lau about the EPA's change in priorities and what federal cuts could mean for the commitment to close Red Hill Navy Closure Task Force-Red Hill Director of Public Affairs Scott Malcolm also gave The Conversation a snapshot of the progress to date from removing the toxic firefighting foam that spilled at the fuel facility to cleaning the tanks and dismantling the faulty piping system BWS: While the federal government is changing direction and maybe priorities we can continue to do what we can to proceed to address the Red Hill contamination issue for the long term can we make sure that there are things in place that will help sustain the effort and the attention to the problems created here elected leaders all together in a unified statement Can we now kind of create some permanent structure at the state level in state law that will require attention to the Red Hill issues and to hold our military accountable for the long term we need to continue to do the hard work we're doing already and the partnership with the community in getting this effort this problem created by Red Hill addressed to be resilient because this direction that the federal government seems to be headed we need to continue to push forward with that effort at the state and city level… We live on an island in the middle of the ocean We have to deal with things like climate change perhaps some of the congressional delegation or the different leaders in Congress about the EPA How do they support investment in our water infrastructure water and wastewater infrastructure across the nation That's critical infrastructure that everybody needs You need to be able to have clean drinking water That's going to be a team effort from our congressional delegation all the way down to state and county officials and our community to speak with one voice [and] continue to hold the military accountable I reviewed the master schedule that the Navy gave me how are they moving on demolishing the pipeline that connects those tanks to Pearl Harbor I want to just try to continue to hold them accountable to their schedule NAVY: First thing we did when we took the mantle of responsibility from them was we briefed the EPA on the concept of operations to safely and deliberately remove the AFFF (Aqueous Film-Forming Foam) from the facility… We removed just over 1,000 gallons from the facility and transported it safely off island… We've also made a tremendous amount of progress in cleaning the tanks… And then the next major event on the horizon is pipeline removal We intend to remove all the pipeline from the facility Our team has been putting resources and infrastructure in place to be able to make that happen and we're putting the rest of the infrastructure in place over the course of the next several months and we anticipate we'll be removing the first bit of pipe in the fall of this year MALCOM: We've had a couple of instances where drops or half a gallon or so have come out into our containment system that we had in place Every time we're doing an operation to remove fuel or sludge secondary and tertiary levels of containment But I will also tell you that we're real proud of the fact that we conduct spill drills internally with the Navy Closure Task Force but also we bring in the regulators and the other first responders we've been together for a little bit over a year And so the people that I work with are super committed they're government employees who care about what they're doing and doing this safely and deliberately Decommissioning and preparing the facility to close is very This interview aired on The Conversation on March 13 The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. HPR's Hannah Kaʻiulani Coburn adapted this story for the web As Pete Hegseth makes his first visit to the Pacific region as secretary of defense another Trump cabinet head also paid a visit to Hawaiʻi the head of the Environmental Protection Agency toured the Maui burn zone and the Red Hill underground fuel storage facility on Oʻahu this past weekend Zeldin very quietly slipped in and out of town touring the area and meeting briefly with state health officials It was Hegseth's visit that grabbed the headlines as he touched down Monday amid the Signal war-plan breach — controversy over the use of the encrypted messaging app to discuss sensitive war plans in Yemen with high-level appointees which unknowingly included The Atlantic editor-in-chief That breach of security protocol overshadowed the EPA visit. But various groups, an anti-military organization, and environmental advocates like the Oʻahu Water Protectors used the visit to demonstrate at the gates of Pacific Fleet Command on Tuesday afternoon HPR talked to Healani Sonoda-Pale, who sits on the Red Hill Community Representation Initiative It formed after the fuel spill that contaminated the Navy's drinking water system HPR also talked to Sierra Club of Hawaiʻi Director Wayne Tanaka about Hegseth's and Zeldin's visits to Hawaiʻi This interview aired on The Conversation on March 26 The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m.  The Board of Water Supply (BWS) is driling a new well in Halawa to monitor the water quality near the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage facility which is currently being refueled by the U.S More than three years after the Navy shut down two of its Oahu water wells in response to the Red Hill water crisis the serv­ice is now looking to reopen them The state Department of Health has given the Navy “conditional approval” to work toward reopening its Aiea-Halawa Shaft The Navy also has released a draft environmental impact statement on the possibility of building water treatment facilities that eventually would allow it to reactivate its fuel-contaminated Red Hill Shaft and is soliciting public feedback until Sunday The Navy is in the process of permanently shutting down the Red Hill facility which sits just 100 feet above an aquifer most of Honolulu relies on for water (function(d,s,n){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];js=d.createElement(s);js.className=n;js.src="//player.ex.co/player/bdc806f4-0fc1-40a1-aff0-a3d5239c169c";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}(document,"script","exco-player")); fuel from the facility tainted the Red Hill Shaft and entered the Navy’s Oahu water system that serves 93,000 people including military families and civilians living in former military housing areas Thousands of people on the Navy water line reported experiencing ailments ranging from rashes Representatives of the Honolulu Board of Water Supply and the Red Hill Community Representation Initiative have raised concerns about the reactivation plans — including the degree to which residents on the water line are being informed of plans to reactivate the wells The Red Hill CRI is an elected board formed as part of a federal consent decree regarding the closure of the Navy’s Red Hill fuel facility whose membership includes residents affected by the contamination and local community members Mandy Feindt — a CRI member whose family lived on Ford Island and reported severe symptoms — joined a roundtable event in Washington on Capitol Hill with several veterans discussing the federal government’s response to military toxic exposures Feindt told lawmakers “this has been going on for a long time and there’s not been a lot of lessons learned.” jet fuel from the Red Hill tanks spilled and some of it entered a drain that was part of the facility’s fire suppression line when a worker near the Red Hill water well — which is inside the fuel facility as well — accidentally ruptured the line Navy officers at the facility did not report the spill to regulators or the public — or that the worker had been hospitalized — and hoped that they had contained it But fuel had entered the well and was being pumped into the water system residents began complaining about fuel and chemical odors the Navy shut down the Red Hill as complaints rolled in The DOH put out an advisory for the water system but Navy officials insisted publicly that the water was safe and asked the DOH to rescind the advisory the Navy acknowledged that its waterline was tainted and also went on to shut down its Aiea-Halawa Shaft after finding traces of contamination the Navy has depended entirely on its Waiawa Shaft for water as the only source for its water line — something the DOH has warned likely isn’t safe representatives of both the BWS and CRI have expressed concern about how and when information gets released The DOH granted the Navy conditional approval to pursue reactivating its Aiea- Halawa Shaft in a February letter but didn’t tell the CRI until March and did not put out a media release “I’m very concerned that the Department of Health hasn’t let anyone know,” CRI member Ilima DeCosta said at the group’s March meeting “So even if the Navy is not going to let it be known I’m concerned that the Department of Health is not letting customers know.” said that while it was sensible that the DOH and Navy want to make sure the system isn’t dependent on just the Waiawa Shaft “they should really inform their customers about turning their water back on specifically from Aiea-Halawa Shaft.” In a statement to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser the DOH said that “while state law does not require such an announcement Navy Closure Task Force Red Hill told the Star-Advertiser that the task force is working closely with DOH to begin the reactivation process and that it received conditional approval from the regulator on Feb and that throughout April “as part of this conditional approval NCTF-RH will be undergoing a pilot study of the Granular Activated Carbon treatment system at this site to collect valuable data that will demonstrate the effectiveness of the treatment system.” The task force also pledged in its statement that the public would be informed before the Aiea-Halawa Shaft is reconnected to the Navy’s drinking water system DOH said in its statement that it had completed a forensic investigation of “low-level concentrations total petroleum hydrocarbons” in 2024 including intermittent detections at Navy Aiea-Halawa Shaft and found that “no fuel compounds were associated with the detections.” “TPH testing can indicate the presence of petroleum- related substances but they’re not always directly linked to fuel,” the DOH stated the forensic testing was found to be a result of naturally occurring organic compounds in soil or water (like plant resins or humic substances) which can mimic petroleum hydrocarbons in test results.” But the DOH’s conditional approval still requires the Navy to meet 12 conditions before its Aiea-Halawa Shaft can be reactivated as a drinking water source the Navy has to report on the effectiveness of sampling results and of efforts to remove Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances contaminants known as “forever chemicals” that have been associated with firefighting foam the military uses to put out fuel fires The DOH also will require the Navy to report any conditions that could contaminate the well within 24 hours and the Navy must provide at least 10 days’ notice to DOH of any plans to reactivate it But the BWS is still concerned about it calls troubling unknowns “There is concern from the Board of Water Supply in terms of uncertainty on the impacts of the underground water flow because (the Navy’s) Aiea-Halawa Shaft is to the west of our Board of Water Supply Halawa Shaft (and) the Red Hill Shaft is actually east of our Halawa Shaft,” Lin said during the March CRI meeting our Board of Water Supply Halawa Shaft is kind of sandwiched between the two sources would it draw contaminants across the valley from the Red Hill Shaft all the way over to Aiea-Halawa Shaft Lin said that she talked to DOH and Navy officials at a recent Red Hill open house who told her they thought that was unlikely but Lin also told the CRI that she was worried the prospect wasn’t ruled out entirely When asked by the CRI to categorize her concern on a scale of 1 to 10 she replied “I would say I’m pretty concerned close to 10 just because there’s so much uncertainty.” the DOH insisted that “the Navy’s groundwater flow model that referenced BWS is flawed The model has since been retracted by the Navy and has never been accepted by regulatory agencies While work on a revised groundwater flow model remains ongoing there appear to be several factors that would naturally or by design prevent water from the vicinity of the Red Hill Shaft.” The DOH argued that when the Aiea-Halawa Shaft is in operation “it pulls in saltier water not fresher water from the Red Hill region,” that rock formations in the area that “intrude into the water table form a barrier between the Navy Aiea-Halawa Shaft and the Red Hill region,” and that “a draw from the Bulk Fuel facility in the makai direction would pass through Red Hill Shaft where a capture zone through pump and treatment would intercept the contaminant.” The DOH also said that both the Navy and BWS continue to install groundwater monitoring wells between Red Hill and the Navy’s Aiea-Halawa Shaft and that “the monitoring well network will continue to be regularly tested for indications of contaminant migration — which have not been observed thus far.” is the Navy’s plan to put its Red Hill Shaft back into service Gallons of jet fuel poured into the shaft and Navy divers sent into the well itself reported encountering heavy contamination The Navy has been using large granular activated carbon — or GAC — filters to remove contaminated water and dump it into the the nearby Halawa stream for years The Navy has said that the water it has discharged is safe for the environment but it has been unable to find a way to purify the well itself The draft environmental assessment says that the plan is “to construct and operate a new water treatment facility to reconnect water from the Navy’s Red Hill Shaft to the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH) drinking water system and discontinue the discharge of water into Halawa Stream.” The plan calls for an interim treatment facility which would filter the water using GAC and is already under construction and expected to be completed in 2026 according to the Navy’s draft environmental assessment No timeline was given for the completion of a permanent water treatment plant The military is required by the National Environmental Policy Act to conduct an environmental assessment for any major project and to solicit public feedback If the assessment that determines a project has the potential to significantly impact communities it then has to craft a formal Environmental Impact Statement laying out those potential impacts and submit to another round of community comments and feedback Last year the EPA slapped the Navy and the Defense Logistics Agency with a $5,000 a fine for violating the federal consent order for not attending the CRI’s public December meeting The military is required to show up at least once a quarter But more recently the EPA agreed to rescind the fine if the military agreed to come back to the table with the CRI asserting that the small fine was mostly symbolic and that rescinding it symbolically absolves military officials who knowingly violated the consent decree In March the Trump administration’s new EPA’s Administrator toured the Red Hill facility and met with both Navy and DOH officials as part of a trip to Hawaii that also included a stop on Maui to discuss cleanup efforts in Lahaina after the deadly 2023 fire that destroyed the town who sits on the House Armed Services Committee told the Star-Advertiser that she sees Zeldin’s visit to Red Hill and meetings with DOH as a positive step “As we change administration I think it’s important that we not lose ground and we understand that this is not just about draining out the fuel,” Tokuda said “This is about everything that is required to make sure that we are continuously monitoring with fidelity and that we’re treating and remediating the way the public expects us to.” The Trump administration has vowed to roll back environmental regulations and projects Meanwhile Trump’s Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth also has promised to shut down as many military environmental programs as possible arguing they have distracted the military from its warfighting mission That has led some in Hawaii to wonder what that could mean for Red Hill cleanup and environmental standards The City and County of Hono­lulu’s $500,000 Ernst & Young LLP study over a proposed emp.. Hawaii sued major oil companies in state court Thursday Real estate meets real wellness at The Row at Red Hill a new luxury rental community in Santa Ana 20,000-square-foot immersive fitness and recovery hub with interactive training equipment The concept—executed by global real estate firm Greystar with the expertise of Aktiv Solutions, a leader in functional fitness design for health clubs, hotels and corporate wellness spaces—reflects the growing intersection of residential real estate and wellness “We oversee the installation of nearly 500 facilities across the country each year and have visibility to the vast majority of others,”  Aktiv Solutions CEO Bryan Green said “The Row establishes a new level of exercise offering and scale in multifamily property development.” Residents of The Row at Red Hill can track their biometrics by syncing their wearables to a system created by Gym Rax and Xponential Fitness providing access to the boutique fitness and wellness franchisor’s leading brands The space also features Freemotion treadmills “We’ve created the ultimate amenity in our immaculately designed wellness center providing versatility and convenience to all our residents,” Greystar senior director of development Raul Tamez said residents of The Row have access to the very best equipment designed to support functional fitness training for anyone Onsite group fitness programming includes weekly instructor-led yoga and HIIT classes Residents looking to rejuvenate are invited to indulge in the sauna and salt room or book a service offered by a local esthetician or masseuse at one of our treatment rooms.” For socialization, residents can enjoy outdoor spaces, resort-style pools, spas, outdoor kitchens, and promenades featuring public art. Separately, The Row at Red Hill has named two health and wellness-focused retailers coming soon: contrast therapy studio SWTHZ and Lyfe Superfoods As of now, The Row at Red Hill is 52% leased Urban bedrooms and one-bedrooms range from $2,895 to $3,755 plus fees and two-bedroom apartments begin at $3,865 and go up to $4,505 plus fees while rents are still being determined for studios and three-bedroom apartments Floorplans are expected to be available for leasing in mid-May.  Sign Up for Our Newsletter Trusted by 100k+ Fitness Athletech News provides comprehensive media coverage of the most impactful news and trends shaping the fitness and wellness sector Our newsletter and website cover emerging fitness technology new fitness formats and the industry’s economic outlook Keep pulse with the latest in fitness news Share on FacebookShare on X (formerly Twitter)Share on PinterestShare on LinkedInHONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - There’s a growing push against a new landfill outside of Wahiawa with the head of the Board of Water Supply calling it the next Red Hill But Honolulu’s mayor and his administration insist the risk to the environment is very low Observers say it’s awkward political situation Board of Supply chief engineer and manager Ernie Lau won praise for protecting water He’s publicly disagreeing with the mayor and his administration “I think we’ve learned from the situation at Red Hill and I almost think of this as Red Hill No. 2 that we are dealing with,” Lau told Spotlight Now The city’s selected site for a new landfill is outside Wahiawa in a Dole pineapple field but Lau says he’s against it because it would be 800 feet above Oahu’s aquifer He called it a potential risk to drinking water and future generations just like the Navy’s fuel leaks that sickened thousands of people in 2021 2 because there are some parallels,” said Lau But the city calls Red Hill a “preventable disaster.” “A landfill is very different from an underground storage tank We would build and design with all the current standards which is designed to prevent leakage and we of course would maintain it and that’s actually required by law,” said city Department of Environmental Services director Roger Babcock “The long-term risk is very minimal,” he added The city says required maintenance is 30 years Act 73 bans landfills within a half-mile buffer zone for schools Kurt Fevella said he would not support amending Act 73 “I really feel that this is a political deployment to try to pressure the legislation in this year’s legislation to try to modify Act 73.” Our intention is to move forward with this site,” said Babcock The Waimanalo Gulch Landfill is scheduled to close in 2028 A LOCALLY OWNED NEWSPAPER DEDICATED TO THE SERVICE OF GOD AND MANKIND. president of the Union County Historical Society unveil a historic marker at the former location of the school on Tuesday morning in the Red Hill community in Blue Springs gather for the unveiling of a historic marker for the Red Hill Rosenwald School on Tuesday morning in the Red Hill community in Blue Springs A historic marker for the Red Hill Rosenwald School was unveiled Tuesday morning in the Red Hill community in Blue Springs RED HILL — A marker commemorating the historic Red Hill Rosenwald School was unveiled Tuesday morning outside of the Red Hill Community Center the Rosenwald School was located beside where the Red Hill Community Center now stands The school comprised three rooms — an auditorium and two classrooms one for first through fourth grade students and another for fifth through eighth grade Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content Get the latest need-to-know information delivered to your inbox as it happens Get our front page stories each morning as well as the latest updates each afternoon during the week + more in-depth weekend editions on Saturdays & Sundays blake.alsup@djournal.com Email notifications are only sent once a day Your browser is out of date and potentially 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to get the Daily Journal e-edition delivered to your inbox each morning Sign up to view our weekly e-editions each Wednesday with just a click Sign up to view our weekly e-editions each Wednesday with just a click.  Invalid password or account does not exist Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account Hawaii — University researchers are using a florescent dye in the aquifer near Pearl Harbor to better understand the flow of water beneath the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility site of a massive jet fuel spill three years ago researchers injected 50 pounds of rhodamine dye a researcher at the University of Hawaii’s School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology The injection point was about a quarter mile upgradient of the Navy’s Red Hill well which was contaminated with jet fuel in late 2021 from a spill at the fuel storage facility The aquifer’s flow in that area is not fully understood and the researchers hypothesize that the underground water will primarily flow toward the Red Hill well rather than to wells in other directions one of three used by the Navy for its water distribution system in supplying more than 90,000 households in military communities on and near Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam was isolated from the system in the wake of the contamination the Navy installed a series of massive carbon filters at the Red Hill well site millions of gallons of tainted water are pumped up filtered and released into the nearby Halawa Stream The continuous pumping is intended to prevent petroleum contamination in the well from migrating elsewhere of the nontoxic dye will end up at the Red Hill well and be absorbed by the carbon filters Parratt conducted initial testing using a device called a colloidal borescope which is lowered into well sites to gauge the direction and velocity of groundwater He said he found “a real strong connection” of flow from the Navy well shaft designated RHMW08 Understanding movement in the aquifer is important as the Navy Closure Task Force-Red Hill works to empty and clean the Red Hill fuel facility which was ordered permanently closed by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in March 2022 The task force is also charged with the years-long clean-up of the soil and groundwater contaminated by fuel “Understanding the flow patterns of groundwater in the subsurface is important to assess the environment in the Red Hill area and investigate contamination around and underneath the facility,” the U.S Environmental Protection Agency states on its web site The task force said in an emailed statement Wednesday that it would incorporate the published findings of the dye study with the groundwater flow model the Navy submitted in September to the U.S The university researchers are monitoring the dye in real time in two ways LED lights are lowered into monitor wells to take hourly readings that gauge the amount of fluorescence This is useful in understanding the timing of the dye’s transport from the injection site carbon packs that absorb dye are inserted in other wells These will indicate whether water from the injection site flows to a particular site The light and carbon readings can subsequently be used in a groundwater model that simulates different amounts of flow to see which one best matches the plume spread from the dye experiment “The idea is that we try to calibrate the groundwater model that matched the spreading of the plume that was observed,” he said Readings at the Red Hill well are taken every 10 minutes and will provide an estimate of the velocity of groundwater Those readings will also be used to extrapolate how much of the 50 pounds of dye ended up at the Red Hill well The dye is expected to reach the Red Hill well by early spring with preliminary findings likely released in early summer Suboxone Tooth Decay Depo-Provera Ozempic Wegovy and Mounjaro Bard PowerPort Hawaiian drinking water reservoir was contaminated multiple times by jet fuel and AFFF leaks from the Naval storage facility Federal officials have determined that because of the Navy’s mismanagement of chemicals and leaks at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility Hawaii was repeatedly contaminated with petroleum jet fuel and firefighting foam Located near the Pearl Harbor Memorial in Honolulu the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility was designed to hold up to 250 million gallons of fuel to help support U.S the facility is designed in such a way that its storage tanks are located in close proximity to the Southern Oʻahu Basal Aquifer which is the primary source of drinking water for more than 400,000 people errors were allegedly made by the Red Hill facility’s Naval personnel which resulted in the release of petroleum jet fuel and other toxic chemicals into the Red Hill well bathing and residential water to approximately 93,000 military service members and residents of the U.S military Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam (JBPHH) Department of Defense (DoD) office of the Inspector General has released three different reports detailing the U.S Navy’s shortcomings surrounding the release of jet fuel and toxic firefighting foam at the Red Hill facility In a report on the storage facility’s contamination of the base’s community water system (PDF) the DoD’s Office of the Inspector General indicates that Naval officials missed opportunities in both May and November 2021 to “lessen the impact of the drinking water contamination incident.” A separate DoD report (PDF) also indicates that the U.S Navy did not properly handle four additional incidents concerning the release of aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) at the base which is a firefighting foam that contains perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that have been linked to an increased risk of liver cancer thyroid disease and other serious side effects Lawyers are reviewing aqueous film forming foam (AFFF) lawsuits for firefighters military personnel and individuals who developed cancer or other health issues from exposure to toxic firefighting foam chemicals Amid the release of these findings, more than 2,000 Hawaiian residents have filed water contamination lawsuits over the Red Hill fuel storage leaks Navy failed to warn them about the risks of spills or provide adequate recovery programs for those in the affected areas The three reports released by the DoD Inspector General highlight these failings “Although there were documented risks, we determined that DoD officials did not effectively manage and oversee the operations, maintenance, and safety of (Defense Fuel Support Point) JBPHH,” the DoD Inspector General said in a third report concerning the operation, maintenance, safety and oversight of the Red Hill facility (PDF) we determined that Navy officials did not follow the basic tenets of their oil and hazardous substance (OHS) incident response plans when responding to the fuel incidents discussed in this report.” In addition to the lawsuits related to the Red Hill water contamination, over 8,000 AFFF lawsuits have been filed by individuals who were either directly exposed to the toxic chemicals in firefighting foam during U.S Navy and military training or active firefighting duties or by those who have consumed water contaminated by AFFF chemicals that have seeped into local water supplies Given the common questions of fact and law raised in the growing number of claims the lawsuits were centralized for pretrial proceedings before U.S as part of the Aqueous Film-Forming Foams Products Liability Litigation As part of the coordinated management of the litigation, a small group of PFAS injury lawsuits are being prepared for trial dates in 2025 involving claims that were brought by individuals who developed testicular cancer after drinking water known to be contaminated with high levels of the chemicals While the outcome of these early trial dates will not have any binding impact on other claims being pursued throughout the federal court system they are designed to help gauge how juries may respond to certain evidence and testimony that will be repeated throughout cancer lawsuits brought by firefighters and other plaintiffs NOTE: Providing information for review by an attorney does not form an attorney-client relationship Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Privacy Policy Terms Of Use and Disclaimers RSS Site Sponsored By: Saiontz & Kirk, P.A Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value" Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_3" ).setAttribute( "value" Hawaii — The University of Hawaii announced Monday it had begun pre-enrollment in its Red Hill Registry which is intended to provide support and resources for those impacted by the Navy’s 2021 jet fuel spill on Oahu Those wishing to pre-enroll will be asked to provide contact information current location and main concerns they wish the registry to address the university said in a news release Monday Enrollment is open to anyone affected by the spill regardless of a connection with the military A form to pre-enroll is at www.RedHillRegistry.org Full enrollment is expected to begin this summer operated by the university’s Office of Strategic Health Initiatives project $27.2-million federal grant from the National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences The registry will also track and study the health status of participants over time in order gain greater understanding of long-term effects from jet-fuel exposure A spill in November 2021 from the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility located a few miles from Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam contaminated one of three wells used by the Navy for its water distribution system for military communities on and near the joint base Thousands of residents were temporarily relocated during the following months as the Navy sealed off the system from the contamination and flushed the pipes consumed and bathed in the tainted water in the wake of the contamination Hundreds have joined a lawsuit in federal court seeking compensation The trial for the first 17 “bellwether” plaintiffs in the civil suit Feindt vs District Court Judge Leslie Kobayashi has not yet issued a decision underscored the need for better understanding of the long-term effects of human exposure to jet fuel Kobayashi disallowed expert testimony about long-term illnesses caused by jet-fuel saying that only animal studies had been conducted do not demonstrate that a specific Plaintiff’s exposure to jet fuel caused that specific Plaintiff’s injuries,” Kobayashi wrote in an April 9 order Human studies on the effects of jet-fuel exposure are feasible and necessary according to a report prepared by the University of Hawaii earlier this year under a requirement by the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2024 “Exposure to jet fuel through the drinking water to the general population is unprecedented and little is known about the potential health effects particularly in vulnerable populations such as children and pregnant women,” the report states 23 to the Committees on Armed Services of the House and Senate Existing studies are too few and too limited in scope to generalize findings “Given the infrastructure that is in development by the Registry including those that are broad in scope or very specific are indeed feasible following a questionnaire-based or modeling-based exposure assessment,” the report states Indiana -- Rainfall and storms forecasted throughout the remainder of the week have rained out both of this weekend’s USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship events at Indiana’s Paragon Speedway and on Saturday The Salute to Levi Jones event at Red Hill Raceway has been rescheduled for Friday marking the series’ first visit to the 3/8-mile dirt oval since 1998 the USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship will return to Paragon on Friday the USAC NOS Energy Drink Midget National Championship will compete at Paragon as part of USAC Indiana Midget Week The USAC AMSOIL Sprint Car National Championship season resumes on Friday Indiana’s Honest Abe Roofing Lincoln Park Speedway and Saturday Get the most important Racing stories delivered straight to your inbox Get the best experience and stay connected to your community with our Spectrum News app. Learn More The University of Hawaii is looking for community participants for two-hour virtual focus groups to help develop the Red Hill Registry The Red Hill Registry will track the health outcomes of individuals impacted by the Red Hill water crisis and connect them with resources.  The Registry team is currently in the planning and community engagement stage of creating the Registry Virtual focus groups will be held from Nov and professionals who responded to the crisis are invited to participate.  "We are committed to co-designing the Registry with the community including by asking key questions in these focus groups," said Tara Sutton director of community engagement for the Red Hill Registry "We seek to understand what resources the community would like the Registry to offer and how the Registry can best operate to meet community needs." Virtual Community Focus Groups (limited to 16-24 participants per category):  People interested in participating in these focus groups may register using the links above or by contacting the Red Hill Registry for more information at tsutton@redhillregistry.org a waiting list will be available via the registration links above.  For more information about the Red Hill Registry, click here. To sign up for updates about the Registry, subscribe at RedHillRegistry.org The Red Hill Community Representation Initiative is in a spat with the Navy over its absence at a meeting last week The group points to what it calls a lack of transparency from the Navy Closure Task Force - Red Hill It’s the latest tension to emerge over the water crisis and it's not too far from two key themes of trust and disruption identified in a new study of the community’s response to the 2021 fuel leak at Red Hill Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to study the community’s recovery in the wake of the fuel spill Vidisha Parasram worked as an Epidemic Intelligence Service fellow for the CDC in the year following the spill "Here was this community that was directly impacted that had to leave their safe space and was still dealing with the COVID-19 virus and they had to move to another location just because their water was contaminated," Parasram said and having people share how difficult the spill was on their lives or they had to move their kids from back and forth between base schools and the location of where their hotel room was So many families told us that they went to the hotel room to shower and stay there in the morning and then they would drive back to the base," she said Parasram said that most people were getting their information on Facebook or in military groups on the app "I'm glad to see that change as the response continued and as the leak unfolded there's really great information out there and on a website Parasram said they documented that the community had the skills needed to respond to the incident as they were able to get information and spread it to community members and businesses "I think that's where public health entities and emergency response leadership that's where they can take the learnings from this and say we need to meet the community where they're getting their information We need to go to those informal networks and work with community leaders and work with just community members to understand where they're getting their information and go there and distribute it in a way that's understandable,'" she said She said the level of community cooperation was surprising "We also were really surprised at how the business community and community members and organizations worked together to go out and get water for each other — whether that was Costco runs it seemed like a lot of businesses kind of shared that burden and work together to do that," she said To read the study, click here. This interview aired on The Conversation on Dec advanced development pipeline and multiple upcoming catalysts TEL AVIV, Israel and RALEIGH, N.C., April 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- RedHill Biopharma Ltd. (NASDAQ: RDHL) ("RedHill" or the "Company") today reported its full-year 2024 financial results and operational highlights and associated filing of its annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31 said: "We have undergone an extensive overhaul reshaping ourselves financially have resulted in new and clearer opportunities to deliver maximum value from both our commercial and R&D assets The potential $60 million ex-North America global license of RHB-102 to Hyloris lays the groundwork for the ongoing development and commercialization in the large gastroenteritis oncology support and IBS-D markets while enabling RedHill to maintain control of the key North American markets The approximately $8 million plus legal costs New York Supreme Court summary judgment was a resounding win for RedHill and we are fully committed to pursuing the collection of this award Last year's recommendation by the latest ACG Clinical Guideline for Talicia as a first-line therapeutic option for H we expect further enhanced Talicia's product profile as the leading branded U.S winning additional formulary successes securing 25 million covered lives Talicia is also poised for a potential UK Marketing Authorisation Application (MAA) mid-year presenting a promising pathway for Talicia's entry into additional markets globally." Ben-Asher continued: "Having successfully completed the Hyloris RHB-102 out-license deal we are now advancing our next-generation candidate supported by RHB-104's positive Phase 3 clinical data opaganib continues to show its broad-acting potential and we are very excited to have initiated the innovative Bayer-supported Phase 2 study in combination with darolutamide which may bring vital new hope to men with metastatic castrate resistant prostate cancer Progress was also made with opaganib as a treatment for GI-ARS following positive results from new in vivo studies government's Radiation and Nuclear Countermeasures Program (RNCP) product pipeline development contract further confirming opaganib's radioprotective activity in models of GI-ARS Discussions are ongoing regarding advanced development Government-supported work in Ebola continues following our previously announced BARDA grant We have started 2025 as we mean to go on – aggressively pursuing our business goals and aiming to deliver on our catalysts in a meaningful way." Financial results for the 12 months ended December 31 Net Revenues for the year ended December 31 compared to $6.5 million for the year ended December 31 Talicia net revenues for the year ended December 31 increased to $9.0 million from $8.8 million for the year ended December 31 driven by approximately $1.0 million of revenues generated from the UAE partnership with Gaelan Medical Net revenues for the years ended December 31 2023 included Movantik contra-revenues of $0.9 million and $2.6 million for Movantik Cost of Revenues for the year ended December 31 compared to $3.5 million for the year ended December 31 The decrease was primarily due to lower inventory write-downs which totaled $0.2 million in 2024 compared to $1.3 million in 2023.   Gross Profit for the year ended December 31 compared to $3.1 million for the year ended December 31 reflecting the increase in net revenues and the lower level of inventory write-downs in 2024 Research and Development Expenses for the year ended December 31 as compared to $3.5 million for the year ended December 31 The decrease was attributable to the costs from closing the RHB-204 clinical trial as well as ongoing cost-reduction measures and General and Administrative Expenses for the year ended December 31 as compared to $31.0 million for the year ended December 31 The reduction was primarily attributable to ongoing cost-reduction measures and the divestment of Movantik in 2023 which led to workforce downsizing and other related expense reductions Other Expenses for the year ended December 31 recognized as part of the Global Termination Agreement3 as compared to Other Income of $44.1 million for the year ended December 31 The Other Income in 2023 was comprised of (i) $35.5 million from the divestiture of Movantik calculated as the difference between the fair value of the rights and the carrying amount of this asset and (ii) $8.6 million from transitional services provided to the buyer of Movantik Operating Loss for the year ended December 31 compared to Operating Income of $12.6 million for the year ended December 31 Both periods include items related to the Movantik divestiture as described under Other Expenses - a $2.3 million loss in 2024 and $44.1 million income in 2023 the year-over-year change reflects improved operating performance driven by cost-cutting measures net of $11.3 million for the year ended December 31 The income recognized for the year ended December 31 was primarily driven by the revaluation of financial instruments partially offset by other financing expenses The income recognized in the year ended December 31 was primarily attributable to a $20.6 million gain resulting from the extinguishment of the HCRM debt in exchange for the transfer of rights to Movantik calculated as the difference between the carrying amount of the financial liability and the fair value of the rights transferred partially offset by financial expenses related to the financial instruments and other financial expenses as compared to Net Income of $23.9 million for the year ended December 31 Both periods include impacts from the Movantik divestiture as detailed under Other Expenses and Financial Income - a $2.3 million loss in 2024 and $64.7 million in income in 2023 the year-over-year change reflects improved performance driven by cost cutting measures.  as compared to $23.0 million as of December 31 The decrease was primarily attributable to the decrease in cash balance reduced inventory and a decline in prepaid expenses and other receivables consistent with the Company's scaled-down operations as well as impact of balances settled as part of the Global Terminations Agreement and a reduction in right-of-use assets following the termination of vehicle leases during 2024 as compared to $21.0 million as of December 31 The increase primarily reflects the impact of the Global Termination Agreement under which the Company incurred liabilities related to Movantik that were allocatable to HCRM and its affiliates under their agreements with the Company offset by payments made toward these liabilities during the period there was an increase in derivative financial instruments associated with warrant liabilities from offerings made during 2024 This was partially offset by a decrease in accounts payable and allowance from deductions from revenues as well as a reduction in lease liabilities due to the termination of car leases Net Cash Used in Operating Activities for the year ended December 31 compared to $35.8 million for the year ended December 31 The cash used in operating activities was primarily directed towards settling pre-closing liabilities related to Movantik and other operational activities This was partially offset by proceeds received from the Global Termination Agreement net of payments made to settle obligations arising from this agreement Net Cash Provided by Financing Activities for the year ended December 31 primarily generated through equity offerings Net Cash Provided by Financing Activities for the year ended December 31 comprised primarily of proceeds from equity offerings and exercise of certain warrants in transactions consummated in each of April 2023 partially offset by repayment of payables in respect of intangible asset purchases Commercial - streamlined and revenue-generating: With a significantly streamlined commercial operation Talicia has generated net revenues of $9.0 million supported by approximately $1.0 million of new revenues from the UAE partnership with Gaelan Medical Significant effort has resulted in important accomplishments with Talicia such as the inclusion as first-line option for treatment of H pylori infection in the recently updated 2024 American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) Clinical Guideline the securing of 25 million covered lives following the Medi-Cal renewal and Humana formulary win a successful launch in the UAE and the potential for opening up new markets with the recently announced plan for a Talicia UK MAA Talicia has now surpassed the 100,000 prescriptions milestone and our innovative warranty program Government and non-governmental collaborations RedHill's pipeline provides new and exciting opportunities in major indications: Crohn's disease Ebola and other viral and pandemic preparedness indications as well as for gastrointestinal-acute radiation syndrome (GI-ARS) and other medical/chemical countermeasure uses: with a demonstrated safety and efficacy profile directed at multiple underserved indications with sizeable multi-billion-dollar market opportunities and potentially advantageous pathways to approval Opaganib is in development for multiple oncology inflammatory and diabetes and obesity-related indications acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and radio/chemical protection A new approach in the $12 billion prostate cancer market: Prostate cancer (PC) is the second most diagnosed cancer in the world with around 1.5 million new cases per year People with metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) have few treatment options available to them the Company announced the initiation of a Bayer-supported Phase 2 study of opaganib in combination with Bayer's darolutamide in mCRPC evaluating the potentially enhancing effect of opaganib in patients with poor prognosis The study will utilize a companion lipid biomarker test (PCPro) to select mCRPC patients who have a poor prognosis due to standard of care (SoC) treatment and who may benefit from an opaganib + darolutamide combination treatment approach The primary endpoint will be improved 12-month radiographic progression-free survival (rPFS) fixed-dose oral capsule containing a combination of clarithromycin at specific doses designed to safely and effectively treat Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis-positive (MAP-positive)-related Crohn's disease (CD) Unlike existing therapies that focus on symptom relief RHB-204 is intended to target the possible root cause of Crohn's disease which is hypothesized to be caused by Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis (MAP) RHB-204 is a next-generation formulation of RHB-104 which successfully completed a Phase 3 study in Crohn's disease with an optimized formulation for the treatment of CD It contains the same three antimicrobial agents with potent intracellular anti-mycobacterial and anti-inflammatory properties RHB-204 provides the potential for enhanced tolerability safety and compliance with a 40% pill burden reduction RHB-204 is supported by a strong foundation of clinical data from the positive safety and efficacy results achieved in the Phase 3 study of RHB-104 in CD with its potential further demonstrated using mucosal healing imaging considered to be the gold standard for efficacy evaluation in CD Paradigm shift in MAP-positive CD treatment approach the Company announced its plans to advance its potentially groundbreaking late-stage RHB-204 Crohn's disease program building on statistically significant positive RHB-104 Phase 3 results FDA guidance on pathway to approval is anticipated in the coming weeks RedHill is actively pursuing funding opportunities and partnerships to advance this potential paradigm-shifting treatment The planned innovative Phase 2 study of RHB-204 is planned to be the first ever clinical study in CD patients who are all MAP-positive and will evaluate mucosal healing a new gold standard in assessing efficacy in Crohn's disease and MAP eradication utilizing novel and decisive endpoints and imaging allowing for a study design with a relatively small sample size RHB-204 builds upon RHB-104's successful Phase 3 study which successfully met its Phase 3 study primary and secondary endpoints demonstrating a statistically significant 64% improvement in efficacy versus standard of care It also showed compelling mucosal healing data in CD patients who underwent colonoscopy The inclusion of MAP-positive only patients in the planned study with RHB-204 is anticipated to demonstrate a more consistent benefit in the study population across all efficacy outcomes we were notified that funding from the U.S Government Department of Defense's Joint Program Executive Office for Chemical Radiological and Nuclear Defense (JPEO-CBRND) for the ongoing 300-patient Phase 2 RHB-107 arm of the ACESO PROTECT platform trial for early COVID-19 outpatient treatment was subject to termination requiring the study to cease enrollment on Feb 28 93 patients have been enrolled out of a fully enrolled target patient population of 300 Due to the reduced number of patients enrolled in this study the study result may not lead to conclusions regarding the efficacy of RHB-107 in this trial Army-funded Ebola development program remains ongoing with RHB-107 having demonstrated a robust synergistic effect in vitro when combined with remdesivir Management of potential Ebola virus pandemic outbreaks represents a significant opportunity and is a key concern for global health agencies The Company will deliver a hard copy of its annual report, including its complete audited financial statements, free of charge, to its shareholders upon request at:[email protected] RedHill Biopharma Ltd. (NASDAQ: RDHL) is a specialty biopharmaceutical company primarily focused on U.S. development and commercialization of drugs for gastrointestinal diseases infectious diseases and oncology. RedHill promotes the FDA-approved gastrointestinal drug Talicia, for the treatment of Helicobacter pylori (H with submission planned for marketing authorization in other territories. RedHill's key clinical late-stage development programs include: (i) opaganib (ABC294640) orally administered sphingosine kinase-2 (SPHK2) selective inhibitor with anticancer targeting multiple indications with U.S Government and academic collaborations for development for radiation and chemical exposure indications such as Gastrointestinal-Acute Radiation Syndrome (GI-ARS) a Phase 2 study in prostate cancer in combination with Bayer's darolutamide and a Phase 2/3 program for hospitalized COVID-19 patients; (ii) RHB-204 combination antibiotic therapy with a planned Phase 2 study for Crohn's disease and Phase 3-stage for pulmonary nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) disease; (iii) RHB-104 with positive results from a first Phase 3 study for Crohn's disease; (iv) RHB-107 (upamostat) host-directed, serine protease inhibitor with potential for pandemic preparedness is in late-stage development as a treatment for non-hospitalized symptomatic COVID-19 and is also targeting multiple other cancer and inflammatory gastrointestinal diseases; and (v) RHB-102 with potential UK submission for chemotherapy and radiotherapy induced nausea and vomiting positive results from a Phase 3 study for acute gastroenteritis and gastritis and positive results from a Phase 2 study for IBS-D RHB-102 is partnered with Hyloris Pharma (EBR: HYL) for worldwide development and commercialization outside North America More information about the Company is available at www.redhillbio.com / X.com/RedHillBio.  This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and may discuss investment opportunities Such statements may be preceded by the words "intends," "may," "will," "plans," "expects," "anticipates," "projects," "predicts," "estimates," "aims," "believes," "hopes," "potential" or similar words Forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions and are subject to various known and unknown risks and uncertainties many of which are beyond the Company's control and cannot be predicted or quantified actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements without limitation: market and other conditions; the Company's ability to regain and maintain compliance with the Nasdaq Capital Market's listing requirements; the risk that the addition of new revenue generating products or out-licensing transactions will not occur; the risk of current uncertainty regarding U.S government research and development funding and that the U.S such studies and results may not be sufficient for regulatory applications including emergency use or marketing applications and that additional studies may be required; the risk of market and other conditions and that the Company will not successfully commercialize its products; as well as risks and uncertainties associated with (i) the initiation progress and results of the Company's research and other therapeutic candidate development efforts and the timing of other regulatory filings approvals and feedback; (iv) the manufacturing and market acceptance of the Company's therapeutic candidates and Talicia®; (v) the Company's ability to successfully commercialize and promote Talicia®; (vi) the Company's ability to establish and maintain corporate collaborations; (vii) the Company's ability to acquire products approved for marketing in the U.S that achieve commercial success and build its own marketing and commercialization capabilities; (viii) the interpretation of the properties and characteristics of the Company's therapeutic candidates and the results obtained with its therapeutic candidates in research pre-clinical studies or clinical trials; (ix) the implementation of the Company's business model strategic plans for its business and therapeutic candidates; (x) the scope of protection the Company is able to establish and maintain for intellectual property rights covering its therapeutic candidates and its ability to operate its business without infringing the intellectual property rights of others; (xi) parties from whom the Company licenses its intellectual property defaulting in their obligations to the Company; (xii) estimates of the Company's expenses capital requirements and needs for additional financing; (xiii) the effect of patients suffering adverse experiences using investigative drugs under the Company's Expanded Access Program; (xiv) competition from other companies and technologies within the Company's industry; and (xv) the hiring and employment commencement date of executive managers More detailed information about the Company and the risk factors that may affect the realization of forward-looking statements is set forth in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) including the Company's Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the SEC on April 10 All forward-looking statements included in this press release are made only as of the date of this press release The Company assumes no obligation to update any written or oral forward-looking statement future events or otherwise unless required by law Adi FrishChief Corporate and Business Development OfficerRedHill Biopharma+972-54-6543-112[email protected] CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) INCOME (LOSS) AND COMPREHENSIVE INCOME (LOSS) FOR THE YEAR The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF FINANCIAL POSITION  U.S. dollars in thousands Accrued expenses and other current liabilities TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY (CAPITAL DEFICIENCY) Adjustments in respect of income and expenses not involving cash flow: Share-based compensation to employees and service providers Gains from the transfer of rights in Movantik® and extinguishment of debt obligations Non-cash expenses related to borrowing and payable in respect of intangible assets purchase Fair value (gains) losses on derivative financial instruments recognition of day 1 loss and changes in royalty obligation Loss from modification of warrants terms as part of a new issuance Exchange differences and revaluation of bank deposits Decrease in prepaid expenses and other receivables Decrease in accrued expenses and other liabilities Increase (decrease) in allowance for deductions from revenue Change in investment in current bank deposits Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities Proceeds from issuance of ordinary shares and warrants Repayment of payable in respect of intangible asset purchase Payment of principal with respect to lease liabilities EXCHANGE DIFFERENCES ON CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS BALANCE OF CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS AT THE BEGINNING OF PERIOD BALANCE OF CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS AT THE END OF PERIOD SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION ON INTEREST RECEIVED IN CASH SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION ON INTEREST PAID IN CASH SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION ON NON-CASH INVESTING AND FINANCING ACTIVITIES: Acquisition of right-of-use assets by means of lease liabilities Decrease in lease liability (with corresponding decrease in right of use asset in amount of $166 in 2024 and $4,697 in 2023) resulting from early termination of lease Transfer of rights in Movantik® and extinguishment of debt obligations: Decrease in Payable in respect of Intangible asset Gains from the transfer of the rights in Movantik® and extinguishment of debt obligations Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1334141/RedHill_Biopharma_Logo.jpg (Nasdaq: RDHL) ("RedHill" or the "Company") Health Care & Hospitals Medical Pharmaceuticals Pharmaceuticals Biotechnology Do not sell or share my personal information: In November 2021 a Navy employee driving a small vehicle hauling a cart accidentally struck a drain valve on the overhead pipeline JP-5 jet fuel flowed from the pipeline for 34 hours and contaminated the Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam water system It caused at least 6,000 medical injuries and $2.1 billion in damages in addition to environmental damage and risk to Oʻahu's drinking water supply That’s one detail released in new reports by the Department of Defense’s Office of Inspector General The office found that Navy officials did not effectively manage the fuel support at Pearl Harbor They lacked accurate infrastructure records and had inoperable fuel release detection methods The inspector general also said the inherent risks of the facility were well known to the Navy and they had an incident response plan — but did not follow it the office issued 16 total recommendations to the secretaries of defense and the Navy The Navy's responses to the recommendations and their current statuses are included in the report Hawaiʻis congressional delegation called for the investigation in 2021 and released a joint statement following the release of the reports “These independent reports make clear that for decades the Navy and the Department of Defense have failed to manage fuel and water operations at Red Hill and across Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam to a standard that protects the health and safety of the people of Hawai‘i It’s outrageous and unacceptable," they said They called on the Navy to implement the recommendations and noted that the delegation has secured more than $2 billion in federal funding towards the cleanup Click here to open the following document in a new tab Click here to open the following document in a new tab. Follow Us The US Navy plans to reactivate two Oahu water wells despite concerns over potential contamination from the nearby Red Hill fuel facility HONOLULU, HAWAII - More than three years after shutting down two of its Oahu water wells due to the Red Hill water crisis The state Department of Health has granted the Navy "conditional approval" to work towards reactivating its Aiea-Halawa Shaft The Navy has also released a draft environmental impact statement on building water treatment facilities that would allow it to reactivate the fuel-contaminated Red Hill Shaft The Navy is soliciting public feedback on the plan until Sunday which sits 100 feet above an aquifer serving most of Honolulu was shut down permanently after fuel contamination affected the Navy's Oahu water system Representatives of the Honolulu Board of Water Supply and the Red Hill Community Representation Initiative have raised concerns about the reactivation plans particularly regarding public notification CRI member Ilima DeCosta expressed concern that the Department of Health didn't inform the public about the conditional approval The Department of Health's conditional approval requires the Navy to meet 12 conditions before reactivating the Aiea-Halawa Shaft These conditions include reporting on sampling results removing "forever chemicals," and providing at least 10 days' notice before reactivation The Honolulu Board of Water Supply has expressed concerns about uncertainty over underground water flow questioning whether reactivating the Aiea-Halawa Shaft could draw contaminants from the Red Hill Shaft The Department of Health insists that the Navy's groundwater flow model is flawed and that several factors would prevent water from the Red Hill Shaft from contaminating the Aiea-Halawa Shaft The Navy plans to construct an interim water treatment facility to reconnect the Red Hill Shaft to the drinking water system will filter water using Granular Activated Carbon no timeline has been given for the completion of a permanent water treatment plant Jill Tokuda emphasized the bipartisan commitment to the Red Hill cleanup we need to make sure that we are literally not poisoning our service members' water." The Navy and the EPA have faced criticism for their handling of the crisis including a $5,000 fine for violating the federal consent order The Navy is required to conduct an environmental assessment and solicit public feedback under the National Environmental Policy Act If the assessment determines significant impact a formal Environmental Impact Statement will be crafted The public can provide feedback on the draft environmental impact statement until Sunday The US marks the 50th anniversary of the fall of Saigon remembering the chaotic evacuation and the .. Massive Blackout Brings Spain and Portugal to a Standstill A massive power outage brought Spain and Portugal to a standstill a prominent advocate for survivors of sexual abuse who accused Prince Andrew of se.. George Santos Sentenced to 7 Years in Prison for Wire Fraud .. Former Republican congressman George Santos has been sentenced to more than 7 years in prison for wi.. Hawaii — Navy officials did not effectively manage operations safety and oversight in accordance with policy and federal and state laws at the now-defunct Red Hill fuel facility in Hawaii according to a pair of Department of Defense reports released recently A fuel leak at the facility in late 2021 contaminated the Navy’s water distribution used by military communities on and near Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam according to a news release Thursday from the DOD Inspector General’s Office The DOD spent more than $220 million responding to the 2021 contamination incident The National Defense Authorization Acts for fiscal years 2022 and 2023 included more than $2.1 billion in funding related to the water contamination and the facility’s closure Thousands were forced to relocate for months to area hotels as the Navy flushed the system Some residents reported a host of maladies in the wake of the spill Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in March 2022 ordered the World War II-era underground storage facility to be permanently closed The process of emptying and cleaning the 20 massive tanks and cleaning up the soil surrounding the facility will take years One of the Navy’s wells remains contaminated with jet fuel The two IG reports stated that risks inherent at the facility were well documented and that incident response plans to mitigate them existed the DoD OIG also found that Navy officials did not follow the basic tenets of their incident response plans or meet the reporting requirements for fuel incidents,” the news release states the incident response plans were insufficient,” the release states Navy officials “did not consistently analyze trends in the fuel inventory to prevent and respond to potential or actual fuel incidents “It is imperative that the Navy address ongoing challenges with the management of fuel and water systems at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam,” Inspector General Robert P “Although the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility was defueled and the DoD intends to close it permanently the fueling operations at Naval Station Pearl Harbor and Hickam Air Force Base remain in operation,” he said the Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam Community Water System continues to provide drinking water to Service members “Unless the DoD mitigates critical infrastructure issues Among the IG’s 16 recommendations are that the DOD assesses leak detection systems at all Navy fueling points The recommendations build upon those made in previous reports by the U.S Environmental Protection Agency and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry as well as command investigations by the Vice Chief of Naval Operations and the Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command which requested an IG investigation almost three years ago on Thursday called on the Navy to fully implement the recommendations “The Navy must take full responsibility for its failures and immediately implement the recommendations from the Inspector General in order to address the ongoing impacts to public health and the environment,” the delegation said in a news release Hawaii — The Defense Department’s complex management of the defunct Red Hill underground fuel storage facility in Honolulu relied on contractors for essential services in the years preceding disastrous fuel leaks in 2021 relied on a complex and interconnected set of roles and responsibilities to manage the operations and repair activities at Red Hill,” the U.S Government Accountability Office said in a report Monday contractors also played an essential role in the maintenance and repair of equipment,” it said The GAO report offers no conclusions about the degree to which contractors might have contributed to the fuel leaks was sparked in part by the role a contractor played in a November 2022 spill of a concentrated form of a hazardous fire-fighting foam at the facility About 1,300 gallons of foam escaped into the environment because a contractor improperly installed a valve on the system that allowed the release “Both the fuel leaks and the [foam] concentrate release have raised questions about what role and repair of Red Hill and the Navy’s oversight of its contractors,” the GAO report states chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee’s subcommittee on readiness Jet fuel leaks in May and November 2021 contaminated the Navy’s water distribution system that supplied military communities on and near Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam The contamination forced thousands to temporarily relocate to area hotels as the Navy flushed the system and isolated the tainted well Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced in March 2022 that the World War II-era facility would be permanently closed The Navy is amid a multiyear effort to clean the 20 massive tanks and clean up contamination in the area surrounding them A Navy investigation into the cause of the fuel leaks concluded that several deficiencies had led to the spill including poor training and ineffective command and control Several DOD entities had a hand in the Red Hill operation in 2021 Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command and the Army Corps of Engineers maintenance and repair activities with support from the Defense Logistics Agency “The decentralized structure at Red Hill necessitated careful coordination and management of responsibilities and relationships,” the report states the logistics agency was not involved in day-to-day operations unless fuel was being delivered at which time they coordinated with Fleet Logistics Center Pearl Harbor And although the logistics center was responsible for operating the facility it had no role in larger maintenance or repair of the tanks or facility Contractors performed key roles in maintaining and repairing equipment at Red Hill in the years leading up to the 2021 leaks “Contractors were responsible for performing preventative maintenance and corrective repairs on the fuel tanks as well as monitoring services,” the report states changed its approach to contracting for Red Hill after the contamination It awarded eight of the 10 pre-spill contracts reviewed by GAO on a competitive basis the Navy awarded all six of the contracts GAO reviewed noncompetitively in part to address urgent safety or environmental concerns and identify needed maintenance and repairs,” the report states This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks The action you just performed triggered the security solution There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page Hawaii — The Navy Closure Task Force-Red Hill will start venting the fourth of 14 tanks at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility on Tuesday after notifying the Hawaii Department of Health the Navy took over responsibility for the closure process for Red Hill after the Joint Task Force-Red Hill drained 104 million gallons of fuel from the tanks.  The final closure process includes four phases: removing 28,000 gallons of sludge from the tanks cleaning 16 storage tanks and four surge tanks removing over 10 miles of pipeline that runs between the Red Hill facility and Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and completing environmental remediation around the facility.  NCTF-RH is currently undergoing the first of these phases To remove the sludge from the Red Hill tanks Navy officials said the tanks must first be vented.  NCTF-RH will start venting Tank 5 at the facility The initial venting phase eliminates any residual volatile organic compounds from the tanks by pushing clean air from the bottom of the tank and exhausting it upward through a ventilation system The venting process typically takes three to six weeks the Navy was required to install nine air quality monitoring stations at the perimeter of the Red Hill facility the air quality monitoring data will be updated hourly on the NCTF-RH mobile app and daily on the website.  at an average of .003 parts per million volume total VOCs If air quality levels reach 20 parts per million by volume at the stack where the ventilation system’s exit point is located NCTF-RH will cease operations until levels have decreased.  NCTF-RH said if air quality levels reach 38 parts per million by volume According to the Environmental Protection Agency Human exposure at these levels may include discomfort irritation or certain asymptomatic non-sensory effects The EPA considers air quality levels at 144 parts per million by volume as Level 2 exposure These conditions may include long-lasting adverse health effects or an impaired ability to escape.  DOH’s conditional approval of the Navy’s air quality monitoring plan requires NCTF-RH to notify the public at least 12 hours before they vent a tank limit the number of tanks that may be vented at any time to two and limit the number of tanks that may be vented in a calendar year to six.  Michelle Broder Van Dyke covers the Hawaiian Islands for Spectrum News Hawaii. Email her at michelle.brodervandyke@charter.com The Pentagon's inspector general has concluded that the U.S Navy didn't understand the spill risks involved in operating its Red Hill fuel tank site at Pearl Harbor and it repeatedly failed to respond when a major spill finally occurred exposing thousands of military family members to fuel-tainted drinking water with multiple missed opportunities to intervene along the way about 19,000 gallons of fuel were inadvertently pumped into a PVC drain line on the ceiling of an access tunnel That overhead drain line sagged under the weight until it drooped low enough to get hit by a passing maintenance cart The impact broke off a drain valve and spilled all the contents of the line onto the floor and an unknown amount flowed into a water well located inside the access tunnel That well fed the freshwater supply system for Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam About 4,000 military families were displaced from their homes because of contaminated water and military doctors treated about 6,000 people for symptoms of fuel exposure and related illnesses The cleanup and the planned closure of Red Hill will cost more than $2 billion.  the IG determined that the Navy managers on site had limited knowledge of the facility and did little to ensure safe operation They didn't even have an accurate map of their site: When inspectors visited the base library to look for up-to-date site plans they found "documents overflowing into the hallway and piles of engineering drawings scattered on various tables," and there was no librarian After asking around and getting no answers the IG team concluded that "Navy officials did not have accurate and up to date as?built drawings of [Red Hill's] tanks The spill response plan for the Red Hill system didn't contemplate the possibility of a pipeline leak even though the pipelines were kept filled with about 200,000 gallons of fuel each at all times It also did not acknowledge the presence of a drinking water well inside Red Hill's access tunnel "The bad assumption we made was that the tunnel system would be containment," one Navy official told the team "There was no emphasis put on other potential impacts to the drinking water well because we believed it would be contained in the tunnel." the command conducted "no comprehensive fuel spill response drills" before the large-scale spill occurred The IG also found evidence of deteriorating infrastructure and it learned that the facility's maintenance team was deferring up to 100 percent of new corrective tasks per month in order to address a backlog - despite "high levels of overtime." A shortage of technicians lack of maintenance instructions and a lack of a work order system exacerbated the problem The team also found a lack of consistent lockout/tagout procedures resulting in at least one prior spill and at least one serious safety hazard The entire facility's fire suppression system was left locked out and disabled for more than a year including a period when hot work was going on in the tanks and tunnels - and no notice was given to contractors that the site had no working firefighting system.  the IG faulted the Navy for allowing a contractor to install the PVC drain line instead of the stronger steel line originally specified in requirements - which would have been less likely to sag and might have prevented the spill.  when the spill finally happened and it came time to mount a response the Navy's site managers ignored their own spill response plan They did not appoint one leader to manage the response as spill incident commander and the designated incident manager for Pearl Harbor - the Navy On-Scene Coordinator Representative (NOSC-R) - did not even visit the site to look at it officials missed multiple opportunities to prevent exposing servicemembers and their families to contaminated water because they did not activate the base-wide emergency response plan Red Hill's managers assumed that the spill was contained in a sump on the 20th and even after examining the scene in more detail on the 24th they failed to identify clues that the well had been contaminated They didn't immediately check or sample the well to see if there was fuel in it - even after instructed to do so by the Hawaii Department of Health.  Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam got the first complaint of a chemical odor in drinking water on base The number of complaints rose on November 28 and officials began to suspect water contamination but even then they did not activate the base-wide drinking water emergency response plan Navy officials missed four opportunities to activate the [water system response plan]," the IG concluded.  The Hawaii Department of Health took over and issued an advisory not to drink or use the base's tap water on November 29 it ordered a full shutdown of the Red Hill tank farm and a cleanup treatment of the drinking water system Lab testing of the tapwater revealed elevated concentrations of aromatic hydrocarbons in the benzene which were potentially consumed by thousands of base personnel.  the IG called for better spill detection and response planning. "The DoD must take this action to ensure that tragedies like the one in November of 2021 are not allowed to repeat," Inspector General Robert P noting that the Navy still operates a large fuel transfer hub at Pearl Harbor "Our recommendations include that the DoD assess leak detection systems at other Navy fuel support points." Hawaii's congressional delegation called the findings "outrageous and unacceptable." "The Navy must take full responsibility for its failures and immediately implement the recommendations from the Inspector General in order to address the ongoing impacts to public health and the environment," said Senators Brian Schatz and Mazie Hirono and Representatives Ed Case and Jill Tokuda [D-HI] has been called a whistleblower for trying to flag the dysfunction at the fuel storage facility This month marks three years since Red Hill fuel contaminated a drinking water well that supplied water to 90,000 people at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam Bencs currently serves as a supply officer at Marine Corps Base Hawaiʻi after her superiors transferred her out of Red Hill following her complaints about the operation A previous after-incident report indicated she was the last remaining person with fuel expertise and she told us she was cut out of the emergency response She affirmed she feels some vindication with the latest Department of Defense Inspector General's report. Bencs said she was interviewed by the IG investigators and hopes she helped them understand the systemic problems she tried to flag to her superiors and others She said what didnʻt come out of the report was accountability — who would be held responsible for the mismanagement "A lot of these were known facts to leadership I think rank and abuse of power got in the way of a lot of these operations," she said she realized that contractors had open access to the facility "They were making calls and calling shots without any government approvals It was really the wild wild west," she said there is some government fault and mismanagement I think that has a lot to do with these people these civilians and senior officers not being fuels trained." While she had filed a False Claims Act complaint with the U.S Justice Department against defense contractors the department opted not to go forward with her concerns Bencs said the IG's report validated that Red Hill is a problem "My hope is that they finally get petroleum engineers and people certified in petroleum operations that they hire experts to read and understand Red Hill — even call me even though I know Red Hill inside and out Bencs said she was "appalled" when she found out that the fire suppression system at Red Hill was not working — putting her and other workers at risk "I just cannot believe that Navy officers or officials above me allowed me and my workers to go inside that facility," she said she has to work harder to have the same credibility as a man but being a woman in the military is really hard because there's not a lot of us and I think that was kind of what the Navy did wrong too because they didn't take my credibility as all the rest of the people that worked there," she said When questioned if she would take a position back at Pearl Harbor if asked by the military This interview aired on The Conversation on Nov Tori DeJournett adapted this story for the web