Editorial: More military pollution

An aging system at an Oahu military base, with deteriorating facilities and equipment. An operation with spills that are fouling Hawaii’s environment. And military resistance to regulatory oversight that’s clouding needed transparency.

Such are the ongoing conditions at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam — and sadly, they apply not only to the Red Hill fuel storage facility that caused the ongoing water-contamination crisis, but also to the base’s sewage treatment facility.

The latest known sewage spill occurred on March 7, when 14,000 gallons of partially treated wastewater was released from the base’s Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP). Due to a power spike, a few minutes of ultraviolet disinfection, the fourth and final step in the treatment process, was interrupted. The effluent was discharged into Mamala Bay via a deep ocean outfall, about 1.5 miles from shore.

That came just two months after 3,500 gallons of untreated wastewater spilled into Pearl Harbor on Dec. 30, when an air release valve in a distribution line failed.

Of particular concern is that the recent spills might be heralding deeper problems for a plant that’s been operating for decades. Built in increments starting in 1969, with large-scale expansions in 1997 and in January 2005, the Navy’s WWTP started reporting effluent limit violations around 2020.

In fact, in June 2021, the Navy agreed with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to address deficiencies with the treatment plant.

Still, the problems persist. Last September, the military’s sewage pollution into Pearl Harbor between January 2020 and July 2022 finally spurred the state Department of Health (DOH) to slap the Navy with an $8.7 million fine. It was a necessary reaction to the seriousness of the situation, with the DOH finding 212 counts of operation and maintenance failures at the WWTP. But the Navy has asked for a hearing to dispute the fines.

If there’s one encouraging aspect, it is that the Navy and DOH this week said they were working together to make repairs to the faulty WWTP. But beyond that, details of the improvements were vague, leaving the public in the dark about the depth and scope of the deficiencies.

“Navy and DOH wastewater subject matter experts are discussing immediate actions the Navy has accomplished and ongoing planning for interim and long-term corrective actions,” the Navy told reporter Kevin Knodell when asked for specifics.

All entities involved must be more forthcoming on the sewage plant’s deficiencies and necessary fixes. As evidenced by the Red Hill fuel-water disaster — in which the Navy repeatedly assured that things were well under control, when they weren’t — “just trust us” no longer cuts it.