Inspector General Report On Red Hill Fuel Spill Confirms Resident Concerns
The Navy’s and Department of Defense’s initial responses to the IG’s recommendations provide little assurance of meaningful accountability and protections moving forward. Most “resolved” recommendations remain to be implemented over months or years, while numerous other recommendations remain “unresolved.”
Particularly troubling is the response to the primary IG recommendations that oversight of fuels facilities operations and maintenance and drinking water compliance be assigned to specific accountable individuals. The Department of Defense’s vague responses—assigning these roles to the Pearl Harbor Commanding Officer—would merely continue the practice of entrusting the operation of extremely complex systems to a revolving door of short-term Navy leaders, for whom environmental and human health and safety have never been a demonstrated priority.