STAR-BULLETIN / FEBRUARY 2006 Spc. Daragh Goode, left, and Sgt. Darryl Outlaw rode on top of the Stryker Medical Evacuation vehicle during a test drive at Schofield Barracks in February.

Military tells panel Stryker unit is vital

An environmental group and Hawaiian activists want a halt to all related activities

Government lawyers say that halting Schofield Barracks' $1.5 billion Stryker unit would do "irreparable harm" to the Army, soldiers of the 2nd Brigade and the nation's security.

They oppose a motion by island environmentalists and Hawaiian activists who want the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to approve a temporary order halting all work on Stryker-related activities in Hawaii.

U.S. Justice Department attorneys Andrew Mergen and Michael Gray on Monday said "national security concerns" are more compelling today than they were on Nov. 5, 2004, when a federal court judge rejected environmentalists' first petition for a preliminary injunction.

The Army argued that the 2nd Brigade is scheduled to become a "fully manned, trained and equipped Stryker Brigade Combat Team, ready for deployment by November 2007."

Lt. Gen. John Brown, who heads Army troops in the Pacific, wrote in a letter published Monday in the Honolulu Star-Bulletin that the combat deployment will be to Iraq. This will be the second time the 25th Infantry Division's 2nd Brigade will pull combat duty there.

David Henkin, attorney with Earthjustice, said he expects the 9th Circuit in San Francisco will rule on its request for a temporary injunction by Tuesday.

Henkin said Earthjustice wants to temporarily stop the project so the environmental group and the Army can discuss what activities can proceed.

On Oct. 5 by a 2-1 vote, a three-judge federal appeals panel ruled that the Army's environmental impact statement was inadequate because it didn't consider other training sites where the 328, 19-ton, eight-wheeled combat vehicles could be located.

Henkin said Earthjustice wants a permanent injunction preventing the Army from proceeding with 28 Stryker-related construction projects, totaling $693 million.

Henkin said Earthjustice wants the federal court to rule by Tuesday because the Army wants to start construction on a Schofield Barracks Battle Area Complex training area on the next day.

ZapataEngineering was awarded a nearly $5 million contract two years ago to clear 941 acres for gunnery training and weapons qualifications.

In its response, Army lawyers rejected Earthjustice's arguments that the 2nd Brigade could finish its training in Alaska or Washington because the Stryker units assigned to those Army posts would be back from Iraq.

"Training at another location would also requiring transporting ... personnel, equipment and vehicles to that installation that require 80 percent of the Air Force's transport capacity and would consume 40 out of 270 available training days," the Army lawyers wrote.

Government lawyers also said moving the 2nd Brigade out of Hawaii to complete its training would "reduce the Army's posture to deter conflict and meet treaty obligations in the Pacific region including the Republic of Korea."