Environmental officials are recommending that a one-acre landfill at Bellows Air Force Station along Windward Oahu be capped with soil. Officials recommend
Bellows landfill soil capStar-Bulletin staff
But EnviroWatch and some Waimanalo residents say the Air Force and the Marine Corps have "ignored community wishes and have chosen to cap the landfill with dirt and leave it in place."
"The community has said that they want the landfill contents removed as opposed to putting dirt on it and walking away," said EnviroWatch President Carroll Cox.
The community is pushing for removal because contaminants such as zinc, mercury and lead were found at the site, Cox said.
"The zinc, for example, exceeds the permissible level so we're looking at an a cumulative impact on the fisheries and the bay and the marine life," he said.
The Air Force says the capping option grew out of a three-year, $2 million study of soil samples, groundwater, surface water, sediments and area wildlife.
The other options considered were taking no action and removal and transfer of the landfill's contents to another location.
The Air Force said its environmental officials and their counterparts with the Marine Corps and the state Department of Health support capping the landfill.
The soil cap is considered the best option to protect the environment, military members who train in the area and residents of Waimanalo, Bellows program manager Leanne Tanouye said.
Water sampling found the contents of the landfill didn't have a significant impact on local ground water or nearby Waimanalo Stream, the Air Force said.
Col. Al Riggle, commander of the 15th Air Base Wing, will make the final decision on the landfill.