Former Atlantic Fleet Weapons Training Area - Vieques

Environmental Restoration Program Public Website

Vieques

Vieques Island has a land area of approximately 33,000 acres and is located in the Caribbean Sea approximately 7 miles east of the main island of Puerto Rico (Figure 1). The former Atlantic Fleet Weapons Training Area in Vieques (AFWTA-Vieques), Puerto Rico, served as the Navy’s training range for ensuring combat readiness of U.S. Atlantic Fleet Forces and for North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) operations from the 1940s until 2003. The former Vieques Naval Training Range (VNTR), located on the eastern half of the island, was used for various aspects of naval gunfire training, including air-to-ground ordnance delivery, amphibious landings, and housed the main base of operations at Camp Garcia for military training and support activities. The former Naval Ammunition Support Detachment (NASD), which was located on the western half of the island, was used mainly for ammunition loading and storage, vehicle and facility maintenance, and open burn/open detonation activities. The communities of Isabel Segunda and Esperanza are located between the former VNTR and former NASD.

Figure 1: Regional Location Map

Background

Per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) have been used in the United States since the 1950s. In countless household and commercial products, PFAS chemicals are valued for their stain resistant and water repellent properties. PFAS has also been a key component of aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF), used by the U.S. military to put out gasoline and fuel fires. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has determined that exposure to PFAS can be harmful to human health. In cities or rural areas where groundwater is a source of drinking water, human exposure will occur if PFAS is present in the groundwater. Groundwater on Vieques is not used as a source of drinking water. Instead, water for the island is delivered by pipeline from mainland Puerto Rico. Thus, there can be no exposure to PFAS from the Navy sites on Vieques.

Identification and Sampling of Potential PFAS Release Areas at Vieques

In accordance with Navy policy to address past releases of PFAS at installations nationwide, a Preliminary Assessment (PA) was completed that evaluated the potential for PFAS to be present as a result of historic military practices conducted at the AFWTA-Vieques (CH2M, 2020). Based on information contained in the PA Report, 13 areas were identified as possible AFFF or other PFAS-containing material source/release areas. These thirteen areas were identified during the PA as possible PFAS source/release areas because of: (a) the potential storage or use of AFFF for activities associated with firefighting readiness and training, (b) disposal of potential AFFF-containing containers or other materials, and (c) discharge or treatment of water potentially containing AFFF. Six of the areas are within the former NASD (Figure 2) and seven areas are within the former VNTR (Figure 3). PFAS sampling was conducted at each of the following areas as part of a Site Inspection (SI):

Former NASD

AOC H – Former Power Plant Fire Training Area
Former Fire Station Building 2046 at the Public Works Area
Potential Former Motor Pool Area
AOC B – Former Wastewater Treatment Plant
SWMU 6 – Former Mangrove Disposal Site
SWMU 7 – Former Quebrada Disposal Site

Former VNTR

Potential Former Motor Pool Area (including Building 340) and Former Fire Department Building 330
SWMU 20 – Former Helicopter Maintenance Area
Camp Garcia Runway
PI 5 – Surface Water Drainage Area from Camp Garcia Runway
SWMU 10 – Former Sewage Treatment Lagoons
AOC G – Former Sewage Treatment Chlorination Building
SWMU 1 – Former Camp Garcia Municipal Solid Waste Management Unit (Landfill)

The PFAS PA Report, PFAS SI Quality Assurance Project Plan, and PFAS SI Report can be found in the Vieques Administrative Record (Online at: https://go.usa.gov/xSfZq). These documents detail the operational backgrounds of each site, the rationale for PFAS sampling, and the results.

Figure 2: PFAS SI Investigation Areas at the Former NASD