Editorial: Real Red Hill oversight

TL;DR - In a positive first step with many more difficult ones to come, the state Department of Health on Friday approved the U.S. Navy’s plan to start “unpacking” about 1 million gallons of fuel that’s been sitting in three pipelines at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility since last year’s water contamination crisis.

The Department of Defense “must continue to work with state officials and community leaders as quickly as possible,” reacted Hawaii’s U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz. “There’s no turning back, and there’s no time to waste.”

He’s correct, of course. The pipelines’ draining, due to start in two weeks, is simply the beginning of the arduous task of removing about 100 million gallons of fuel from the massive Red Hill tanks, which sit just 100 feet above a key Oahu aquifer.

October 8, 2022: Editorial: Real Red Hill oversight, Honolulu Star Advertiser