HONOLULU – The Hawaiʻi Department of Health (DOH) has conditionally approved the Navy Closure Task Force – Red Hill (NCTF-RH) Air Quality Monitoring (AQM) Plan. This plan will be implemented during the cleaning and venting of the primary tanks at the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility. DOH utilized its authority under a May 2022 Emergency Order to mandate that the Navy develop a comprehensive Tank Cleaning Ventilation Air Quality Monitoring Plan to protect public health.
NCTF-RH submitted the AQM Plan to DOH through letters dated April 12, May 13, and May 28, 2024. The plan included an air quality model demonstrating that emissions should not exceed levels harmful to public health. Additionally, DOH requires air monitoring to ensure that fuel tank cleaning and venting operations are conducted safely for communities.
The DOH reviewed these submissions and identified conditions for the AQM Plan that NCTF-RH must meet before and during venting activities. These conditions are detailed in DOH’s conditional approval letter dated May 29 and include:
- Public notification at least 12 hours before starting to vent a tank.
- Continuous measurement and recording of total volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions at the exhaust vent and total VOC concentrations at nine air monitor locations in and around the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility.
- Near real-time reporting of air monitoring data to the public, including date, time, and total VOC concentration in parts per million by volume (ppmv), for each one-hour averaging period.
- Immediate notification to DOH if there is an exceedance of Exposure Duration Limits as identified in the DOH's May 17 letter.
- Ceasing active venting and notifying DOH if the one-hour Time Weighted Average (TWA) of total VOC concentration exceeds 20 ppmv at the exhaust vent.
- Ceasing active venting and notifying both DOH and the public if any of the nine air monitors detect VOC concentrations exceeding an acute Exposure Duration Limit of 38 ppmv within a one-hour TWA. In such cases, NCTF-RH must seek DOH approval before restarting ventilation.
- Limiting tank venting to six tanks per calendar year.
- Limiting simultaneous tank venting to two tanks.
- Notifying DOH within 24 hours when starting to vent a second tank.
For further details on this matter, refer to copies of relevant letters from April 22, May 17, and May 29 available through provided links.