THE ENVIRONMENTAL RESTORATION PROGRAM AT SPRING VALLEY HEARING BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON FEDERAL WORKFORCE, POSTAL SERVICE, AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA OF THE COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND GOVERNMENT REFORM HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ONE HUNDRED ELEVENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION JUNE 10, 2009 Serial No. 111–20 Printed for the use of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform ( Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/congress/index.html http://www.house.gov/reform U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 53–572 PDF WASHINGTON : 2009 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2104 Mail: Stop IDCC, Washington, DC 20402–0001 VerDate 11-MAY-2000 10:41 Dec 14, 2009 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 U:\DOCS\53572.TXT KATIE PsN: KATIE COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND GOVERNMENT REFORM EDOLPHUS TOWNS, New York, Chairman PAUL E. KANJORSKI, Pennsylvania DARRELL E. ISSA, California CAROLYN B. MALONEY, New York DAN BURTON, Indiana ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS, Maryland JOHN M. MCHUGH, New York DENNIS J. KUCINICH, Ohio JOHN L. MICA, Florida JOHN F. TIERNEY, Massachusetts MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana WM. LACY CLAY, Missouri TODD RUSSELL PLATTS, Pennsylvania DIANE E. WATSON, California JOHN J. DUNCAN, JR., Tennessee STEPHEN F. LYNCH, Massachusetts MICHAEL R. TURNER, Ohio JIM COOPER, Tennessee LYNN A. WESTMORELAND, Georgia GERALD E. CONNOLLY, Virginia PATRICK T. MCHENRY, North Carolina MIKE QUIGLEY, Illinois BRIAN P. BILBRAY, California MARCY KAPTUR, Ohio JIM JORDAN, Ohio ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, District of JEFF FLAKE, Arizona Columbia JEFF FORTENBERRY, Nebraska PATRICK J. KENNEDY, Rhode Island JASON CHAFFETZ, Utah DANNY K. DAVIS, Illinois AARON SCHOCK, Illinois CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, Maryland HENRY CUELLAR, Texas PAUL W. HODES, New Hampshire CHRISTOPHER S. MURPHY, Connecticut PETER WELCH, Vermont BILL FOSTER, Illinois JACKIE SPEIER, California STEVE DRIEHAUS, Ohio ——— ——— RON STROMAN, Staff Director MICHAEL MCCARTHY, Deputy Staff Director CARLA HULTBERG, Chief Clerk LARRY BRADY, Minority Staff Director SUBCOMMITTEE ON FEDERAL WORKFORCE, POSTAL SERVICE, AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA STEPHEN F. LYNCH, Massachusetts, Chairman ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON, District of JASON CHAFFETZ, Utah Columbia JOHN M. MCHUGH, New York DANNY K. DAVIS, Illinois MARK E. SOUDER, Indiana ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS, Maryland BRIAN P. BILBRAY, California DENNIS J. KUCINICH, Ohio WM. LACY CLAY, Missouri GERALD E. CONNOLLY, Virginia WILLIAM MILES, Staff Director (II) VerDate 11-MAY-2000 10:41 Dec 14, 2009 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 U:\DOCS\53572.TXT KATIE PsN: KATIE C O N T E N T S Page Hearing held on June 10, 2009 ............................................................................... 1 Statement of: Davis, Addison, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Environment, Safety, and Occupational Health, U.S. Army; Colonel Peter Mueller, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; William C. Early, Acting Regional Administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; and George S. Hawkins, Direc- tor, D.C. Department of the Environment .................................................. 123 Davis, Addison ........................................................................................... 23 Early, William C. ....................................................................................... 141 Hawkins, George S. ................................................................................... 148 Mueller, Colonel Peter .............................................................................. 132 Kerwin, Cornelius M., president, American University; Nan Shelby Wells, ANC commissioner 3D03; Thomas Smith, ANC commissioner 3D02; Kent Slowinski, former member, Spring Valley Restoration Advisory Board; Gregory A. Beumel, chairman, Spring Valley Restoration Advi- sory Board; and James Barton, president, Underwater Ordnance Recov- ery, Inc. .......................................................................................................... 172 Barton, James ............................................................................................ 233 Beumel, Gregory A. ................................................................................... 226 Kerwin, Cornelius M. ................................................................................ 172 Slowinski, Kent ......................................................................................... 214 Smith, Thomas .......................................................................................... 187 Wells, Nan Shelby ..................................................................................... 179 Mittal, Anu K., Director, Natural Resources and Environment, U.S. Gov- ernment Accountability Office; and Harold Bailey, Garvey Schubert Barer .............................................................................................................. 14 Bailey, Harold ............................................................................................ 37 Mittal, Anu K. ........................................................................................... 14 Letters, statements, etc., submitted for the record by: Bailey, Harold, Garvey Schubert Barer, prepared statement of .................. 39 Barton, James, president, Underwater Ordnance Recovery, Inc., prepared statement of ................................................................................................... 234 Beumel, Gregory A., chairman, Spring Valley Restoration Advisory Board, prepared statement of ...................................................................... 228 Blumenauer, Hon. Earl, a Representative in Congress from the State of Oregon, prepared statement of ................................................................ 12 Chaffetz, Hon. Jason, a Representative in Congress from the State of Utah, prepared statement of ........................................................................ 6 Connolly, Hon. Gerald E., a Representative in Congress from the State of Virginia, prepared statement of .............................................................. 120 Davis, Addison, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Environment, Safety, and Occupational Health, U.S. Army, prepared statement of .......................... 126 Early, William C., Acting Regional Administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, prepared statement of .................................................. 143 Hawkins, George S., Director, D.C. Department of the Environment, pre- pared statement of ........................................................................................ 151 Kerwin, Cornelius M., president, American University, prepared state- ment of ........................................................................................................... 175 Lynch, Hon. Stephen F., a Representative in Congress from the State of Massachusetts, prepared statement of ................................................... 3 Mittal, Anu K., Director, Natural Resources and Environment, U.S. Gov- ernment Accountability Office, prepared statement of .............................. 17 (III) VerDate 11-MAY-2000 10:41 Dec 14, 2009 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 U:\DOCS\53572.TXT KATIE PsN: KATIE IV Page Letters, statements, etc., submitted for the record by—Continued Mueller, Colonel Peter, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, prepared state- ment of ........................................................................................................... 134 Norton, Hon. Eleanor Holmes, a Delegate in Congress from the District of Columbia, prepared statement of ............................................................ 9 Slowinski, Kent, former member, Spring Valley Restoration Advisory Board, prepared statement of ...................................................................... 216 Smith, Thomas, ANC commissioner 3D02, prepared statement of .............. 190 Wells, Nan Shelby, ANC commissioner 3D03, prepared statement of ......... 183 VerDate 11-MAY-2000 10:41 Dec 14, 2009 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 5904 U:\DOCS\53572.TXT KATIE PsN: KATIE THE ENVIRONMENTAL RESTORATION PROGRAM AT SPRING VALLEY WEDNESDAY, JUNE 10, 2009 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SUBCOMMITTEE ON FEDERAL WORKFORCE, POSTAL SERVICE, AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, COMMITTEE ON OVERSIGHT AND GOVERNMENT REFORM, Washington, DC. The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 2 p.m., in room 2247, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Stephen F. Lynch (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding. Present: Representatives Lynch, Norton, Cummings, Kucinich, Clay, Connolly, Chaffetz, and Bilbray. Staff present: William Miles, staff director; Marcus A. Williams, clerk/press secretary; Jill Crissman, professional staff; Aisha Elkheshin, intern; Adam Fromm, minority chief clerk and Member liaison; Howard Denis, minority senior counsel; and Alex Cooper, minority staff member. Mr. LYNCH. Good afternoon. The Subcommittee on Federal Work- force, Postal Service, and the District of Columbia will now come to order. Well, I welcome our ranking member, Mr. Chaffetz, members of the subcommittee, hearing witnesses, and all those in attendance. Today’s hearing will examine the recent progress or lack thereof of the restoration program at the Spring Valley development. We will discuss the current and future criteria that will be used in declar- ing the site clear of environmental health contaminants and assess the level