The Potomac Riverkeeper Network and the Natural Resources Defense Council filed suit Wednesday (June 21) in the U.S. District Court in Baltimore. They allege that the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren Division has fired more than 33 million pounds of munitions into the Potomac that contain toxic metals, solvents, explosives and other potentially harmful constituents.
The Navy has used the Potomac for more than a century as a proving ground to develop and test small arms, large-caliber guns, explosives, lasers, propellants and targeting systems. The 51 nautical mile stretch of the river used for those purposes constitutes the nation’s largest over-water firing range, the lawsuit says.
“It’s cause for concern for anyone who uses the river for boating or fishing, for business or recreation,” said Potomac Riverkeeper Dean Naujoks, who called the amount of material deposited in the river “staggering.” “We’re not asking the court to shut down weapons testing. We just want the Navy to get a permit under the Clean Water Act to ensure that their activities protect water quality, like everyone else has to do.”
A 2013 environmental impact statement prepared by the Navy said it annually fires about 4,700 large-caliber projectiles from Dahlgren and sets off more than 200 explosions in the river. It also said it releases substances over the water 70 times a year on average to simulate chemical or biological attacks.
That's a lot of fireworks!
No comments:
Post a Comment