Military

Monday marked the third day of venting fumes from the massive underground fuel tanks at Red Hill. And so far, so good. JoAnna Delfin, the deputy public affairs officer for Navy Closure Task Force-Red Hill, spoke with The Conversation about how the operation is progressing.

A new state working group is awaiting the results of two separate studies on environmental and health impacts from the U.S. Marine Corps Puʻuloa Range Training Facility in Leeward Oʻahu.

The Conversation recently talked with Charles Djou, who has headed up the American Battle Monuments Commission for the last two years.

Late last week, China staged a series of military drills in the skies and waters around Taiwan. Earlier this month, the United States led extensive exercises with the Philippines and other allies and partners. And more military exercises are coming soon in the Pacific — including some touching Hawaiʻi.

Generations of American families have grown up not knowing exactly what happened to their loved ones who died while serving their country in World War II and other conflicts. But a federal lab tucked away above the bowling alley at Offutt Air Force Base near Omaha and a sister lab in Hawaiʻi are steadily answering those lingering questions.

Maj. Gen. Kenneth Hara will resign as state adjutant general in October. He is also the commander of the National Guard and the head of the Hawaiʻi Emergency Management Agency.

More than 100 million gallons of fuel have been drained from the Navy Red Hill underground fuel facility, but residual fumes could still pose a risk to workers and neighboring communities. Kathleen Ho, the deputy environmental director for the state Department of Health, said health officials raised those concerns with the Navy.

A little more than 2 million acres have been designated a Sentinel Landscape, which opens up access to tens of millions of federal dollars for land conservation projects.

The Community Representation Initiative for Red Hill announced this week that chemicals, also known as PFAS, have been found in the Navy’s water system. The detections were found at homes at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.

Families on the Navy water system say there is new contamination in their tap water. They say samples they sent to labs have come back with traces of forever chemicals known as PFAS. The Conversation talked to Marti Townsend, the chair of the Red Hill Community Representation Initiative.