The United States Navy has been found to have omitted data that suggests a genuine risk of contaminants leaching into groundwater in the Northern Marianas, as a result of military training there.
The U.S Environmental Protection Agency says the US Navy failed to include the reports in its 'CNMI Joint Military Training' draft environmental impact statement.
It says the Navy did not include a 2012 EPA study, which covered a wide range of munitions chemicals and propellants left in the soils of over 30 military installations and firing ranges in the US, including Hawaii.
Another omitted study, from the U.S. Geological Survey, points out how Tinian's relatively porous limestone geology could be susceptible to pollution via infiltration.
Local agencies and government consultants in the CNMI say the Navy's claims of 'less than significant' impacts to water quality on Tinian must be changed.
Photo: Supplied
