(LibertyInsiderNews.com) – The U.S. Navy sat on dangerous plutonium detection data for 11 months while San Francisco residents remained in the dark, a stunning breach of transparency that exposes how federal bureaucrats prioritize institutional interests over public safety.
Quick Take
- Navy detected airborne plutonium-239 at twice federal safety levels in November 2023 but withheld notification until October 2024, violating its own workplan requiring bi-weekly data sharing with regulators
- Plutonium-239 is so lethal that inhalation of one-millionth of an ounce causes cancer with virtually 100% certainty, yet residents living near the contaminated Hunters Point shipyard received no warning for nearly a year
- The Navy’s environmental coordinator apologized for the delayed disclosure while simultaneously claiming the elevated readings may be erroneous, a contradictory stance that fuels skepticism about institutional honesty
- Approximately 2,000 grams of plutonium-239 remain at the Cold War-era site, with 90% of the property’s contamination status still unknown and cleanup standards potentially inadequate for planned 10,000 housing units
Eleven Months of Silence While Residents Faced Invisible Threat
In November 2023, the Navy detected airborne plutonium-239 at San Francisco’s Hunters Point Naval Shipyard during routine air quality testing. The measurements exceeded federal action levels by roughly double. Yet city officials and residents learned nothing until late October 2024, an 11-month communication blackout that directly violated the Navy’s own workplan requiring bi-weekly data sharing with regulators. This wasn’t bureaucratic negligence; it was institutional deception masquerading as protocol.
Michael Pound, the Navy’s environmental coordinator, eventually apologized at a community meeting, admitting “On this issue we did not do a good job.” Yet simultaneously, the Navy suggested the elevated plutonium reading might be erroneous, claiming a retest showed non-detectable levels. This contradictory stance, apologizing while dismissing the very contamination requiring the apology, reveals the fundamental dishonesty underlying federal management of this Superfund site. Residents were left defenseless against an invisible threat while the Navy controlled the narrative.
Decades of Radioactive Waste, Decades of Cover-Ups
Hunters Point’s contamination traces to Cold War nuclear operations. During the 1950s, the Navy decontaminated 79 ships irradiated during Pacific Ocean nuclear tests, spreading radioactive waste throughout the shipyard. A secret Navy research laboratory injected animals with radioactive materials. Thousands of tons of radioactive sandblasting grit were buried on-site with burial locations never properly documented. Radioactive waste was dumped into the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay. This wasn’t isolated negligence, it was systematic poisoning of the environment and endangerment of future residents.
The EPA designated Hunters Point as a Superfund site in 1989, acknowledging it as one of America’s most polluted areas. Nuclear experts estimate 2,000 grams of plutonium-239 remain on-site. Yet the Navy’s cleanup approach remains woefully inadequate. Of the 10% of the property that has been characterized, the Navy intends to declare much of the pollution acceptable to leave uncleaned under inflated cleanup levels and shallow soil covers, just four inches of clean dirt capping the contamination. This isn’t remediation; it’s concealment.
Federal Incompetence Threatens Future Residents
San Francisco plans to redevelop Hunters Point with up to 10,000 housing units. The contamination discovery threatens these ambitious plans and exposes residents to potential health risks. Residents already living in developed parcels report cancer clusters and health problems they attribute to unremediated contamination. The delayed notification prevented residents from taking protective measures during the 11-month period when elevated plutonium levels hung in the air. Federal agencies failed their most basic responsibility: protecting American citizens.
The EPA requested all Navy data for independent verification, but the Navy has still not uploaded the November 2024 air monitoring report to its Hunters Point website. Berkeley Law’s Environmental Law Clinic is pursuing litigation, claiming the government fails to meet strengthened cleanup standards. The full extent of contamination at approximately 90% of the property remains unknown. This isn’t just regulatory failure, it’s institutional contempt for the residents whose lives hang in the balance while bureaucrats shuffle paperwork and delay accountability.
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