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Throughout the time period of October 20 to October 21 of 2010 the Federal Facility Dialogue Committee (FFDC) conducted several potentially significant meetings in Washington DC. These meetings were hosted by the USEPA's Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response. It was announced in formal invitations to these meetings that their immediate purpose was to provide a forum for diverse stakeholders qualified by virtue of their expertise and experience to : "...discuss the progress, achievements and challenges surrounding the cleanup of federally-owned contaminated sites. Dialogue objectives include fostering effective communication among stakeholders, discussing and prioritizing challenges of federal cleanups, and establishing potential next steps for addressing the future challenges of federal facility site cleanups."
The participating stakeholders consisted of a wide variety of individuals serving on diverse technical review committees, restoration advisory boards, state and federal agencies situated throughout our nation: from Anchorage, Alaska to San Antonio, Texas; from Vieques, Puerto Rico to Livermore, California. In attendance, either as dialogue participants or as observers, were officials from the following federal agencies : US Dept. of Agriculture (USDA), US Dept. of Energy (USDoE), US Dept. of Interior (USDoI), US Dept. of Defense (DoD), USEPA. Among these were numerous officials serving a particular military service as well as representatives of tribal territories and/or nations. The meetings were divided into two principal sessions. The first session began on October 20, 2010 and it was dedicated to those federal facilities which are primarily involved with activities of the USDoD and/or the USDoE. It is often asserted that most of the |
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contamination at federal facilities is due to the activities of the DoD and the USDoE. The second dialogue session began on October 21, 2010 and it was primarily concerned with federal facilities under the purview of the USDA and/or the USDoI.
All of these hearings were part of an ongoing extended effort to review and assess the efficacy of existing federal facility environmental remediation policies and procedures. The avowed ultimate goal is to devise, recommend and implement improvements to current federal facility cleanup policies and procedures. Mr. Michael Glaab, a restoration advisory board (community) co-chmn. of the PAERAB who also serves as Jefferson Township’s official representative to that board, had been invited to participate in the dialog session devoted to the environmental restoration of both DoD and USDoE federal facilities. Accordingly, Mr. Glaab informed the board during its October 7, 2010 meeting of his intention to participate in the dialog committee’s deliberations. In addition, he announced to his fellow board members his availability to them should any of them wish to contribute relevant comments and/or suggestions for consideration for referral to the dialogue committee. Striving to be inclusive of all PAERAB members, whether NJDEP or USEPA regulator, US Army official, or community representative he pointedly welcomed their insights. Notice of the meeting and Michael Glaab’s expected participation was posted on the PAERAB’s website inclusive of his solicitation for comments and/or suggestions. Topics discussed during the dialogue session attended by Mr. Glaab ranged from TCE contamination to transuranic waste disposal; from FUDS, TAG and TAPP funding to long term commitment to institutional controls; from |
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database compilation, master plan land management to tribal sovereignty. Upon the conclusion of the dialog session attended by Michael Glaab its participants were invited by the dialogue session’s presiding chairman, Ms. Kristi Parker Celico ( of Rocky Mountain Collaborative Solutions and a former Managing Partner of the Keystone Center ), to submit any additional subsequent statements in writing prior to a set deadline. Availing himself of this additional opportunity to hopefully contribute meaningfully Mr. Glaab submitted on November 12, 2010 the following e-mail that included an 11 page statement attached as an Adobe PDF document. “Hello Ms. Celico: Please note the attached PDF file that encapsulates my assorted reflections about the environmental restoration of federal facilities with an emphasis on military facilities. They are the accumulated result of my own independently arrived at conclusions combined with wisdom and insights imparted by numerous other individuals and derived from various informative, digital and paper, information sources. Looking forward to reading the final conclusions of your overall review. Respectfully, Michael Glaab” The attached statement is available for perusal on the PAERAB’s website. It was incorporated into the summary report of the dialog committee as one of its attachments: Attachment D.
The summary reports of the October dialogue sessions have been distributed to participating members as per the following e-mail received by Mr. Glaab:
“Friday, January 7, 2011 1:26 PM |
Renewed Federal facility cleanup hearings by Michael Glaab
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