PUBLIC HEALTH ASSESSMENT
LUKE AIR FORCE BASE
PHOENIX, MARICOPA COUNTY, ARIZONA
LIST OF ACRONYMS
AND ABBREVIATIONS
| AFFF | aqueous film forming foam |
|
ADEQ |
Arizona Department of Environmental Quality |
|
ADHS |
Arizona Department of Health Services |
|
ADWR |
Arizona Department of Water Resources |
|
AFB |
Air Force Base |
|
ATSDR |
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry |
|
BTEX |
benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, and xylenes |
|
BRA |
baseline risk assessment |
|
CERCLA |
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act |
|
CREG |
Cancer Risk Evaluation Guide |
|
DBCP |
1,2-dibromo-3-chloropropane |
|
DCA |
1,2-dichloroethane |
|
DCP |
1,2-dichloropropane |
|
DPDO |
Defense Property Disposal Office |
|
EE/CA |
Engineering Evaluation/Cost Analysis |
|
EPA |
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency |
|
FFA |
Federal Facilities Agreement |
|
FTP |
fire training pit |
|
HARP |
Health Activities Recommendation Panel |
|
IRP |
Installation Restoration Program |
|
JP |
jet petroleum |
|
MCL |
Maximum Contaminant Level |
|
MW |
monitoring well |
|
NPDES |
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System |
|
NPL |
National Priorities List |
|
OU |
Operable Unit |
|
PCB |
polychlorinated biphenyls |
|
PCE |
tetrachloroethylene |
|
PHA |
Public Health Assessment |
|
PHAP |
Public Health Action Plan |
|
POL |
petroleum, oil, and lubricants |
|
ppb |
parts per billion |
|
ppm |
parts per million |
| PRG | preliminary remediation goals |
|
PW |
production well |
|
RCRA |
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act |
|
RFI |
RCRA Facility Investigation |
|
RI |
remedial investigation |
|
ROD |
Record of Decision |
|
SVE |
soil vapor extraction |
|
SVOC |
semivolatile organic compound |
|
TCE |
trichloroethylene |
| TSP | total suspended particulate |
|
USACE |
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers |
|
USAF |
U.S. Air Force |
|
UST |
underground storage tank |
|
VOC |
volatile organic compound |
|
WWTP |
wastewater treatment plan |
Luke Air Force Base (Luke AFB) is an active military base that covers approximately 4,000 acres of land, west of Phoenix, in Maricopa County, Arizona. Luke AFB is located in the western portion of the Salt River Valley, a desert area characterized by hot, dry summers and mild winters.
Luke AFB began operations in 1941. The facility's primary function was to provide advanced flight training to fighter pilots. Although Luke AFB was deactivated in November 1946 as part of the military force reductions at the end of World War II, it was subsequently reopened in 1951 with the onset of the Korean War, and has operated continually ever since. The function of the base remains the same: to provide combat training to aircrews. About 75 percent of the base is dedicated to runways, taxiways, and aircraft storage. The remainder of the site is used for aircraft maintenance, administration, and residences.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency placed Luke AFB on the National Priorities List in August 1990 after contaminated soil was identified during Installation Restoration Program environmental investigations. Contaminants of potential concern are semivolatile organic compounds, petroleum hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls, dioxin, and several metals.
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) conducted site visits in February 1991 and December 1997. No immediate public health hazards or community health concerns were identified during these visits.
ATSDR analyzed all 32 Installation Restoration Program (IRP) sites at Luke AFB to
determine if
there are any past, current, or future public health hazards associated with
contaminant exposure.
ATSDR reviewed the available data and information compiled on all recognized or designated
IRP sites at Luke AFB to ensure a thorough evaluation of all potential or completed pathways of
human exposure to contaminants. Based on this assessment of potential exposure pathways and a
review of available environmental data on soil, groundwater, surface water, and ambient air,
ATSDR concludes that Luke AFB should be assigned to the No Apparent Public Health
Hazard category.
Site Description and Operational History
Luke Air Force Base (Luke AFB) is an active military base that covers approximately 4,000 acres of land, west of Phoenix, in Maricopa County, Arizona (see Figure 1). Luke AFB is located in the western portion of the Salt River Valley, a desert area characterized by hot, dry summers and mild winters. A fence surrounds the base boundary, and guards are stationed at the base entrance to prevent unauthorized public access to Luke AFB. Current land use within a 3-mile radius of the base is generally classified as sparsely developed, open, and agricultural.
Luke AFB began operations in 1941. The facility's primary function was to provide advanced flight training to fighter pilots. Although Luke AFB was deactivated in November 1946 as part of the military force reductions at the end of World War II, it was subsequently reopened in 1951 with the onset of the Korean War, and has operated ever since (Booz, Allen & Hamilton, 1996). The function of the base remains the same, to provide combat training to aircrews. The majority of the base is dedicated to runways, taxiways, and aircraft storage tarmacs, and the remainder is used for aircraft maintenance, administration, and residences (Booz, Allen & Hamilton, 1996).
In the past, wastes generated at Luke AFB have been burned during fire department training exercises or disposed of in shallow trenches, on roads for dust suppression, or, more recently, in underground storage tanks (USTs) (Geraghty & Miller, 1997c). These methods of disposal have contributed to the contamination found at various areas on site.
Remedial and Regulatory History
In August 1981, the Air Force initiated an environmental investigation at Luke AFB under the IRP to assess past hazardous material handling and disposal practices, and to clean up any hazardous substances or disposed wastes determined to be a threat to public health or the environment. From 1981 to 1990, the Air Force reviewed records, contacted government agencies, and conducted site investigations of suspected waste disposal sites. Environmental sampling and analysis revealed various degrees of soil contamination. At this point, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) became involved with the investigation.
EPA placed Luke AFB on the National Priorities List (NPL) in August 1990, after contaminated soils were identified during the IRP environmental investigations.
This required an extensive investigation by Air Force, EPA, ATSDR and other agencies. On September 27, 1990, EPA, the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ), the Arizona Department of Water Resources (ADWR), and the Air Force signed a Federal Facilities Agreement (FFA) for implementing the requirements of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA, also known as Superfund), and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Required site assessments were conducted from March 1991 to July 1993.
During the remedial investigation (RI) at Luke AFB, where 32 IRP sites were identified as potential sources of contamination (see Figure 2). These sites have been categorized into two operable units (OUs): OU-1 and OU-2. OU-1 includes IRP sites that have potential contamination in all media (e.g., air, water, and soil) and OU-2 includes the IRP sites with soil that has been impacted by past petroleum, oil, and lubricants (POL) disposal practices (Booz, Allen & Hamilton, 1996 ). OU-2 was created in an effort to accelerate the cleanup and closure of the more easily characterized IRP sites. (See Table 1 for IRP site descriptions.)
In January 1994, the Record of Decision (ROD) was signed for OU-2. The Air Force submitted the OU-1 RI for regulatory review. In February 1996, EPA and ADEQ officially notified the Air Force that the draft OU-1 RI, Draft RCRA Facilities Investigation (RFI), and the OU-2 ROD for Luke AFB were unacceptable because of laboratory error (Booz, Allen & Hamilton, 1996). To address the data quality issues, additional sampling was conducted at a majority of the OU-1 and OU-2 sites by August 1996. A final RI and Baseline Risk Assessment (BRA) report were completed and submitted to ADEQ in October 1997. These reports were submitted and accepted by the regulatory agencies.
In February 1991, the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) conducted an initial site visit and met with representatives from the Air Force, ADEQ, and ADWR. During this visit, ATSDR gathered information about potential health hazards associated with the site. At that time, no community health concerns or completed pathways of human exposure were identified (ATSDR, 1990, 1991, 1992).
ATSDR revisited Luke AFB on December 2 and 3, 1997, and confirmed that no immediate public health hazards and no community health concerns exist.
Currently, the population on Luke AFB consists of 5,685 military personnel, 1,310 civilians, and 2,100 dependents. The base is to remain active in the foreseeable future (Geraghty & Miller, 1997b, c). (See Tables 2 and 3.)
Current land use within a 3-mile radius of the base boundary is generally classified as sparsely developed, open, and agricultural (Geraghty & Miller, 1997c; Booz, Allen & Hamilton, 1996). Rural residential homes are scattered in the vicinity of the base, and one low-income housing area is located approximately 100 yards to the east. These houses obtain water from a public water supply (ADHS, 1997), although one private drinking water well is located near the base. Several other residential communities are located at greater distances from Luke AFB, the nearest being approximately two miles southeast of the base (Geraghty & Miller, 1997c).
While Luke AFB is dry most of the year, there are four areas on base that convey surface water during periods of rain. These areas are the wastewater treatment plant effluent canal (IRP Site SD-21), two drainage ditches (IRP Sites SD-20 and SD-26), and an irrigation canal that passes through the skeet range (IRP Site OT-41).
Quality Assurance and Quality Control
In preparing this public health assessment (PHA), ATSDR relied on the information provided in the referenced documents. The environmental data presented in this PHA are from the remedial site investigations for the IRP sites, groundwater monitoring data, and drinking water well data from Luke AFB. The limits of these data have been identified in the associated reports.
In 1994, the quality of the analytical data collected during some field investigations was found to be questionable. These data could not be verified. To provide replacement data, additional sampling was conducted at a majority of the OU-1 and OU-2 sites during 1996. These sampling data were evaluated during the preparation of this PHA. The validity of the analyses and conclusions drawn in this document are determined by the availability and reliability of the information.
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