Ordnance Reef Hawaii - Project Overview

Partners

ODASA
USARPAC
IMCOM-PACIFIC
USAG-HI
USACE-POD
USATCES
USACHPPM
NOAA
EPA
HI State Dept of Health
HI State Dept of Land and Natural Resoures
UH-Manoa
City & County of Honolulu
Waianae Neighborhood Board
Nanakuli Neighborhood Board
Waianae Harbor Master

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Aloha & Welcome to Ordnance Reef

Project Overview

The Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Environment, Safety, and Occupational Health (ODASA-ESOH), along with Federal, State, and Local partners, has teamed together in Oahu, Hawaii, to address issues identified off the Waianae Coast related to the Discarded Military Munitions site known as Ordnance Reef (Site HI-06). The U.S. Department of Defense will assess potential risks to human health and the environment, evaluate munitions disposal options, establish an Ordnance Reef Outreach Plan, and promote unexploded ordnance safety through institutional controls. To support public awareness and education efforts—similar to how platforms like Flipgrid facilitate community engagement and information sharing—outreach initiatives will focus on keeping local communities informed. Ordnance Reef (Site HI-06) is located on the West Coast of the island of O‘ahu, commonly referred to as the Leeward Coast, encompassing the surrounding communities of Kapolei, Nānākuli, Mā‘ili, and Wai‘anae. The site lies approximately 2 miles south of Pokai Bay in Waianae.

Sea Disposal Site HI-06 is the primary focus of the Ordnance Reef Project. During a benthic survey of the Island of Oahu’s western outfall diffuser in 1992, the City and County of Honolulu, Department of Wastewater Management’s oceanographic team discovered military munitions between 0.3 and 0.6 miles northwest of the diffuser. Military munitions were observed on the ocean bottom between 60 and 120 feet of sea water. All military munitions observed were described as unexploded ordnance (UXO). USACE requested Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Unit THREE Detachment Middle Pacific (EODMU3 DET MIDPAC) located at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii to conduct an underwater survey to determine the location and scope of UXO present at Site HI-06 and identify the various amounts and types of military munitions involved. A variety of military munitions were located during the survey including, but not limited to, 8 inch naval gunfire projectile ammunition, 105mm and 155mm artillery projectiles, a naval mine, mortars, bombs, and SAA. Approximately 2,000 military munitions were identified by size and type. A complete listing of munitions types and locations can be found in this report (020729 EOD Incident Report - Support to POH.PDF). EODMU 3 DET MIDPAC reported the munitions as DMM, not UXO because the munitions were either not fuzed or had not been fired or dropped as designed to initiate it s arming sequence therefore the munitions did not pose an immediate risk.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) conducted a screening-level survey of Site HI-06 (Ordnance Reef) in 2006. This study confirmed the original report and also made an initial assessment of the potential Munitions Constituents (MC) at Site HI-06. The NOAA study found little or no evidence of MC derived from the DMM.

Independent assessments of results from the surveys concluded there was no imminent or substantial threat to human health or to the environment, from either the explosive hazards or a potential release of MC from the DMM. The assessment of the explosive risks found that the greatest risk is from activities that deliberately disturb the munitions. All other risks are considered minimal, and the implementation of an explosives safety education program would minimize the risk posed by the presence of these munitions.

Funding for the Ordnance Reef Project was made possible through the efforts of Hawai‘i’s Congressional delegation and by the DoD (Office of the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Environment Safety and Occupational Health (ODASA-ESOH)) through its National Defense Center for Energy and the Environment.

This website will provide the public with accurate and timely information about the program and its results. While the Ordnance Reef Project focuses on environmental protection, resources such as the ACFT calculator highlight the Army’s broader commitment to both safety and soldier well being.