By a presidential order, environmental justice terminology has been scrubbed from a Community Involvement Plan to clean up soil and groundwater contamination at Joint Base Cape Cod, according to a notice sent by Douglas Karson, community involvement lead.
The changes were made in three pages that included the environmental terminology in the 70-page document, Karson said on Monday, Aug. 4.
“The intent of the community involvement plan remains exactly the same,” he said. “All activities are exactly the same and there is ample opportunity for the public to be involved.”
Public comment on the revisions can be made Aug. 1-Aug. 30.
The Air Force Civil Engineer Center Installation Restoration Program is responsible for cleaning up soil and groundwater contamination caused by past military practices at the base. The base is listed on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s National Priorities List, also known as Superfund.
In October 2024, the program issued a revised final Community Involvement Plan that describes public participation opportunities and available resources of information related to the restoration program at the base. On Jan. 20, 2025, Presidential Executive Order 14151 was issued and entitled “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing.”
In compliance with the executive order, the language related to environmental justice was removed. The Air Force’s commitment to community engagement is guided by federal statutes and regulations, including the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act and is detailed in the plan’s “Community Consultation’” section, the notice stated. This revision requires a 30-day public comment period.
“The one change in the draft states Massachusetts EPA did not concur with our changes,” Karson said. He said he hopes the EPA and Air Force will come to a resolution on the changes.
What happens next
After the 30-day period is up, all comments will be reviewed and included in a summary, Karson said. It will be attached to the final Community Involvement Plan when issued. He said he expects the plan to be finalized in 45 to 60 days after the comment period.
Karson commented on the many stakeholders, community groups and people on the base who are involved in the restoration program.
He said communication about the program with the surrounding communities has improved considerably in the last 10 years.
He said the program will get bigger and require more outreach because the EPA has lowered the threshold for PFAS, known as forever chemicals, which will require re-evaluating previous areas and look into perhaps hundreds of new parcels.
The revised draft plan has been sent to the main public libraries of Bourne, Mashpee, Falmouth and Sandwich. Notice of its availability was sent to several email stakeholder lists including residents, news media, elected officials and various organizations on and off Joint Base Cape Cod.
The draft is available online at the webpage: https://jbcc iagwsp.org/community/public/irp/
Comments may be submitted in writing by Aug. 30 to Doug Karson, AFCEC/JBCC, 199 Falmouth-Sandwich Road Mashpee, MA 02649 or email douglas.karson@us.af.mil.
For information about the Community Involvement Plan or to request an electronic or printed copy, contact Karson at (508) 524-9206.
Susan Vaughn writes about transportation and other local community issues affecting Cape Cod residents and visitors. She can be reached at svaughn@capecodonline.com.