 Requests Full Disclosure from Defense Department over Nerve Agent Testing October 18, 2002
"While the Department of Defense insists that no harm, past or present, to the physical environment or individuals has occurred as a consequence of the testing program, I remain deeply concerned," Knowles wrote. "I ask that the Department of Defense immediately declassify and release any and all information pertaining to any tests at these sites." Knowles also insisted that the Department of Defense take immediate steps to work with the State of Alaska to investigate and clean up all sites at the Gerstle River Test Area on Ft. Greely. "This area is open to the public for subsistence gathering, hunting and recreation. It is simply unacceptable to postpone or delay investigation or any remediation that may be necessary," Knowles said. Since the early 1990s, state officials have been investigating the Gerstle River Expansion Area, one of two areas used by the Army for testing. The expansion area, which belongs to the state, was leased to the Army from the early to mid-1960s and returned to the state in 1973. Before accepting the return of this land, the Alaska Department of Natural Resources asked the Army to show they had decontaminated the area. However, the Army's representatives provided only a "Statement of Clearance" indicating that the site was inspected visually and that to the best of their knowledge, the site was cleared of dangerous or explosive materials. In the early 1990s, an archive search report raised questions about the potential for unexploded ordinance, prompting the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation to further investigation the site. The Defense Department had refused to release documents about the site until just now. The newly released documents indicate that further investigation and cleanup work must be done at the Gerstle River test area. A team from the Alaska Departments of Environmental Conservation, Natural Resources, Fish and Game, and Health and Social Services has been formed to assess the information available, work with the Defense Department on site investigation and cleanup, and assess any danger or risk to the public.
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