Congress established the Military Munitions Response Program (MMRP) in 2002 to address unexploded ordnance, discarded military munitions and munitions constituents located on current and former defense sites. Bethel was contracted under this program to conduct site inspections at over 110 former Alaska Army National Guard (AKARNG) training sites located in 22 remote villages throughout Alaska. Bethel performed archival research at both the local and national levels, assessing historical and current aerial photographs. Due to a lack of written records, extensive personal interviews with former soldiers, current soldiers, and AKARNG leadership as well as empirical research were the predominant sources of information. Site walks and visual surveys were done with the assistance of a magnetometer to identify areas of interest. Samples were submitted to an analytical laboratory for select Target Analyte List (TAL) metals and Target Compound List (TCL) explosives based on historical use of the respective site. Key to the success of this project was coordination with multiple agencies, native corporations, tribal governments, and use of local community partnering and outreach.
Work performed
- Project Management
- Historical Records Review
- Work Plan Development Site Inspections
- Community Outreach
