In a recent management determination, the U.S. Navy decided it will not dig up Nomans Land further in search of unexploded ordnance (UXO). The Navy and reportedly the U.S. Air Force pounded Nomans Land for decades for target practice. The Island is now a wildlife refuge where people aren’t allowed to visit.
In lieu of excavation efforts to find UXO, the Navy will monitor the island, erect signs, conduct a public awareness campaign, and work with partner agencies to keep people away. In an email received by The Times the day after it went to press, the Navy clarified that while it will not dig up the island anymore, it will scout around it from time to time and dispose of any UXO found on the surface.
“The Navy will perform periodic inspections and conduct recurring surface clearing of the site every five years,” Navy Environmental Coordinator Dave Barney wrote. “These clearance actions would be similar to those conducted in prior years.”
When asked if levels of high melting explosive (HMX), also known as octogen or cyclotetramethylene-tetranitramine, and levels of TNT (2,4,6-trinitrotoluene) were found on Nomans Land and if so, were they at acceptable levels, Barney wrote, “Yes, groundwater, surface soils, subsurface soils, and sediments were analyzed and were found to be acceptable or non-detect for explosive compounds.”