The Navy submitted an analysis of options for closing the Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility to the Department of Health on Thursday, according to a news release.

The Navy contracted the third-party analysis in response to a DOH request during a July 14, meeting. The third-party analysis was conducted by Jacobs Government Service Company. 

The analysis includes closing the facility, closing the facility and preparing the tanks for a non-fuel purpose, closing the facility and filling the tanks with an inert material, and removing the tank’s steel liners and filling the tanks with an inert material.

The first proposed option — closure of the Red Hill facility — was suggested by the Navy in November. The cost estimate is $119 million.

Once approved, the Navy would begin defueling the facility, which is set to be completed by June 2024. The Red Hill facility will be completely closed by June 2027. 

“The detailed analysis shows that closure in place of the Red Hill facility minimizes impacts to the environment, public health, and safety, which continue to be our highest priority,” said Meredith Berger, Assistant Secretary of the Navy, in the news release.

The Navy still plans to request permission from DOH to repurpose the underground storage tanks for non-fuel use, which they said they wanted to pursue in November. The Navy said it would ask for community input and would then be required to submit a non-fuel reuse evaluation to DOH. The Navy said this would not lengthen the schedule for the facility’s closure.

The analysis says that closing the facility supports repurposing the tanks for non-fuel use. 

To read the third-party analysis, click here. 

Michelle Broder Van Dyke covers the Hawaiian Islands for Spectrum News Hawaii.