Environmental protection efforts showcased during construction site tour

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Ashley J. Thum
  • 51st Fighter Wing Public Affairs
OSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea --  A team of experts led a tour of the second runway construction site and debris sorting area here for nearly 20 members of local leadership, Oct. 18.

To show Osan is taking the utmost care to protect the environment from any possible hidden contaminated material, Col. Michael Strunk, 51st Mission Support Group commander, and representatives from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers were on hand to explain the construction and debris sorting process.

"If we find any buried debris here on the site, the contractor sorts it," said Jamie Hagio, USACE resident engineer for the 51st Civil Engineer Squadron. "They separate the good material from the bad material, and then if we believe there might be any hazardous contamination we'll test it. If there's no harmful material found then we take it to an authorized trash disposal location off base."

Given the nature of past warfare on the Korean peninsula, Pyeongtaek City Council members were especially concerned about the process of identifying and disposing of any potentially contaminated waste.

"We are following the Republic of Korea's waste management laws," said Song Kun Kwon, 51st Civil Engineer Squadron Environmental Office physical scientist. "Only contractors who have the authority and are licensed to do so are removing waste."

Hagio added he thinks transparency is essential to strengthen the relationship between Osan and the local government.

"I believe it's important to show our host nation that we are caring for their environment and conducting our disposal properly, in accordance with our regulations and their environmental laws," Hagio said.

The runway is currently at approximately 60 percent completion, and is scheduled to be fully functional by the end of September 2014.