US Supreme Court hears challenge to air force UXO detonations in Guam
Summary
The US Supreme Court is reviewing a case about whether the Air Force can keep using Tarague Beach in Guam to blow up unexploded bombs. A local group, Prutehi Guahan, says this practice harms the environment, cultural sites, and water supply, and questions if proper environmental laws were followed.Key Facts
- The Air Force has used Tarague Beach in Guam for bomb detonations since 1982.
- In 2021, the Air Force applied for a new permit to continue these detonations.
- Guam’s Environmental Protection Agency neither approved nor denied the permit, but detonations continued.
- Prutehi Guahan, a conservation group in Guam, argues the Air Force did not properly follow all environmental laws, including the National Environmental Policy Act.
- The detonation site is on land taken by the US military after World War II and is near culturally important fishing and medicinal areas.
- The site is above an aquifer that supplies drinking water to about 80% of Guam’s people.
- The Air Force says it followed the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, which they argue covers environmental rules.
- The Ninth Circuit Court allowed the case to continue after a lower court had dismissed it.
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