Navy – Alameda Point Environmental Report

Dispute Over Radium-226 Cleanup Hinders Progress at Closed Navy Bases

Recent state guidelines for remedial cleanup of radium-226 at closed Navy bases have affected completing work at Alameda Point and other bases across California.

Since 2019, the Navy has not been able to determine the cleanup goal for radium-226 to allow for unrestricted use of facilities. Repeated attempts by the Navy to get an answer suggest that the new California Department of Public Health (CDPH) standard is based upon the location of the site rather than the risk to human health. CDPH is a sister agency that provides the California Department of Toxic Substances Contro l (DTSC) with expertise on radiological cleanup issues.

In order to achieve satisfactory cleanup, CDPH has changed how it determines the goal for the allowed safe amount of radium in building structures, saying it should be comparable to the amount naturally found in nearby soil, according to a February 2025 letter to DTSC from now retired Gregory C. Preston, former Director of the Navy’s Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Program. This has led to “inconsistent application of cleanup criteria,” resulting in “property transfer delays and unnecessary costs,” according to Preston.

Chevron plans to clean up tar at Alameda Point refinery site in Spring 2026

At the urging of the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board (Water Board) in 2021, Chevron agreed to return to Alameda Point and clean up the tar waste left behind when its refinery that produced kerosene was closed in 1903. The site was eventually filled with up to 10 feet of soil during construction of the Naval Air Station.

Chevron began the process of cleaning up buried tar at its old refinery site in May 2023 by taking 43 soil samples to characterize the extent of contamination. The sampling pipes were driven down 20 feet. But a plan for digging up the tar was not submitted to the Water Board until September 2025.

The Water Board and Chevron are currently in the process of ironing out details of the plan, with formal approval by the Water Board expected soon.

Two possibilities for Alameda Point VA property following veterans project cancellation

Alameda could find itself back at square one, or at least close to it.

In September 2025, Representative Lateefah Simon informed city officials that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) had decided to cancel plans for a clinic and columbarium cemetery at Alameda Point. The news became public when a letter to the VA from Congresswomen Lateefah Simon and Nancy Pelosi and Senators Adam Schiff and Alex Padilla was released on December 12, 2025.

The congressional delegation urged the VA to reconsider its decision to terminate the project. On December 15, 2025, public officials and representatives of veterans organizations made a similar plea on the steps of Alameda’s Veterans Memorial Building.

If the VA sticks to its decision to terminate the project, it is unclear what will happen next. But two land-disposal processes are on the table.

The delegation’s letter to the VA questioned why the agency plans to turn over the land to the federal General Services Administration (GSA), which handles disposing of real estate. The congressional delegation pointed out that the land could go back to the Navy, according to the VA/Navy land transfer agreement. The letter explained that the “VA and the Navy have a binding agreement that requires VA to notify the Navy of its decision to terminate the project within 30 days of its determination, and permits the Navy to receive the property if VA makes such a decision within fifteen years of this 2014 agreement.”

This means either the GSA or the Navy will dispose of the federal land. History and current events will likely play a role in both scenarios.

PFAS contamination successfully blocked from entering Oakland Estuary

On July 23, 2025, the Navy released the results of its pilot study to determine if injecting a specialized carbon solution into the ground would block hazardous PFAS chemicals from migrating into the Oakland Estuary from Alameda Point.

The area at issue, a stone’s throw from the estuary, had once been used by Navy firefighters to practice putting out fires with firefighting foam that contained PFAS chemicals. Scientists have figured out a way to contain, but not destroy, these hazardous chemicals. Follow-up groundwater samples show that the carbon barrier achieved between 99 percent and 100 percent reduction in PFAS moving beyond the barrier.

PFAS cleanup at Alameda Point unnecessarily delayed

A hazardous substance at Alameda Point would have been cleaned up by now if its manufacturer had not withheld negative health data, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had acted sooner. Instead, a whole new cleanup process has been launched by the Navy, which could take another five years.

The PFAS (Per- and Poly- Fluoro- Alkyl Substances) class of toxic chemicals have been known to be present at several isolated underground locations around Alameda Point for a long time. There is no alarming presence of PFAS or risk to the public. Nevertheless, now that PFAS has been designated a hazardous substance by the EPA, the Navy is required to conduct a time-consuming process for remediation.

Veggie oil, lactose key to cleaning up toxic groundwater at Alameda Point

There are faster ways to clean up industrial solvents in groundwater, but the only viable choice for a large contamination site at Alameda Point was to turn the job over to bacteria. Known as bioremediation, a unique bacteria is breaking apart the solvent trichloroethene (TCE), also known as trichloroethylene, into a harmless substance.

It takes time and the right conditions for the bacteria to thrive—namely, an absence of oxygen and the presence of a carbon source. Readily-available carbon sources to pump into the contamination area just happen to be soy vegetable oil and dairy lactose.

Springtime on the Wild Side of Alameda Point

The Navy’s repeated attempts to establish native vegetation on cleanup Site 1 at Alameda Point have finally borne flowers this spring. Birds are enjoying the nearby seasonal wetland, which is in jeopardy of being destroyed. Someday people will be able to enjoy the space, as well. For now, enjoy the accompanying gallery of photos, along with background info.