EXPLOSIVES SAFETY SUBMISSION No Further Action AIR FORCE MILITARY MUNITIONS RESPONSE PROGRAM MUNITIONS RESPONSE SITE CHARACTERIZATION Munitions Response Sites AL505-2A East and West and AL505-4A East and West Edwards Air Force Base, California November 2016 Prepared for: Air Force Civil Engineer Center Prepared by: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Tulsa District
TABLE OF CONTENTS 1.0 BACKGROUND... 1 2.0 MAPS... 3 3.0 JUSTIFICATION FOR THE DECISION... 3 4.0 CONTINGENCIES... 3 5.0 REFERENCES... 4 APPENDIX A MAPS... A1 APPENDIX B ACRONYMS... B1 i
1.0 BACKGROUND This No Further Action (NFA) Explosives Safety Submission (ESS) closes out munitions response sites (MRSs) AL505-2A East and West and AL505-4A East and West at Edwards Air Force Base (AFB), California (CA). There were no Explosives Site Plans or ESSs published for these MRSs. 1.1 Sites Included in Explosives Safety Submission Table 1 presents the MRSs and the investigation, which led to this NFA ESS (Bay West, 2010). Table 1. MRSs Covered in NFA ESS MRS Area (acres) Investigation resulting in NFA AL505-2A East and West 1,320.00 Comprehensive Site Evaluation (CSE) Phase II AL505-4A East and West 2,551.00 CSE Phase II 1.2 Site Location and Description is located on approximately 308,000 acres in the Antelope Valley in southern CA. is approximately 60 miles northeast of Los Angeles, approximately 60 miles northwest of San Bernardino, and approximately 70 miles southeast of Bakersfield. The installation lies in the western Mojave Desert in portions of Kern, Los Angeles, and San Bernardino Counties (Map 1) (Bay West, 2010). The following subsections describe the location of the subject MRSs. 1.2.1 AL505-2A East and West The MRS lies along the northern perimeter of. It is bordered to the north by a housing subdivision and the city of Boron (Map 2). AL505-2A is part of an off-base overshoot area for former Target PB-9. The former target is located just south of the northern Base boundary. 1.2.2 AL505-4A East and West The MRS lies along the southern perimeter of. It is bordered to the south by unimproved land (Map 2). AL505-4A is part of an off-base overshoot area for former Target PB- 5. The former target is located approximately 1.1 miles north of the MRS. 1.3 Site History The US Air Force (Air Force) conducted a series of investigations culminating in the CSE Phase II. The Air Force Military Munitions Response Program Site Inventory designated offbase overshoot areas associated with historic targets as Edwards Off-Base Adjacent Areas, munitions response areas (MRAs) AL505-1 through AL505-5. These MRAs were carried through the CSE Phase I and Phase II. As a result of CSE Phase II, the Air Force subdivided MRA AL505-2 and MRA AL505-4 into MRSs as described in the subsections below (Bay West, 2010). 1
1.3.1 AL505-2A East and West The Air Force designated MRA AL505-2 as an off-base overshoot area for former Target PB-9 (Map 3). Historical data indicate this former target was constructed in 1945 and used for day and night practice and precision aerial bombardment training until 1957 (Bay West, 2010). The Air Force and its contractors conducted munitions investigations concluding with the CSE Phase II. The CSE Phase II field work, conducted in 2008 used visual transects for surface assessment and helicopter magnetometry (HeliMag) for subsurface assessment. The field investigation identified munitions and explosives of concern (MEC) contamination in the central portion of the MRS, and munitions debris (MD) but no MEC contamination in the eastern and western portions. The Air Force subdivided MRA AL505-2 into MRSs, as follows: MRS AL505-2, recommended for further munitions response actions; and MRS AL505-2A East and West, recommended for NFA (Map 3) (Bay West, 2010). The Air Force is addressing MRS AL505-2 under a separate munitions response. 1.3.2 AL505-4A East and West The Air Force designated MRA AL505-4 as an off-base overshoot area for former Target PB-5 (Map 4). Historical data indicate the target was constructed in 1944 and used for high-altitude day and night practice and precision aerial bombardment training, skip bombing, and strafing until 1953. The Air Force and its contractors conducted munitions investigations concluding with the CSE Phase II. The CSE Phase II field work, conducted in 2008 used visual transects for surface assessment and HeliMag for subsurface assessment. The field investigation identified MEC contamination in the central portion of the MRS and MD but no MEC contamination in the eastern and western portions. The Air Force subdivided MRA AL505-4 into MRSs, as follows: MRS AL505-4, recommended for further munitions response actions; and MRS AL505-4A East and West, recommended for NFA (Map 4) (Bay West, 2010). The Air Force is addressing MRS AL505-4 under a separate munitions response. 1.4 Current Land Use 1.4.1 AL505-2A East and West The land within the MRS is mostly undeveloped privately owned land and government-owned land. Part of a residential area in the town of Boron, the Boron Recreational Park, and Boron Landfill are located within the MRS (Map 3) (Bay West, 2010). 1.4.2 AL505-4A East and West The land within the MRS is undeveloped, privately-owned land and government-owned land, which is designated for outdoor recreational use, primarily by off-road vehicles (Map 4) (Bay West, 2010). 2
1.5 Proposed Future Land Use 1.5.1 AL 505-2A East and West The MRS is not Department of Defense (DoD) controlled and there are no land use controls or other restrictions. Property owners will determine future land use. The Air Force has no knowledge of proposed future land uses. 1.5.2 AL 505-4A East and West The MRS is not DoD controlled and there are no land use controls or other restrictions. Property owners will determine future land use. The Air Force has no knowledge of proposed future land uses. 2.0 MAPS Refer to Appendix A. Map 1 depicts the location of. Map 2 depicts the locations of the original MRSs and the MRSs addressed in this NFA ESS. Map 3 depicts AL505-2A East and West. Map 4 depicts AL505-4A East and West. 3.0 JUSTIFICATION FOR THE DECISION 3.1 AL505-2A East and West Results of the previous investigation did not indicate a high concentration of subsurface metallic anomalies consistent with a target area. The results of the visual survey investigation indicated a low concentration of surface MD consistent with a range fan. There was no MEC encountered (Bay West, 2010). 3.2 AL 505-4A East and West Results of the previous investigation did not indicate a high concentration of subsurface metallic anomalies consistent with a target area. The results of the visual survey investigation indicated a low concentration of surface MD consistent with a range fan. There was no MEC encountered (Bay West, 2010). 4.0 CONTINGENCIES No MEC is expected in either MRS. However, any person encountering suspected MEC should follow these steps: Do not disturb the item; Note the location of the item; and Report the suspected MEC to local law enforcement. 3
Local law enforcement agencies may contact the Air Force for technical support and assistance. 5.0 REFERENCES Bay West, 2010. Final CSE Phase II Report Military Munitions Response Program Comprehensive Site Evaluation Phase II, Edwards Air Force Base, California, August 2010. This report is available electronically upon request. 4
APPENDIX A MAPS A1
CALIFORNIA µ Los Angeles ^_!! San Diego Map Projection: NAD 1983 UTM Zone 11 North Esri World Topographic Basemap Y:\Clients\US_ARMY_CORP_OF_ENGINEERS_OMAHA\Edwards_AFB\MapDocs\003_NFA_ESS_AL505-2A_AL505-4A\J130107_001_Map_01_Location_Map.mxd Date Drawn: 8/15/2016 Project No. J130107 0 10 20 Miles Kilometers 0 15 30 Installation Boundary Location Map No Further Action (NFA) Explosives Safety Submission for MRS AL505-2A and AL5054A Map 1
CALIFORNIA µ AL505-2a AL505-2 AL505-2a Los Angeles ^_!! San Diego Map Projection: NAD 1983 UTM Zone 11 North Esri World Topographic Basemap 0 4 8 Miles Kilometers 0 5 10 Y:\Clients\US_ARMY_CORP_OF_ENGINEERS_OMAHA\Edwards_AFB\MapDocs\003_NFA_ESS_AL505-2A_AL505-4A\J130107_001_Map_02_MRS.mxd AL505-4a AL505-4 AL505-4a Date Drawn: 8/18/2016 Project No. J130107 Installation Boundary MRS Boundary MRS Boundary (Addressed Under Separate Munitions Response) MRS Location Map No Further Action (NFA) Explosives Safety Submission for MRS AL505-2A and AL5054A Map 2
Boron, CA NAD 1983 UTM Zone 11N 0 2,500 5,000 Feet µ Meters 0 1,000 2,000 Target PB-9 Y:\Clients\US_ARMY_CORP_OF_ENGINEERS_OMAHA\Edwards_AFB\MapDocs\003_NFA_ESS_AL505-2A_AL505-4A\J130107_001_Map_03_AL505-2.mxd AL505-2a West 424.00 acres Target PB-9 AL505-2a East 896.00 acres Date Drawn: 8/18/2016 Project No. J130107 MRS Boundary Installation Boundary AL505-2A East and West No Further Action (NFA) Explosives Safety Submission for MRS AL505-2A and AL5054A Map 3
Target PB-5 NAD 1983 UTM Zone 11N 0 2,500 5,000 Feet Meters 0 1,000 2,000 µ Y:\Clients\US_ARMY_CORP_OF_ENGINEERS_OMAHA\Edwards_AFB\MapDocs\003_NFA_ESS_AL505-2A_AL505-4A\J130107_001_Map_04_AL505-4.mxd AL505-4a West 1234.00 acres AL505-4a East 1317.00 acres Date Drawn: 8/18/2016 Project No. J130107 Target PB-5 MRS Boundary Installation Boundary AL505-4A No Further Action (NFA) Explosives Safety Submission for MRS AL505-2A and AL5054A Map 4
APPENDIX B ACRONYMS AFB... Air Force Base Air Force... U.S. Air Force CA... California CSE... Comprehensive Site Evaluation DoD... Department of Defense ESS... Explosives Safety Submission HeliMag... helicopter magnetometry MEC... munitions and explosives of concern MD... munitions debris MRA... Munitions Response Area MRS... munitions response site NFA... No Further Action B1