PENTAGON PLEAS DIVISIVE ENVIRONMENTALISTS DECRY DEFENSE REQUESTS FOR EXEMPTIONS TO LAWS.

Byline: Jim Skeen Staff Writer

EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE - The Pentagon is trying to gain more exemptions in federal environmental laws, saying regulations threaten to curtail training and test work - a claim vigorous disputed by environmental organizations.

Having gained exemptions last year in the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act, the Pentagon is seeking exemptions in three other major environmental laws: the Clean Air Act; the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act; and the Migratory Bird Act.

``We want clarification that they can't be used to shut down training and test bases,'' Paul Mayberry, undersecretary of defense for readiness, told reporters Tuesday. ``We at the department can't wait for a train wreck. We have to be prudent managers.''

Opponents say the exemptions are unnecessary because existing law allows the Defense Department to seek exemptions for its activities for national security reasons.

The Bush administration is using concerns about national security during a time of war as a smoke screen for gutting environmental laws, said Daniel Patterson, a biologist with the Center for Biological Diversity.

``This has nothing to do with national defense,'' Patterson said. ``We need a strong national defense, but don't we need clean water and a clean environment, too?''

Prior to the Bush administration, Patterson said, the Defense Department had a good record of environmental stewardship.

Also raising objections to the exemptions is the Association of California Water Agencies, which represents agencies that deliver 90 percent of the state's water.

The exemptions would block state and federal environmental regulators from enforcing cleanup of certain environmental contaminants, such as the rocket fuel ingredient perchlorate, until the contamination moves over base borders.

``By this time, the perchlorate plume could be substantial and cause serious off-site water contamination problems,'' Stephen Hall, executive director of the association, wrote in an April 2 letter to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. ``Protection of water supply quality, rather than expensive treatment by end-users, has been a long-standing state and national resource policy. The military's proposed environmental exemptions are afforded to no other California business or industry and the military should be treated no differently.''

Pentagon officials said they have a good record on the environment, spending $4 billion annually on environmental programs covering the more than 30 million acres they manage.

``Clearly this obligation is taken seriously,'' said Raymond DuBois, undersecretary of defense for installations and environment.

Pentagon officials said the exemptions are narrowly focused, pertaining only to training and testing ranges and not to bases that have been closed or have been transferred to civilian uses.

The exemption in the Clean Air Act, which would provide a three-year grace period for meeting air quality standards, would provide flexibility in moving and stationing units, Pentagon officials said.

``With respect to the Clean Air Act, it's not a question of compliance: It's a question of time,'' Mayberry said.

Pentagon officials said legal battles over environmental issues are threatening training. Last week, for example, a settlement was reached in a controversy over Marine Corps training at Makua Valley on the island of Oahu in Hawaii.

In that settlement, the Marine Corps agreed to reduce the number of mortar rounds fired in the valley, which is home to 45 federally protected plants and animals.

In 1998, a stray mortar round triggered an 800-acre wildfire in Makua Valley.

Last year, the defense authorization bill included changes to the Endangered Species Act to prohibit further designation of critical habitat for endangered and threatened species on military bases where there is an integrated natural resource management plan. The Defense Department wanted the change to prevent the fragmentation of testing and training ranges.

An integrated natural resource management plan is aimed at protecting the environment while allowing a military base to conduct its mission, officials say. Edwards Air Force Base has adopted such a plan.

The desert tortoise, whose habitat includes portions of Edwards, is listed as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act.

Of Edwards' 301,000 acres, some 65,000 acres are designated as critical habitat for the desert tortoise. Much of that area is on the base's Precision Impact Range, where nonexplosive bombs and missiles are tested.

Jim Skeen, [phone]

james.skeen(at)dailynews.com