Federal Court Rules Navy Did Not Violate Clean Water Act Over 2020 and 2021 Fuel Releases at Pearl Harbor-Hickam
The U.S. Department of Justice announced on October 30 that the U.S. District Court for the District of Hawaii ruled earlier this week that the U.S. Navy is not in violation of the Clean Water Act, in litigation over fuel releases at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam on Oahu, in Honolulu County, Hawaii.
The case followed fuel releases in 2020 and 2021 from two piers at the Joint Base into Pearl Harbor and Hālawa Stream. The Justice Department said the Navy identified the source of the releases and stopped them, made substantial repairs to the fueling infrastructure at the facility, and improved fueling operations. The ruling follows a bench trial held earlier this year on claims that the Navy was violating the Clean Water Act at the Joint Base.
After considering the testimony and evidence offered at trial, the court held that the Navy demonstrated that any claim regarding Clean Water Act violations was moot in light of the Navy's response. As the court stated, "there is no reasonable likelihood that the Navy will release fuel from the Facility into [Pearl Harbor] or Hālawa Stream," and "it is absolutely clear" that any violations of the Clean Water Act cannot "reasonably be expected to occur."
"We are pleased that the Court carefully and thoroughly reviewed the Navy's comprehensive response to the release of fuel into Pearl Harbor years ago," said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Energy and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). "The Court's decision affirms that the Navy has taken action to protect human health and the environment consistent with both the law and the United States' appreciation for the waters of Hawaii."
Attorneys from ENRD's Environmental Defense Section handled the litigation, the department said.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：夏威夷珍珠港（2025年）。Farragutful 摄，CC BY-SA 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, in 2025. Photo by Farragutful, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
