Notable case, Vieques, Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico
Vieques (former Navy range)
A Puerto Rican island used for 62 years by the US Navy as a bombing range, on average 180 days a year. Since 2003 unexploded ordnance has been cleared from both ends of the island.
At a glance
- Status
- Remediation under way
- Activity
- 1941–2003
- Media
- soil, sediment, surface water
- Kind of site
- military
- Area. The former Navy lands, now wildlife refuge, occupy the whole eastern and western ends of the island; in 1941 the Navy had taken almost 80% of it.
Contaminants
Radionuclides
Organic compounds
Status
Remediation under way
A 2021 Government Accountability Office report counted about 109,000 munitions and 8 million items of potentially explosive material removed; cleanup is expected to continue until 2032.
Story
In 1941 the Navy bought or seized almost 80% of Vieques to extend the Roosevelt Roads base. The range was used until 2003; the munitions fired included depleted uranium rounds.
On 22 April 1999 a bomb that missed its target killed David Sanes, a civilian Navy employee. His death set off years of civil disobedience that led to the Navy's withdrawal in May 2003. The land was transferred as a wildlife refuge and the island was placed on the National Priorities List.
Timeline
- 1941The Navy takes almost 80% of the island.
- 1999Death of David Sanes; protests begin.
- 2003The Navy withdraws (May).
- 2021GAO report on cleanup progress.
Health
A study of 1995–1999 data reported a cancer rate on Vieques 31% higher than on the main island. A 2000 Nuclear Regulatory Commission report concluded that the public had not been exposed to depleted uranium above background levels (Wikipedia).
Remediation
- 2003munitions clearanceClearance of unexploded ordnance: about 109,000 munitions by 2021.
From the literature
Species that acted on one of this site's contaminants in at least one study. The list is automatic and takes no account of this site's soil, concentrations or climate.
Plants
- Helianthus annuusSunflowerUraniumEvidence: field
- Chrysopogon zizanioidesVetiver grassExplosives (TNT, RDX)Evidence: greenhouse
Fungi
- Funneliformis mosseaeUraniumEvidence: greenhouse
- Phanerochaete chrysosporiumExplosives (TNT, RDX)Evidence: laboratory
- Phlebia brevisporaExplosives (TNT, RDX)Evidence: laboratory
- Rhizophagus irregularisUraniumEvidence: laboratory
- Saccharomyces cerevisiaeBaker's yeast, brewer's yeastUraniumEvidence: laboratory
- Stropharia rugosoannulataWine cap, king strophariaExplosives (TNT, RDX)Evidence: laboratory
Sources
- Vieques, Puerto Rico, Wikipedia, 2026
Draft compiled from public sources, not yet reviewed.