Water Resource Collections and Archives

Alameda Naval Air Station Landfill Remediation Project

Organization: Golden Gate Audubon Society
2000 Grant Recipient - Alameda County

Purpose

This grant was designed to reduce pollution of the San Francisco Bay through research to ensure thorough and timely remediation of a landfill containing toxic contaminants at the decommissioned Alameda Naval Air Station.

Golden Gate Audubon Society produced a report that was used by stakeholders to evaluate the best methods for the toxic cleanup of the Alameda Naval Air Station. Activities included:

1. The careful and thorough examination and evaluation of the Remedial Investigation for the West Beach Landfill at the recently decommissioned Alameda Naval Air Station;
2. The preparation and distribution of a report of the team's findings in layman's terms for general public use;
3. The presentation of findings at a general public meeting at the College of Alameda to give the public the opportunity to ask questions and to encourage public comment on the Remedial Investigation (RI);
4. The submission of comments and team evaluation of the draft RI to the Navy.

2012 Update

The proposed Alameda National Wildlife Refuge, located at the western end of Alameda, is home to the endangered California Least Tern’s northernmost—and one of the species’ most critical—nesting colonies. Each spring, nearly 800 California Least Terns make their annual migration from Mexico and Central America to the refuge site at the former Alameda Naval Air Station.

Each year, Golden Gate Audubon volunteers prepare the terns’ nesting ground by removing invasive plants and building shelters and barriers to protect chicks from predators. With Golden Gate Audubon’s help, the tern colony at the old naval base has grown from 10 nests in 1976 to 440 in 2004, producing the second highest number of Least Tern fledglings of any nesting colony in the state.

NRPI Database Entry

http://www.ice.ucdavis.edu/nrpi/NRPIDescription.asp?ProjectPK=5613 The original Directors of this project were Leora Feeney and Arthur Feinstein.

Primary Contact for the Project

Mark Welther
Executive Director
Golden Gate Audubon Society
Phone: 510-843-2222
Email: MWelther@GoldenGateAudubon.org

Secondary Contact for the Project

Leora Feeney
Co-chair, Friends of the Alameda Wildlife Refuge Committee of Golden Gate Audubon Society
Email: LeoraAlameda@att.net