ALBUQUERQUE, Nov. 30 – The Water Authority’s governing board this week approved a resolution calling for Kirtland Air Force Base to accelerate cleanup of the underground  jet-fuel spill now threatening municipal water wells in southeast Albuquerque.

The resolution, approved Wednesday on a 6-0 vote, was introduced by board member and District 2 County Commissioner Art De La Cruz.  Among other things, it directs the Water Authority to request that the Air Force move up the start date for final cleanup operations by a full year, from December of 2015 to December of 2014.

“As elected officials, we’re here to protect the interests of our constituents and our community,” De La Cruz said.  “That’s why we want to see an aggressive final remedy in place by the end of 2014.  That gives the Air Force ample time to fully characterize the extent of the spill and complete the necessary planning. “

The Air Force had told the Water Authority board in June said that full remediation of the spill would begin by the end of 2015. 

The spill, which resulted from an underground fuel leak at Kirtland, is migrating through the aquifer toward three Water Authority wells.   No contamination of drinking water has yet occurred because of the spill, but some experts estimate that the fuel plume could reach the threatened wells within five years. 
Wednesday’s resolution calls for the Water Authority to work with Kirtland, the New Mexico Environment Department and the U.S. Geological Survey on the placement of additional monitoring and sentinel wells to better determine and track the plume’s proximity to the threatened wells.  Additionally, the monitoring wells will be used for important regional aquifer studies.

The resolution also authorizes the Water Authority to enter an agreement with the Air Force for development of a contingency plan to deal with the potential loss of any Water Authority production wells.

"The Air Force has agreed to shoulder the costs for this planning,” De La Cruz said.  “Nevertheless, we want the spill to be cleaned up before any of our wells are impacted.  Hence the need for a faster cleanup timeline than what the Air Force originally proposed. The community deserves action.”