Naval Base Kitsap (NBK)-Bremerton and Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PSNS and IMF) occupy the land that makes up the Comprehensive Environmental Response and Compensation Liability Act (CERCLA) site known as Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Complex. The site is referred to as NBK-Bremerton. NBK-Bremerton occupies 650 acres (including tidelands and submerged land) along the northern shore of Sinclair inlet adjacent to the City of Bremerton and approximately 2-miles north of Port Orchard in Kitsap County, Washington. PSNS and IMF is a tenant command located in the eastern portion of the installation.
In 1891, the Navy purchased 190 acres of land on Sinclair Inlet for construction of a ship drydock, repair, and overhaul base. The original area was substantially expanded beginning in the early 1900s by filling and grading shallow areas with soil, dredged material, and construction debris and through the purchase of additional adjacent property. In over 115 years of industrial shipyard operations, primary land uses at NBK-Bremerton have included the following:
- Heavy industry (shipbuilding, ship maintenance and repair, and ship conversion, inactivation and deconstruction)
- Light industry (vehicle maintenance)
- Ship berthing/homeporting
- Commercial (providing for purchase of supplies, meals)
- Residential (officers’ and other quarters, barracks)
NBK-Bremerton facilities include six major piers, six large drydocks, and more than 100 large buildings. Land use in the area surrounding NBK-Bremerton currently consists of commercial and residential districts in the City of Bremerton and, to the northeast, water transportation (Washington State Ferries and Kitsap Transit fast ferry terminals).
Miscellaneous waste materials have been a normal byproduct of industrial activities since the early 1900s. Before the establishment of environmental regulations, some wastes were disposed of at NBK-Bremerton using practices considered acceptable at the time (i.e., use as fill material). The waste materials reportedly have included metal plating wastes, metal filings and shavings, transformers and other electrical components containing polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), batteries, acids, oxidizing materials, paint and paint chips, degreasing and cleaning solvents, miscellaneous materials from shipbuilding and ship demolition, and petroleum products. Disposal of wastes, particularly in conjunction with the placement of fill during shipyard expansion, as well as spills and leaks of industrial materials, has led to elevated levels of various chemicals in the subsurface.
An Initial Assessment Survey was performed at NBK-Bremerton in 1983 and resulted in the identification of several areas of potential environmental contamination. As a result of the historical waste handling, six Operable Units have been designated at NBK-Bremerton, five OUs under CERCLA (including OU A, OU B Marine, OU B Terrestrial, OU D, and OU NSC) and one OU (OU C) being addressed under Subchapter IX of the RCRA and the Washington State Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA). In 2002, the Navy began investigating the potential of transferring a portion of OU B Terrestrial to the City of Bremerton for the development of a public park. This portion of OU B Terrestrial was redefined as OU D and, in 2003, underwent a subsequent investigation for the potential change in land use from industrial to recreational. Following the investigation, the Navy deemed the 2.5-acre area available for transfer. The property was officially disposed to the City of Bremerton through three separate quitclaim deeds in 2006 and 2007.
A Preliminary Assessment (PA) was conducted in 2019 and 2020 to identify potential and confirmed per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) release areas at NBK-Bremerton. The PA evaluated 37 areas and identified 22 areas as potential or confirmed PFAS release areas. Of the 22 potential or confirmed PFAS release areas identified, 21 were recommended for further investigation as part of a Site Inspection (SI). Remedial Investigations (RIs) are recommended for several areas to evaluate the nature and extent of PFAS, obtain additional hydrogeologic and environmental data to update the Conceptual Site Model, and further evaluate potential human health and ecological risks from exposure to PFAS.