H.R. 1584

Plum Island National Monument Act

STATEMENT OF MICHAEL T. REYNOLDS, DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOR CONGRESSIONAL AND EXTERNAL RELATIONS, NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, BEFORE THE HOUSE NATURAL RESOURCES SUBCOMMITTEE ON FEDERAL LANDS, CONCERNING H.R. 1584, A BILL TO ESTABLISH PLUM ISLAND, NEW YORK, AS A NATIONAL MONUMENT.

March 7, 2024

Chairman Tiffany, Ranking Member Neguse, and members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to present the views of the U.S. Department of the Interior (Department) on H.R. 1584, a bill to establish Plum Island, New York, as a National Monument.

The Department appreciates the bill’s intent to increase public access to and to protect Plum Island's natural and cultural heritage, and we support that goal.  However, given the multiple hazards to human health and safety that may exist, we have serious concerns about the bill’s requirement that the Department assume administrative jurisdiction over the island.

H.R. 1584 would establish Plum Island, NY, as a national monument for the purpose of “ecological conservation, historical preservation, and the discovery and celebration of our shared cultural heritage.”  The bill requires the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary) to establish administrative jurisdiction over portions of Plum Island through memoranda of understanding with the head of each Federal department or agency with current administrative jurisdiction.  It further requires the Secretary to develop a general management plan for the national monument and submit the plan to Congress no later than three years after funds are first made available for that purpose.

Plum Island is an 840-acre island located 1.5 miles northeast of Orient Point in Suffolk County, New York, within Long Island Sound.  The island has been in federal government ownership since 1899, when it was purchased for the purposes of a coastal artillery post, later known as Fort Terry.  In 1954, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) established the Plum Island Animal Disease Center (PIADC) to conduct research on animal pathogens to protect farmers, ranchers, and the national food supply.  Because of the nature of the research and hazards presented, access to the island and the research facility was restricted.

In 2003, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) assumed jurisdiction over the island and its facilities.  The USDA continued its long-running science mission at PIADC jointly with DHS, which was charged with the safe and secure operation of the facility.

In 2008, Congress approved legislation requiring that Plum Island be sold to help fund the new DHS National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility in Manhattan, Kansas.  However, in response to sustained advocacy from community and environmental organizations to preserve Plum Island for public purposes, Congress approved legislation in 2020 preventing the sale of the island to a private party.

The Department recognizes Plum Island’s tremendous biodiversity and wildlife habitats, as well as its rich cultural and historic assets.  Notably, Plum Island provides a critical stopover habitat for migrating birds protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and is home to one of New York’s largest seal haul-out sites.  Researchers have identified over 200 species of birds, over 200 species of moths, 9 mammals, and 5 reptiles inhabiting Plum Island.  Several federal or state-listed threatened or endangered species can be found on the island, including the piping plover (federally threatened) and the monarch butterfly (federal candidate species).

A number of historic buildings exist from the island’s years as a military fort, including a fire station and Fort Terry, a National Register Historic Site, which was in use from 1897 until after World War II.  The Plum Island Lighthouse, also a National Register Historic Site, was built in 1869 to help ships navigate near the entrance to Long Island Sound.  In addition, several buildings of the PIADC research facility have been determined to be eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places.

Plum Island’s long history of serving as a site for military operations and animal pathogen research has led to a series of ongoing environmental challenges.  The DHS 2023 environmental assessment (EA) for the closure of the PIADC cites four categories of environmental concern that require remediation or preventative steps:  

1. The PIADC biocontainment facilities must be decontaminated.  The EA recommends that a decontamination process, complete validation testing, and soil testing be conducted at the three biocontainment facilities. Decontamination will include methods such as scrubbing, liquid cleaning, thermal disinfection via autoclaves, chemical disinfection, and fumigation. As a result of the use of cleaning chemicals such as formaldehyde and the thermal disinfection of nearly all equipment within the facility, once usable infrastructure at PIADC will be rendered unsafe for human occupation until this costly decontamination work can be completed.
    
2. A number of waste management areas must be remediated.  The EA notes that DHS has worked closely with state and local health departments over the past three decades to investigate and successfully remediate numerous sites of concern, including removing buried waste, capping contaminated areas, and conducting soil and groundwater monitoring.  However, 10 additional sites of concern require further action.
    
3. The EA recommends testing and remediation of subsurface oil contamination in and around the PIADC facilities.  
    
4. Actions must be taken to prevent future environmental issues involving long-term storage of assets, including emergency generators, boilers, chillers, and, potentially, the island’s Major Oil Storage Facility.

In addition to the issues outlined above, the Department foresees budgetary challenges—and potentially further environmental concerns—involved with rehabilitating or demolishing aging buildings, managing a costly marine transportation system, and upgrading island infrastructure to accommodate use in a manner that is safe and accessible for employees and the public. The island contains dozens of buildings and structures, water and power distribution systems, wastewater and sewage treatment plants, an emergency power plant, and electrical substations, and additional infrastructure. Significant funding would be required to adequately remediate, maintain, or remove this infrastructure, particularly if the Department were to open the island to public access. These costs would far exceed the Department’s available resources. Another concern, as noted in a letter submitted during the EA from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, is the need for shoreline mitigation, which is particularly important given the vulnerability of Plum Island to sea level rise.

We share the bill sponsor’s commitment to the preservation of Plum Island’s unique wildlife habitat and its abundant historic resources.  Through the America the Beautiful initiative, the Biden-Harris Administration has made a national commitment to support local efforts to conserve and restore America’s natural areas for the many benefits they provide, including supporting biodiversity, providing safe spaces for outdoor recreation, and helping stem the climate crisis. The Department has numerous tools at its disposal to support locally-led conservation and restoration efforts, and we are committed to collaborating with the Subcommittee, the bill sponsor, and the many Plum Island stakeholders, as we explore ways to protect the island’s valuable assets and address its many challenging environmental issues.  

Chairman Tiffany, this concludes my statement.  I would be pleased to answer any questions you or other members of the Subcommittee may have.