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Mr. Chairman, members of the Committee, thank you for the opportunity to discuss the increasing challenge of maintaining readiness in the context of broad legal requirements and commercial and urban encroachment on our training facilities and ranges. The Navy must provide credible, combat-ready forces that can sail anywhere, anytime, as powerful representatives of American sovereignty. We demonstrate that capability today through our forward-deployed forces operating in the Mediterranean Sea, the Arabian Gulf and the Western Pacific, ready to directly and decisively influence events ashore from the sea.

Yet the combat readiness we require to fight and win is now seriously threatened, the result of cumulative encroachment and regulatory issues. Ironically, the Navy is often actually penalized for the good stewardship of the environment we are currently practicing.

I. INTRODUCTION

The combat capability of our forward-deployed forces is founded on training, most of it is accomplished in the waters off America's East and West Coasts and the Caribbean Sea. No amount of technology, hardware, personnel, or leadership can achieve the required level of combat readiness without access to quality facilities and ranges that afford our Sailors and Marines the realistic training needed to execute their missions. Our ranges and operating areas provide the space necessary to conduct controlled and safe training scenarios representative of those that our men and women would have to face in actual combat. The live-fire phase of training facilitates assessment of our ability to place weapons on target with the required level of precision and under a stressful environment. There is a direct relationship between training and successful performance in combat.

The challenge to achieve acceptable mission readiness stems in part from increasing environmental laws and regulations and commercial and urban encroachment. Encroachment is defined as external influences that that can have the effect of threatening or constraining the training and testing events necessary to support force readiness and the acquisition of weapons systems. Since 1970 there has been significant growth in environmental legislation at both the Federal and State level. The most challenging legal requirements to Navy readiness are the Marine Mammal Protection Act, Endangered Species Act, Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and the Clean Air Act. Increasing pressure to develop available real estate further undercuts our ability to protect endangered species.     Over the past twenty-five years undeveloped land has been subjected to large-scale urban growth and attendant encroachment. Too often this has transformed our once isolated facilities into sanctuaries for endangered species.

II. CRITICAL TRAINING CONSTRAINT ISSUES

One of the most difficult challenges we face is to comply with the Endangered Species Act and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act [PC1] [TK2] without reducing our ability to "train as we fight" on our ranges. I will discuss these and other challenges and successes as they relate to four of our vital training facilities: Vieques Island (Puerto Rico), San Clemente Island (California), the Farallon De Medinilla (near Guam), and Naval Amphibious Base Coronado Beaches (California).

A. Vieques Island

        The Vieques Inner Range has been used for combined and coordinated (air, ground, and sea) training for approximately 40 years and is the only range available to forces stationed on the Atlantic and Gulf Coast where combined arms live fire, tactically realistic air-to-ground and naval surface fire support can be conducted. During our stewardship of the Inner Range, we have experienced unique environmental challenges and successes. In compliance with the Endangered Species Act, the Navy has successfully protected Hawkbill and Leatherback sea turtles nesting on the Inner Range beaches. Our practice has been to relocate turtle eggs prior to amphibious landings and other exercises. In 1991, the Navy built a sea turtle hatchery on Vieques to incubate relocated eggs. As a result, over 17,000 sea turtle eggs have been successfully introduced into the environment.

 

The Navy has also implemented precautionary measures during pre-deployment battle group exercises to obtain a favorable biological opinion from the Fish and Wildlife Service and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries. These precautionary measures include:

·       Limiting night-time use of inert ordnance on the range to 60 minutes total or only ten percent of total Naval Surface Fire Support

·       Discontinuing use of illumination rounds after 11:00 p.m. with a 60-minute maximum total time of illumination per night

·       Requiring regular aerial surveillance of the range and surrounding waters by certified biologists ($300,000 per exercise)

·       Suspending the training exercise if a sea turtle is observed either on the range or within 1,000 yards of shore

The success of our conservation program is underscored by the fact that, despite being located on our beaches, the sea turtle population there has thrived as compared to the turtle populations inhabiting other Puerto Rican coastal areas. Our successful efforts at protecting the turtles in compliance with the Endangered Species Act has led to an increased turtle population, which has further constrained our ability to train as we fight.

B. San Clemente Island

The range and operations area on San Clemente Island is owned entirely by the Navy and accommodates naval surface fire support, air-to-ground ordnance delivery operations, and special operations. Its location near San Diego is critical for efficient use of training dollars. It is the only surface fire support range on the West Coast.

San Clemente Island is also home to the San Clemente Island Loggerhead Shrike, which is listed as an endangered species pursuant to the Endangered Species Act. Due in part to our successful conservation efforts, the population has grown from 13 to 42 birds in the wild and 64 birds in a captive breeding population at a cost of $2.5 million annually.

 Our successful stewardship of the Loggerhead Shrike has had a direct impact on training. To protect the Shrike from fires during the seven-month fire season and to comply with the Endangered Species Act, we have decreased one live round impact area by 90 percent and another by 67 percent, reducing the types of missions for which our forces can train. We have also eliminated use of illumination rounds and all surface fire support training at night. Moreover, during Shrike breeding season, the shore bombardment range is closed four days a week to permit biologists to surveil the Shrike. As the Shrike population recovers, nesting areas are expanding into the only two fire-impact areas.

C. Faralon de Medinilla

The Faralon de Medinilla Target Range is the Pacific Fleet's only U.S.-controlled range available for live-fire training for forward deployed naval forces. It is located near Guam and is leased from the Government of the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands. Faralon de Medinilla enables our forward-deployed airwing and surface units in Japan to conduct two and three unit level training evolutions and one large-scale exercise per year. Without this range, live-fire training would be contingent upon access to non U.S.-controlled ranges and airwing and surface unit readiness would decline to "not ready" status within six months.

Our Pacific Fleet's ability to conduct essential training on Faralon de Medinilla is presently subject to litigation brought by an environmental group seeking to stop live-fire training on the grounds that some migratory, but not necessarily endangered or threatened, birds are harmed in violation of the 1918 Migratory Bird Treaty Act. This lawsuit was filed in December 2000 following a decision by Federal Court in the District of Columbia which declined to follow precedent and applied the 85-year-old act to Federal agencies.

D. Naval Amphibious Base Coronado Beaches

Naval Amphibious Base Coronado and its adjacent beaches provide training for Navy SEALs, amphibious insertion and other small units. The beach was recently designated a critical habitat pursuant to the Endangered Species Act for the Western Snowy Plover and the California Least Tern. To support the recovery of these species, we now physically mark nesting areas and reschedule training to other areas during nesting season. We also conduct an active predator control program on Coronado's beaches to protect nesting birds. Population counts are increasing for both species to the extent that last year 40-50% of the beach area normally available for training was lost to nesting.

III. NAVAL TRAINING EQUIPMENT, OPERATIONS, AND EXERCISES 

IMPACTED BY COMMERCIAL ENCROACHMENT OR REGULATORY 

IMPLEMENTATION

Commercial encroachment and regulatory implementation have degraded our training and delayed weapons development in a variety of areas.

A. Use of Sonar and Explosive Sound Devices

The threat posed by quiet, hostile submarines makes it essential for us to conduct anti-submarine warfare training operations. Active sonar, which is used to locate and counter this threat, is under increasing environmental scrutiny. We are investing $18 million in research over the next three years to better understand whether these sonars affect marine mammals.

1. Delayed Deployment of Weapons Systems

            Meeting the requirements of the Marine Mammal Protection Act and Endangered Species Act can be an expensive, time-consuming process. For example, the $350 million Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System Low Frequency Active Sonar has not been deployed despite having completed a two-year, $10 million Navy-funded research project and Environmental Impact Statement that has demonstrated the environmental compliance of the system. Its deployment is still uncertain because of the likelihood of lawsuits and the non-concurrence of the California Coastal Commission.

2. Mitigation Measures

We have often implemented mitigation measures proposed by regulators in an effort to address concerns resident in the "precautionary approach". This approach's central contention is that in the absence of scientific information to the contrary, the regulators must assess that the proposed training is harmful to the environment.

For example, Navy conducts visual monitoring for marine mammals when acoustic operations are conducted during daylight. We do so at the request of regulators, even though there is scientific uncertainty over the effects active sonar have on marine mammals. Visual monitoring is not effective at night, however, and as a consequence, regulators have required that we agree not to conduct acoustic training after dark.

In another example, regardless of size, the use of explosives in test or training activities is viewed as an opportunity for an animal to be injured or killed. During the Littoral Warfare Advanced Development 00-2 Sea Test in May 2000, a regional office of the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) applied precautionary restrictions to deny the Navy use of Signals Underwater Sound charges containing approximately two pounds net explosive weight. These charges, an important element of the planned test program, are routinely employed in collecting environmental data and release relatively negligible sound in the water. NMFS Regional offices have concluded that the mere presence of whales during this test required the cancellation of all active acoustic transmissions. We fully expect that weapons systems employing larger net weight explosives will face similar challenges during future training operations.

On a final note, although some environmental laws contain a national security exemption, such an exemption is, historically, rarely if ever used.

B. Regional Air Quality Requirements

Regional air quality requirements have threatened to negatively impact access to our ranges. In Southern California, federal and state regulators proposed moving the commercial shipping channel farther offshore to reduce onshore emissions from commercial shipping activity. This proposed offshore route would have routed 5,000 commercial ships per year through the middle of our Point Mugu sea range. This sea range is our principal test and evaluation facility for airborne and naval surface weapons systems and is one of the most extensively instrumented large-scale sea ranges in the world.

To avoid losing the capabilities of this valuable resource, the Navy initiated a multi-year scientific study effort. It concluded that moving the offshore commercial shipping route would not significantly reduce emissions in the onshore areas of concern and identified other reduction initiatives, such as slowing commercial vessels in the existing channel, which would provide better solutions for improving air quality. While the regulatory decision making process is still ongoing, we are optimistic that a final resolution preserving the Point Mugu Sea Range can be reached.

Additionally, the Clean Air Act General Conformity Rule has impacted Navy training and readiness. This was a significant challenge when the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet was introduced into the fleet at Naval Air Station Lemoore, California, in 1998. The aircraft would not have been allowed to operate at Lemoore without an offset of over 300 tons of nitrogen oxide emissions. We were finally able to obtain the necessary offsets from the Federal Aviation Administration, but these necessary offsets only existed due to the closure of Castle Air Force Base within the same air district.

Conformity was also a challenge in the realignment of F/A-18C/D fighter aircraft from Naval Air Station Cecil Field, Florida, to Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia, in 1998. Only after the Commonwealth of Virginia provided an increase in the emission budget for Oceana were the F/A-18C/Ds permitted to relocate.

C. Noise

Airborne noise is one of the most noticeable consequences of military readiness. The public's perception of the issue of noise can dramatically influence how we use our training areas. Noise has long been reality at military installations but as homes and businesses have migrated toward and around our bases, the issue has increased in import and public concern.

In April 2001, property owners in Virginia Beach and Chesapeake, Virginia, filed a class action lawsuit alleging that Navy F/A-18C/D Hornets flying over their homes have adversely impacted the value of their property and resulted in "taking" of the property without just compensation in violation of the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The "inverse condemnation" lawsuit was prompted by the transfer of 156 F/A-18 C/Ds to Oceana from Cecil Field in 1998, which was earmarked for closure as the result of the 1995 BRAC process. If this lawsuit is successful it potentially could involve $500 million dollars in damage payments to the owners of some 20,000 homes surrounding the Naval Air Station Oceana and outlying fields.

D. Airspace

The Navy recognizes that new weapons and platforms require larger areas of Special Use Airspace for testing and training. We continue to work closely with the Federal Aviation Administration and have received a commitment from the Airspace Manager to include the Department of Defense in all discussions that deal with Special Use Airspace. The Navy will continue to work closely with the Federal Aviation Administration in the establishment of the Free Flight Program to ensure it does not affect our mission readiness.

IV. THE ROLE OF THE ISLAND OF VIEQUES 

FOR JOINT AND LIVE-FIRE TRAINING

The Inner Range of the Atlantic Fleet Weapons Training Facility at Vieques is critical for pre-deployment training and preparation of our Atlantic and Gulf Coast stationed forces. This unique facility affords realistic multi-dimensional combat training that:

• Affords strike aircraft use of air-to-ground ordnance with tactically realistic and challenging targets and airspace allowing high altitude flight profiles

• Accommodates amphibious landings supported by naval surface fire, air-to-ground close air support, air-to-surface mine delivery, and artillery ordnance

• Permits warships to achieve naval surface fire support qualifications

            Vieques is the centerpiece of a premier Navy training facility, reflecting more than a half-century of investment and development. It is essential for our combat readiness. On April 27, 2001, we conducted training at Vieques. In keeping with the limitations established in the Presidential Directives of January 31, 2000 we used only non-explosive ordnance on the range. Elements of the USS ENTERPRISE and USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT Battle Groups conducted naval surface fire support and air-to-ground ordnance training from April 27 through May 1, 2001. The training was conducted after Federal Courts in Puerto Rico and the District of Columbia refused to issue temporary restraining orders against the Navy.

The Commonwealth of Puerto Rico recently enacted a Noise Prohibition Act and filed suit in the Federal District Court for the District of Columbia in an attempt to prevent the Navy from conducting Naval Surface Fire Support training at Vieques. The legislative history and express language of the Noise Prohibition Act make clear that the Government of Puerto Rico is attempting to apply its limited maritime natural resources jurisdiction and authority in an attempt to prohibit a lawful federal activity----the conduct of Navy training. These actions are inconsistent with the specific written commitment made by Governor Rosello on January 31, 2000, that the Commonwealth would not initiate litigation in an attempt to constrain use of the range, provided that the training activities were conducted in accordance with the limitations established in the Presidential Directives of January 31, 2000. The Navy, of course, has conducted its training in full compliance with those Presidential Directives.

The Navy will continue to train at Vieques and will ensure that its activities are conducted without creating a significant risk to the health of the citizens of Vieques or the environment. Regarding health concerns raised by the Governor, the Navy has called on the Governor to provide full and complete access to the data and studies upon which she has based her allegations. To date, she has provided the Navy and the Department of Defense only summarized and partial data sets. Navy medical personnel and experts from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and School of Medicine have conducted reviews of these partial data sets and have concluded that the data presented do not show that Navy training activities constitute a significant risk to the health of the citizens of Vieques. The Navy will continue to support independent reviews of all health allegations raised but we have no reason to believe that our activities pose a health hazard. 

            We remain very concerned about increasing acts of violence against Navy personnel at Vieques. These acts are typically committed by persons within the criminal jurisdiction of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and municipality of Vieques, and it will require greater support from the Police of Puerto Rico to prevent these acts from occurring.

V. COSTS IN NAVY RESOURCES AND OPTEMPO 

TO PERFORM TRAINING "WORK AROUNDS"

Restricted or temporary loss of access to a range and the subsequent requirement to seek alternatives or workarounds often leads to an increase of operations at alternate Navy or service ranges. When training areas at Vieques were unavailable we undertook a less-than-optimal approach to completing multi-functional carrier battle group training at Eglin Air Force Base and Pinecastle and Pamlico Sound ranges.

In addition to unsuitability to achieve required readiness standards, the "work around" training scheme presented additional problems. While Eglin is the only East Coast live impact area that provides some level of support to complete advanced air-to-ground bombing training, flight profile and range control restrictions limited the full range of tactical maneuvering of strike formations. These restrictions, including the inability to conduct multi-axis attacks, inhibited our ability to train as we would fight. In terms of additional costs, the Navy incurred charges of $65,000 to $90,000 per day (as much as $800,000 per battle group) to train at Eglin.

The loss of Vieques also led to increased operations at other locations, including North Florida's Pinecastle Military Live Fire Range. Subsequently, local groups near Pinecastle have begun requesting Navy to cease all bombing operations.

As these examples indicate, there are no quick-fix alternatives to traditional Navy ranges such as the unique facilities found at Vieques. When the best facilities are not available, the Navy is forced to operate in areas that may not be particularly well-suited for the kind of intense, realistic combined arms training that is required by our Title 10 responsibilities to train, equip and provide the force required by our nation's National Command Authorities.

VI. LONG-TERM MARITIME SUSTAINABILITY STRATEGY

            The Senior Readiness Oversight Council (SROC) identified nine areas where Department of Defense organizations should focus resources to mitigate the effects of encroachment through sustainable action plans and an active outreach program. Undersecretary of the Navy, as well as Chief of Naval Operations and Commandant of the Marine Corps serve as members to the SROC. Navy is the Executive Agent for two Sustainable Action Plans: Clean Air Act and Maritime Sustainability. Navy has served as the DoD Executive Agent for the Clean Air Act (CAA) since 1991. We are updating our efforts to mitigate the effects of the CAA on readiness, especially with regard to air conformity and home basing. At the same time, Navy is actively engaged in developing a Maritime Sustainability Action Plan, discussed below. We have coordinated our efforts with the other services. Once completed our Sustainable Action Plans will serve as roadmaps for future action.

The Navy and Marine Corps have also adopted the overarching SROC approach and have completed most elements of a coherent and comprehensive strategy that identifies core ranges and operations areas and initiatives to sustain access to them. The strategy consists of a roadmap that links range requirements and capabilities to readiness, determines readiness impacts and alternatives should a range become unavailable, minimizes encroachment impacts via sustainable action plans, reaches out to neighboring communities, emphasizes opportunities for mitigation to reduce or avoid impacts and formalizes a training range organizational structure. We believe this coordinated Service-wide approach to sustain our core ranges will guide us in this ever-challenging encroachment environment.

A. Maritime Sustainability Action Plan

As the Department of Defense Executive Agent for maritime sustainability, our goal is to achieve sustainable readiness in compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements. To that end, the Navy has adopted a strategy with four principal elements: sound legal position, knowledge advancement, consistent policy and procedures, and education and engagement. These four pillars are being applied to solve some of the existing and future regulatory constraints facing Service training within marine operational areas and ranges.

1.         Sound Legal Position

Legislative Action - Last year, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries, the Fish and Wildlife Service and the Marine Mammal Commission were engaged in a process to develop a comprehensive legislative proposal to reauthorize and amend the Marine Mammal Protection Act. We worked within that process in partnership with these agencies to reach consensus on a definition of "harassment" that would provide more certainty to the regulated public while ensuring that actions harmful to marine mammals would be addressed.

2.            Knowledge Advancement

Research, Development, Test and Evaluation Actions - Understanding the effects of our operations on marine mammals and sea turtles is critical to our proactive approach for interacting with marine mammals. The Navy has developed a five-year science and technology objective to ensure that research will provide vitally needed answers to determine if the budget should be increased to accelerate data output. Our current research seeks to increase the level of knowledge of marine mammal population densities, distribution, and hearing physiology.

3.         Policy and Procedures

Navy At-Sea Policy - We developed an At-Sea Policy to promote consistent application of legal requirements Navy-wide. The Under Secretary of the Navy signed the policy on December 28, 2000.

Enhanced Readiness Teams - Commanders-in-Chief of the Atlantic and Pacific Fleets have established Enhanced Readiness Teams within each of their respective regions. These teams bring together operations, facilities, legal, public affairs, real estate, and environmental staffs to address issues across the broad spectrum of affected areas. Enhanced Readiness Team efforts include active engagement with regulators and other non-DOD agencies to ensure readiness is maintained through long-term access and use of fleet facilities, training ranges, and operating areas.

4.            Education and Engagement

Navy/National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries Coordination: - We have established an Environmental Coordinating Group for addressing issues of mutual concern with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Fisheries. An outgrowth of this group has been the establishment of a liaison office at Fisheries headquarters.

National Marine Sanctuaries Advisory Liaison - We also assigned a representative to serve on the advisory committee for National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary, which encompasses part of the Point Mugu Sea Range.

Public Affairs Outreach - We have adopted a pro-active outreach program that includes developing informational tools that highlight the importance of sustained readiness.

Training Videos - We have developed marine mammal training videos to educate our personnel on their environmental protection responsibilities while at sea. Two of these videos specifically focus on procedures to avoid endangering the Northern Right Whale. 

Senior Operator/Regulator Dialogue - Last September Navy leadership hosted a full-day meeting with their counterparts from federal regulatory agencies to discuss the challenges of protecting national security and environmental values.

IV. SUMMARY

The Navy's ability to meet its Title 10 obligation to conduct and win sustained combat operations at sea is increasingly challenged by legal requirements and commercial and urban encroachment on our training facilities and ranges. We believe that is necessary to achieve and sustain the right balance between military readiness, encroachment pressures, and stewardship responsibilities.

The Navy is proud of its record of environmental stewardship and will continue to fulfill its stewardship responsibilities in conformity with law and regulation. We also propose, however, to work with the Administration and Congress to ensure that those laws and regulations are applied in a manner that gives due regard to the importance of the military mission.

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