Evaluation of Sierra Army Depot Groundwater Contamination.

This evaluation was requested by the committee of conference in House Report 104-863, Making Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations for Fiscal Year 1997, the Conference Report to Accompany H.R. 3610 P.L. 104-208, September 28, 1996. The Congressional conferees were concerned about allegations from a group of investors that the Army precipitously and abruptly changed its position on permits and applications to develop water rights in the Honey Valley Groundwater Basin, and damaged the interests of the investors. The investment venture was to transport drinking water through an underground pipeline to the Reno-Sparks, Nevada metropolitan area. The transport of water required the construction of a pipeline that would cross federally-owned land administered by the Department of Interiors Bureau of land Management. The Bureau of land Management, in turn, required the investors to fund the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement. To assist in the development of the impact statement, the Bureau of Land Management designated the Sierra Army Depot as a cooperating agency in accordance with the provisions of the National Environmental Policy Act. The Inspector General, DoD, was requested to investigate the validity of the investors allegations and, if deemed appropriate, recommend a process for determining fair compensation for those investors. The committee requested that the 10, DoD provide a report to Congress by May 1, 1997. The overall evaluation objective was to address the Congressional tasking.