Military Munitions Response Program

The Installation Restoration Program IRP has been the Armys primary cleanup program within the Defense Environmental Restoration Program DERP since the 1980s. Historically, IRP focused on cleaning up sites contaminated with hazardous substances that posed toxicological risks. This changed in 2001 with the establishment of a new Army cleanup program that targeted military munitions. The Military Munitions Response Program MMRP was formalized in September 2001 when the Department of Defense DoD published new management guidance for DERP. A new program category under DERP, MMRP addresses environmental health and safety hazards associated with unexploded ordnance UXO, discarded military munitions DMM, and munitions constituents on current and former military sites as a complement to the highly successful IRP. In December 2003, the Army fulfilled its first MMRP requirement -- an inventory of its former training ranges and munitions sites to identify sites eligible for MMRP. In fulfilling its obligations under MMRP, the Armys first priority is the protection of human health, safety, and the environment. The Army went beyond the letter of the requirement and expanded its data gathering efforts to account for additional pertinent information. As a result, the Army not only expedited the programs decision-making process -- with human health and safety the top priority -- but also put itself ahead of schedule and established a precedent for MMRP success.