City committee presses Navy, EPA and state to begin comprehensive retesting at Hunters Point after lab data problems

San Francisco’s Land Use and Transportation Committee spent most of its Oct. 15 meeting pressing federal, state and local agencies for a clear, fast and transparent plan to retest soil and building materials at the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard after revelations of falsified radiological data by a prior contractor.

The committee heard presentations from the Navy, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Region 9, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC), the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) and the San Francisco Department of Public Health (SFDPH). The Navy said it will release a draft final work plan for comprehensive retesting of Parcel G by the end of the month, and that field work will include excavations, borings and scanning of soil and accessible buildings overseen by Navy radiological staff and a newly hired third‑party quality‑assurance contractor.

Why it matters: Parcel G is a top priority for city redevelopment. Regulators and community members have said the city cannot proceed with further parcel transfers or development until agencies re‑establish reliable radiological data. DTSC and EPA both told the committee they had submitted broad, technical comments demanding expanded sampling and that the Navy has agreed to incorporate many of those recommendations in a revised plan.

What officials said: Navy BRAC Program Director Kim Ostrowski reiterated that the Navy is the lead cleanup agency and described the Navy’s intended QA and field oversight. CDPH Deputy Director Mark Starr described a separate health‑and‑safety scan of Parcel A1, saying about 95 percent of the walkover survey is complete and that teams identified 87 naturally occurring anomalies (potassium‑40) and one historic naval radium deck marker buried roughly 10 inches below the soil. CDPH and the Navy removed the marker under CDPH observation and reported no residual contamination in surrounding soil.

Regulatory response: DTSC Deputy Director Mohsen Nazemi said DTSC has recommended retesting all data collected by the contractor Tetra Tech EC because of data‑integrity concerns, and that DTSC, EPA and CDPH coordinated on extensive comments to the Parcel G draft work plan. EPA’s regional Superfund director Enrique Manzanilla said EPA will conduct independent split sampling alongside the Navy during retesting and will maintain on‑site oversight to restore confidence in the data.

Community concerns: Residents and advocates told the committee the draft Parcel G plan seen by community groups was not sufficiently comprehensive — for example, they urged more complete sampling of trench soils rather than subsampling — and expressed distrust based on prior falsified results. Several speakers requested stronger community engagement and clearer commitments about whether new streets and public surfaces would be safe for future residents.

Next steps: Agency witnesses told the committee the revised Parcel G work plan will be released for agency review by month‑end; regulators will have an additional review period before work begins. The committee voted to file the hearing record and continue oversight and public updates, with the intent to schedule regular follow‑ups (chair’s call).