18 Proceedings Fall 2025 base in 1972. The historic nature of the base and its many original buildings are protected by the State Historic Preservation Offices, which exists to protect America’s historic and archeological resources. Preserving his- toric sites and resources can be challenging, which is why CEU Juneau’s Environmental Management Branch offers guidance to local units with regards to managing intricate historic and cultural resource concerns. This preserves the historic significance of our facilities, and ensures our heritage is passed on to future generations. However, the bulk of the Environmental Management Branch’s duties are remediation projects. Portions of land that currently or historically supported Coast Guard operations, like the LORAN sites mentioned earlier, have contamination stemming from historic land use prac- tices dating back to the 1940s that is in various phases of remediation. This includes petroleum contamination in soil, asbestos and lead that were commonly incorporated in older building construction, and emerging contami- nates used at a time when their effects on the environ- ment were not fully understood. The federal government has a congressionally mandated responsibility to clean these sites.2 But like many endeavors in the Last Frontier, complet- ing remediation work in Alaska is uniquely challenging. Most of the remediation work is the removal of soil con- taminated with petroleum or other harmful chemicals. By removing the soil, we can ensure the contamination doesn’t spread to new plots of land, or to the marine environment. During excavation in a potentially contaminated area, all soil must be assumed contaminated until proven oth- erwise. All potentially contaminated soil excavated must be carefully stockpiled and protected. In most cases, thick polyethylene tarp liners are used to surround and contain the material while tests are conducted. The lack of a comprehensive road sys- tem means these tests are often transported off site by air, which can delay results for several days or even weeks. While waiting for test results, the stockpiles must be prop- erly managed to ensure the harsh Alaskan weather does not break the seal protecting the surrounding environment from the potentially contaminated material within the liners. However, if tests then come back con- firming contamination, there is no landfill in Alaska that is certified to accept, handle, or clean contaminated material. The soil must be placed in specialized, 100 cubic foot containers called Super Sacks and shipped to specialized facilities able to receive this material in the Lower 48 via barge. Between stockpiling requirements, management during the delay in test results, and the high price of transport, costs to clean our sites can quickly balloon as the volume of contaminated material rises and must be accounted for in the planning stage. While demanding, environmental restoration proj- ects are successfully addressing the federal govern- ment’s historical contamination in Alaska—step by step and Super Sack by Super Sack—through careful plan- ning and close collaboration with regulatory authorities. Design and Construction Management CEU Juneau’s regional execution branch, which handles shore maintenance and repair projects, is likely its most prominent mission. The Coast Guard operates under a tri-level shore facilities and infrastructure maintenance model that includes day-to-day operational maintenance, major maintenance done by regional engineering units, and new construction centrally managed by the Facilities Design and Construction Center (FDCC). These three elements are divided into operational level maintenance (OLM), depot level maintenance (DLM), and procure- ment, construction, and improvement (PC&I) Operational units are responsible for operational level maintenance. These are repairs that can be done with technicians already on site, typically regular mainte- nance or small repairs. Regional CEUs are, among other Steam lines are repaired at Coast Guard Base Kodiak in Alaska. Civil Engineering Unit Juneau’s Environmental Management Branch provides environmental restoration and compliance services to support Coast Guard operations throughout the state. This includes managing environmental concerns, ensuring compliance with regulations, and addressing issues related to energy conservation and hazardous materials. Coast Guard photo by Brian Goettler
