SAVANNAH, Ga. – The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Savannah District has received additional funding for the Buxton Naval Facility Formerly Used Defense Sites property located within the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, in Dare County North Carolina.
Since there is an unknown amount of petroleum-impacted soil at the site, the Savannah District FUDS team added ‘options’ to the original contract. The options were included in the contract to help maintain a steady workflow at the site and provide flexibility for additional work items to be added, foregoing what can be a somewhat lengthy contract award process for a new contract.
The funding was received, and the options were awarded Friday, Sept. 26, 2025, to cover additional transportation and disposal costs if larger than anticipated amounts of petroleum-impacted soil are discovered at the property during the Interim Response Action excavations.
The Eastern Shawnee Bay West Joint Venture and the Corps of Engineers team, have been readying the site, bringing in large excavation equipment, placing heavy-duty ground protection mats to create a temporary road, removing any debris that could impact the work areas and staging in the clean sand area. The excavation equipment can excavate well beyond 10 feet, ensuring the maximum possible volume of petroleum-impacted soil is removed.
The objective of the Interim Response Action is to remove all accessible petroleum-impacted soil that is observed from the project area, and this may include excavation of soil in both the unsaturated zone and saturated zone. Removal of soil from the saturated zone (also known as the water table) will require the dewatering and proper management of associated groundwater.
If additional weather erosion events are forecasted, the team will secure the equipment and cover the clean sand area with tarps. The FUDS property is an active construction site and is not safe for public and/or media access. Photos and video should be taken from a safe distance, outside of the active work and beach closure areas.
Questions and concerns from the public about the Buxton FUDS property can be sent to the Restoration Advisory Board to be addressed at the next meeting Oct. 16, 2025. Photos of the on-going activities at the site can be found on the District’s Flickr account at https://www.flickr.com/photos/savannahcorps/albums/72177720328649228
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