Burr Presses on Camp Lejeune Water Contamination at Hearing

Burr questions Navy on NAS report.

U.S. Senator Richard Burr (R-North Carolina)

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) - Today, the Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support held a hearing on military construction and environmental initiatives.

U.S. Senator Richard Burr (R-North Carolina), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee, raised concerns about the recent National Academy of Sciences (NAS) report on water contamination at Camp Lejeune and pressed the Navy for answers.

“It’s clear that the water at Camp Lejeune was contaminated by a number of hazardous chemicals at unsafe levels,” Senator Burr said. “I am deeply concerned about the conclusions in the report from the National Academy of Sciences. This latest report still raises more questions than it answers.”

The NAS panel report, released on Saturday, concludes the water systems at Camp Lejeune were in some cases highly contaminated by two hazardous chemicals, although the NAS also stated that it could not say for sure whether the people exposed to these chemicals may have suffered adverse health outcomes as a result.

The report lists fourteen diseases and health conditions that may have a link with human exposure to the chemicals indentified in the Camp Lejeune water system.

In addition to questions at today’s hearing, Senator Burr has written a letter to the Secretary of the Navy seeking answers to additional, detailed questions.

“I will continue to seek additional answers from the Department of the Navy, and I also intend to seek further input from the scientific community,”

Burr said. “Former Marines, their families, and former employees at Camp Lejeune have waited far too long for answers, and we need to start working toward a resolution.

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