Environmental Assessment of Lead at Camp

Environmental issues for small arms training with lead projectiles are examined in this report for Camp Edwards located at the Massachusetts Military Reservation (MMR), in order to evaluate whether past or future use of lead in small arms has or will result in lead mobilization to groundwater. A review of relevant literature and case studies demonstrates lead is toxic to humans and wildlife and, therefore, exposure must be minimized. The literature also demonstrates lead mobilization occurs chiefly by wind and surface water erosion, generally not by dissolution and leaching through soil. Environmental conditions at Camp Edwards dictate that wind and surface water are not primary avenues of transport, due to extensive vegetative cover and highly permeable soils. Highly permeable soils limit corrosion of metallic lead but also can facilitate transport for dissolved forms of lead. Because highly permeable soils favor transport, a careful analysis of the geochemical conditions with respect to lead vertical transport to groundwater was a focus for this study. It is the conclusion of this study that, lead has not contaminated the groundwater in any significant way based on the absence of lead plumes and only one groundwater monitoring well associated with the small arms ranges had a single lo