Naval Station Norfolk covers 4,630 acres along the Elizabeth River in Norfolk, Virginia. Shipyard operations there involved metal work, equipment repair, and electroplating. Those activities left behind solvents, heavy metals, paint wastes, and petroleum products in soil, sediment, and groundwater. The EPA added the site to its Superfund National Priorities List in April 1997. A Federal Facilities Agreement signed in February 1999 brought together the EPA, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, and the Navy to carry out the cleanup.
Contaminants include volatile organic compounds such as trichloroethene, tetrachloroethene, and 1,1,1-trichloroethane, as well as heavy metals including lead, arsenic, chromium, cadmium, nickel, copper, and mercury. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, pesticide residues like DDT, and other chemicals appear across multiple areas of the base. Contaminated groundwater could reach the Elizabeth River or Willoughby Bay. Norfolk's public drinking water comes from municipal surface water supplies that meet Safe Drinking Water Act standards. A vapor intrusion investigation at one site identified indoor air risks, and air purifying units were installed in an office building to address them.
The site has been divided into multiple operable units. Eleven of those units have Records of Decision selecting specific cleanup methods. Those methods include groundwater extraction and treatment, soil vapor extraction, air sparging, engineered soil caps, and land use controls such as groundwater use prohibitions and digging restrictions. The site reached Superfund "construction complete" status in September 2010, meaning all required remedial construction is finished and operating as designed. The site also achieved sitewide ready for anticipated reuse status in September 2012. Current assessments indicate human exposure is under control and no unacceptable exposure pathways exist. Groundwater migration status remains uncertain due to insufficient data on whether contaminated groundwater movement has stabilized.
Active work now focuses on per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS. The Navy used aqueous film forming foam for fire-fighting, which introduced perfluorooctanoic acid and perfluorooctane sulfonate to the site. Remedial investigations for PFAS are underway or planned at more than nine locations across the base, with investigations scheduled through 2028 and feasibility studies to follow. Nine PFAS-related operable units do not yet have decision documents establishing their cleanup approach. The Navy updates a Site Management Plan annually, and a five-year review was completed in March 2024. The next five-year review is scheduled for 2029.
Community members can get involved through Naval Station Norfolk's Community Outreach page and through the EPA's Community Involvement Program. The Navy leads cleanup operations, and the EPA oversees the work. Contacts for the site include an EPA Community Involvement Coordinator, an EPA Remedial Project Manager, a Navy Remedial Project Manager, a state Remedial Project Manager, and a Navy Public Affairs contact. Site records are available online or in person at Slover Library in Norfolk at 235 East Plume Street.
