Identification of Barriers to Munitions Detection Technology Transfer: Unexploded Ordnance Wide Area Assessment

Abstract

Abstract : This report the findings and recommendations of a study, conducted for the Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP) to identify potential barriers to the transfer of technologies from the research and development phase to active field use for munitions detection. To conduct a practical, focused assessment of barriers to technology transfer, the study focused on two specific emerging technologies: Wide Area Assessment (WAA) and unexploded ordnance (UXO) discrimination. This report discusses WAA; a parallel report on UXO discrimination is also available. The issue of UXO detection and remediation technology transfer barriers has been discussed for the last decade, perhaps most notably in the Final Report of the Defense Science Board Task Force on Unexploded Ordnance1. That report identified two changes that would bring about significant cost savings: use WAA to reduce the footprint of potential Munition Response Sites (MRSs) and use discrimination technologies to reduce the number of holes dug looking for munitions. Over the lifecycle of an environmental action starting with site investigation (SI) and working through remedial investigation/feasibility study (RI/FS) and remedial action (RA) towards site closure, WAA has applicability on the front end and UXO discrimination has applicability during the RA phases (see Figure 1). The need for cost-effective WAA methods and technologies is driven by the magnitude of the effort the Department of Defense (DoD) must undertake to clean up UXO on former and active DoD lands. The DoD must examine millions of acres of land potentially contaminated with UXO to identify areas that actually contain UXO for cleanup. On much of the acreage perhaps 80% or more there are no UXO present; this area is presumptively clean and should be accepted as needing No Further Action (NFA) by all stakeholders.