WASHINGTON, D.C. – Rep. Norm Dicks, D-Belfair, will meet this week with Navy officials about plans for Naval Magazine Indian Island.
“I’m asking the Navy to brief me, so I have a better understanding of what is planned and what is not planned,” Dicks said on Friday.
After the meeting, Dicks will make a decision regarding requests from the city of Port Townsend and Jefferson County commissioners for an overall environmental impact study of Indian Island facilities.
“I’m going to look at it,” Dicks said.
“Then I will make a decision – from our perspective I mean – if this is a significant action requiring an EIS.”
Dick said the base’s missile magazines “definitely” need to be modernized.
The Navy has proposed spending $20 million to upgrade three magazines at the base.
“We live in a post-9-11 world and have to take into account that the terrorists could try to attack one of these bases,” Dicks said.
“We need to avoid vulnerability.
“There are all these scenarios you have to look at.
“The world’s different now.”
Dicks said he also will ask Navy officials to respond to letters from the City Council and Jefferson County commissioners asking for an overall EIS of the base.
As of Friday, neither the city nor the county had received replies or acknowledgments of receipt of letters sent to Secretary of the Navy Donald C. Winter last month.
Dicks is a member of three key appropriations subcommittees – Defense, Interior and Environment, and Military Construction/Veterans Administration.
He also serves as a member of the House Committee on Homeland Security and on two of its subcommittees: Intelligence, Information Sharing & Terrorism Risk Assessment and Emergency Communications, Preparedness and Response.
Dicks said he will be involved in congressional military construction subcommittee hearings on future projects involving Indian Island.
