104 RADIULUULILAL Ubbssivwi wa mea 4 costs were estimated as rehabilitation of Enewetak Atoll. DOD cleanup for radiological $39.9 million, including $1.5 million to reimburse ERDA litation and rehabi DOI g. support as agreed in the 7 September 1972 meetin d DNA revise The n.!83 millio resettlement costs were estimated as $12 follows: . as ed allott be to was n request for MILCON Program authorizatio n in FY millio $1.! and 1977, FY in $14.1 million in FY 1976, $24.7 million 1978. 184,185 efforts to obtain FY Meanwhile, LTG Johnson had begun marshalling October 1974 with 1976 Congressional funding during a conference on 17 on felt that Johns LTG MSN. and officials from DOI, ASD(USA), es Committee was Representative Otis G. Pike of the House Armed Servic United States was the that nced convi be to d the key Congressman whoha to return, and that obligated to return the Atoll, that the people wanted ed to justify the detail ently suffici were cleanup plans and cost estimates and Ambassador funds requested. Ambassador Williams, MSN, the matter.!86 By on Pike Mr. with meet to Ellsworth, ASD USA), agreed ofthe obligation nced convi was Pike Mr. that December 1974, it appeared tes. 187 but not of the sufficiency of DNA’s plans and cost estima ’s representatives LTGJohnson arranged to have the Enewetak people Senator Symington’s testify before Mr. Pike’s committee as well as before and Lroij committee.!88.189 Iroij Johannes Peter of the dri-Enewetak before the Military Binton Abraham of the dri-Enjebi appeared es Committee on Servic Construction Subcommittee of the Senate Armed 2 eeA OE oSllEales art on eae 2 aren been taken 25 April 1975.!9° Their statement told of how the people had its nuclear arsenal and from Enewetak to help the United States develop and as soon asit homel their to return how strongly all of them wished to important these how d relate They d. litate could be cleaned up and rehabi immense ocean an of midst the in ed wholiv small islands were to a people Mr. Tony and. homel their e replac could money of and how no amount g the hearin were the DeBrum acted as their interpreter. Also at their legal counsel, Mr. dri-Enewetak Magistrate, John Abraham, and the Military Installations Mitchell. The same delegation appeared before Services Committee on and Facilities Subcommittee of the House Armed tak Atoll. !9! 7 May1975 andreiterated their desire to return to Enewe DNA was asked to develop During the Senate subcommittee hearings, the use of troops (Army on based the most austere cost estimate possible r decontamination. nuclea in engineers or Navy Seabees) who weretrained the CONPLAN similar to Field Command developed a revised (May 1975) icleala : cc OM April 19 and other This up. clean the as well as t accomplish the crater containmen on.!92 The remaining support refinements lowered the cost to $25 milli by contractor personnel. functions werestill to be accomplis hed In the Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on 22 Mav 1975, the matter was discussed at length. Although the mora! obligation to permit the Enewetak people to return to their atoll was a consideration. th committee's decision, as noted in their report, was based ‘“‘ primaril on the premise that the United States could not walk away from a testin program which cost several billion dollars without making a responsible effort to make the atoll habitable.’ The committee agreed to a one-time authorization of $20 million and charged the DOD to accomplish the cleanup within that amount, using every possible economy measure The committee insisted that the radiation standards established by ERDA b met before any resettlement was accomplished. !93 In June 1975, the House ° Armed Services Committee approved authorization of $14.1 million for the cleanup program.!94 House and Senate conferees met in September [975 and, after much discussion authorized $20 million.!95 The conferees expected the DOD to minimize the total cost through the use of Army engineers and/or Navy Seabees and by limiting the scope of the cleanup as much as possible within the constraints of radiation exposure established by ERDA. The $20 million total limit set by the Senate was changed to a target amount for completin the project. 196 Public Law 94-107, enacted on 7 October 1975 provided authorization for DNA to perform the Enewetak Atoll Cleanup Project ata cost of $20 million.!97 However, the appropriation action, which was necessary to provide MILCON funds for the project, did not fare so well The House Committee on Appropriations, chaired by Representative Robert L. F. Sikes, meeting in October 1975, denied funding for the roject because the committee believed the minimum cost had not yet been presented to the Congress. The committee report recalled that DNA had requested $14.1 mitlion as the first inerement of a program that wa estimated to cost $40 million for cleanup and another $10 million to rehabilitate the atoll for some 450 people. The committee did not believeit prudent to spend $50 million—over $100,000 per person—to reclaim th atoll at a time when tax dollars were so scarce. The committee pointed o that the dri-Enewetak had already been given title to Ujelang Atoll plus over $1.3 million in payments for leaving Enewetak. The committee peeved ine the American taxpayers had a right to expect that any vopaibte east effort lowest i on198behalf of the drii- Fnewetak be accomplishe ional d at the The Senate Committee on Appropriations strongly supported funding rr ry mo N [ ati c La ae 8 oe | a oa] 7 uncertainty as to the absolute final figure should delay starting the cleanup effort. DNA’s studies had indicated that $20 million might not be sufficient to complete the project, but Congress would have had ample opportunity to adjust the funding as the project proceeded.!99 (This was in