Naha City Assembly protests against fuel leakage in U.S. base

   Okinawa’s Naha City Assembly on June 25 adopted a unanimous resolution in protest against the leakage of jet fuel at the U.S. Kadena Air Base.

   Jet fuel equivalent to 120 200-liter drums continued to leak at the base for four days from May 25. Amid concern over groundwater pollution, the Okinawa Prefectural Government requested the U.S. forces to allow it to enter the base to take soil samples. The U.S. forces, however, has rejected the request.

The resolution pointed out that Okinawa Prefecture’s Chatan drinking water treatment plant takes 800 tons of groundwater an hour from 18 wells located at the Kadena base, and that 26 percent of the water at the plant is supplied to 102,600 Naha residents.

   Demanding that the U.S. forces allow the prefectural government and municipalities concerned to enter the Kadena base, the resolution called for a drastic revision of the Japan-U.S. Status of Force Agreement that prohibits Japanese authorities from entering U.S. military facilities.

- Akahata, June 26, 2007