Agreement Reached on Fort Meade Clean-Up

"Ending a long legal dispute, the Army has finally agreed to an enforceable timetable for cleaning up contaminated Superfund sites at Fort Meade in Anne Arundel County (MD), Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin announced Monday.

Cardin, a Maryland Democrat who is a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said the Army had signed a 'federal facilities agreement' governing the cleanup of ground-water and soil contamination on the sprawling base near Odenton.

The announcement comes six months after Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler filed suit against the Army for failing to comply with a cleanup order issued by the Environmental Protection Agency. The order required the Army to produce a timetable for remedying the longstanding pollution problems at the base, and to sign the legally binding agreement to follow through."

Timothy B. Wheeler reports for the Baltimore Sun June 22, 2009.