US military drops appeal of Hawaii order to drain fuel tanks

By AUDREY McAVOY
Associated Press

HONOLULU (AP) — The U.S. government is dropping its appeal of a Hawaii order requiring it to remove fuel from a massive military fuel storage facility that leaked petroleum into the Navy’s water system at Pearl Harbor last year. Attorneys for the U.S. Department of Defense filed the motion in state court. The move comes more than a month after Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the military would permanently shut down the tanks and remove all of their fuel. David Henkin, an attorney for Earthjustice, which is representing the Sierra Club of Hawaii as an interested party in the case, celebrated the decision. But he says his clients will remain vigilant to make sure the tanks are promptly defueled.