A citizens’ group alleged this month that the underwater explosive exercises the Navy conducts in North Whidbey’s Crescent Harbor have killed thousands of surf smelt and other key food sources for salmon, and that the Navy had failed to review the practice as required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

According to the Washington office of Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (Washington PEER), fisheries biologists who observed the detonation of a 5-pound explosive charge last year estimated that approximately 5,000 fish died from the concussion.

The dead fish were mostly surf smelt, but U.S. Fish and Wildlife biologists say there is a high likelihood that chinook salmon, chum salmon and bull trout are also harmed in the blasts. All are listed as endangered species.

The Navy conducts approximately 20 demolition exercises total per year in Puget Sound at Bangor, Indian Island and Crescent Harbor. Charges range from one ounce to 20 pounds, which are used to explode dummy mines located by divers.

PEER claims the Navy is moving too slowly to correct the problem, and has requested a formal investigation into the Navy’s lack of compliance with NEPA.

“The (Navy) department has persistently ignored the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service roles as resources able to minimize the extent of fish and mammal kills while offsetting the damages caused,” Dan Meyer, PEER attorney, wrote in a Dec. 23 letter to Vice Admiral Michael D. Haskins, the Navy’s Inspector General.

PEER contends the Navy has been conducting the tests for 10 years without the required review, but Navy spokesperson Comm. Karen Sellers said it was not necessary unless there was a significant change, such as an endangered species listing.

Sellers said the Navy completed a biological assessment of the ordnance detonation practice two years ago, when it was determined that the exercise areas contained at least one species of fish on the endangered species list, chinook salmon.

“We take our environmental stewardship very seriously,” Sellers said.

The Navy has been working on a project with Oak Harbor students to restore the Crescent Harbor salt marsh for juvenile salmon habitat.

Mike Ramsey, Washington State Salmon Recovery Project manager, said the fish kills can’t be good news for the project.

He noted that while the salt marsh would provide a safe haven for juvenile salmon, they would be very vulnerable to death by explosive concussion once they ventured into the harbor.

“It’s not a particularly healthy thing for the fish,” Ramsey said.

Instead of waiting on a biological opinion from National Marine Fisheries Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Navy has decided to start the NEPA process.

“Based on the recent outcome of the biological assessment and consultation with U.S. Fish and Wildlife and National Marine Fisheries Service, the Navy has decided that the potential impact on the environment from EOD in-water training warrants conducting NEPA,” Robert Campagna, Naval Assistant Chief of Staff, Environment and Safety, wrote in a letter to Washington PEER dated Dec. 18.

Campagna also explained why the ordnance disposal exercises were necessary: “Explosives found in the water pose a threat to shipping and personnel. During the 1991 Gulf War, Navy EOD units, such as those stationed at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, were called upon to remove mines, which had been placed in the Persian Gulf by Iraq. Due to extensive in-water training which they received, the U.S. Navy EOD divers were able to safely and effectively remove the mines with no injuries or loss of life.”

Navy “bomb squads” would likely be called upon if there was a civilian emergency, such as if a mine were attached to the hull of a Washington State ferry, Campagna said

“At that point, the lives of several hundred people could be in the hands of EOD,” he said.

Sellers said there were no plans to suspend the training exercises during the environmental review.

“This is required training in order for them to be prepared,” she said. “It cannot be simulated.”