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Air base allegations probed

A congressional inquiry has begun into allegations of environmental mishaps and abuse of authority at the Groom Lake air base in Lincoln County, Sen. Harry Reid said Thursday.

"We have an anonymous letter that was sent to the GAO's hot-line service," Reid, D-Nev., said in explaining what prompted the inquiry this week by the General Accounting Office, which investigates matters for Congress.

"A preliminary check shows there might be some merit to the case," Reid said.

He said the allegations include environmental mishaps, security lapses and procurement contracting problems at the once-secret base 35 miles west of Alamo and about 85 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

That could mean Air Force officials "were paying too much for things," Reid said.

The GAO has discussed the allegations with the Air Force and has promised to report back to Reid.

Sen. Richard Bryan, D-Nev., also has requested to be kept apprised of developments in the case, said his spokeswoman, Karen Kirchgasser.

Stephen Myerson, who works on special investigations for the GAO in San Francisco, has been assigned to determine the validity of the anonymous letter, said Reid's spokeswoman, Susan McCue.

Myerson previously investigated procurement activities in connection with the Department of Energy's high-level radioactive waste disposal project at Yucca Mountain, 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, McCue said.

GAO officials in Washington, D.C., have declined to comment further on Myerson's most recent assignment involving Groom Lake.

The base is the focal point of lawsuits brought by former workers at Groom Lake and the widow of a former worker who claims her husband's death was linked to his exposure to toxic substances at the base.

The former workers allege that toxic radar-absorbing materials were tested during development of the F-117A stealth fighter at the base. They also allege a secret trucking operation routinely delivered to the base 55-gallon drums of resins, solvents and hardening compounds, which were doused with flammable liquids and burned in open trenches.

George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley, who is representing the former workers and the widow, Helen Frost, of Las Vegas, has sued Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Carol Browner, claiming her agency failed to inspect the base for compliance with environmental laws.

In a separate action, Turley has sued Defense Secretary William Perry, National Security Adviser Anthony Lake and Air Force Secretary Sheila Widnall, claiming their agencies hid hazardous waste violations that injured workers.

Turley also has filed a motion with U.S. District Judge Philip Pro in Las Vegas to compel the government to acknowledge the existence of the base and reveal its identity.