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Safety is a Priority

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Follow the 3Rs of Explosives Safety if you suspect you may have come across a military munition.

Recognize - when you may have encountered a munition and that munitions are dangerous.

Retreat - do not approach, touch, move or disturb it, but carefully leave the area.

Report - call 911 and advise the police of what you saw and where you saw it.

Former Fort Huachuca - Artillery, Mortar Ranges & Maneuver Area

The former Fort Huachuca is a Formerly Used Defense Site (FUDS) located in Cochise County, Arizona.  The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is monitoring the monitoring an area known as the Artillery, Mortar Ranges & Maneuver Area for munitions and explosives hazards that may remain from previous military training activities.  The Artillery, Mortar Ranges & Maneuver Area was divided into three Munitions Response Sites (MRSs).

In September 1943, Fort Huachuca expanded one of its ranges, the East Artillery Range, by leasing 3,219.92 acres of land from the Boquillas Land and Cattle Company. The leased land was used for artillery and infantry training. Historical records indicate that the Artillery, Mortar Ranges & Maneuver Area project contains portions of three sub-ranges: a 623-acre artillery range, a 1,297-acre mortar range, and a 505-acre maneuver area.

USACE began investigating the former Fort Huachuca in 1999 through the FUDS Program for munitions that may remain from former military training activities. In 2015, USACE completed a Remedial Investigation and Feasibility Study for the Artillery, Mortar Ranges & Maneuver Area project. Based on the Remedial Investigation findings, USACE divided the Artillery, Mortar Ranges & Maneuver Area project into the following three Munitions Response Sites: MRS02–Artillery/Mortar Range, Range Safety Buffer Area, MRS03–Artillery/Mortar Range, Potential Target Area A, and MRS04–Artillery/Mortar Range, Potential Target Area B.

The 2016 MRS02 Decision Document identified USACE’s selected remedial alternative as Institutional Controls to Protect Current and Future Site Users. In 2019, the implementation of the Institutional Controls was completed and included distribution of educational fact sheets and brochures to area visitor centers and placement of wayside and trailhead signs in the San Pedro Riparian National Conservation Area. USACE will conduct five-year reviews at this MRS to evaluate if the selected remedy remains protective of human health and the environment.

In 2017 the Decision Documents for MRS03 and MRS04 were finalized. The MRS03 selected remedial alternative was identified as Digital Geophysical Mapping and Surface/Subsurface Removal of Munitions and Explosives of Concern (to a depth of 2 feet below grounds surface) with Institutional Controls to Protect Current and Future Site Users. The MRS04 selected remedial alternative was identified as Munitions and Explosives of Concern Removal from the Surface with Institutional Controls to Protect Current and Future Site Users. USACE began implementing the remedial alternatives at MRS03 and MRS04 in 2022. Once the actions are complete five-year reviews will be conducted at the other MRSs to evaluate if the remedies remain protective.

Contact Information

For more information about Fort Huachuca - Artillery, Mortar Ranges & Maneuver Area, please call the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles District Public Affairs Office at 213-452-3921.

To learn more about the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ FUDS Program, please click here.