UXO Site selected: Craig Army National Guard Training Sites, CO |
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General Area: Craig, CO Site Type/Program: FUDS Location: The Craig Army National Guard Training Sites consisted of 23,105.77 acres of real estate involving two separate, non-contiguous areas located in Moffat County, Colorado near the city of Craig. The two separate sites include: a 23,065.77 acre artillery range at Sand Wash approximately 45 miles west of Craig and a 40 acre small arms range at Cedar Mountain approximately 6 miles northwest of Craig. The Colorado Army National Guard acquired the Sand Wash site by permit for use as an 105 mm artillery range on 1 April 1964. The guard used the site during weekend drills to prepare for summer camp. The Colorado National Guard relinquished the Sand Wash artillery range to the on 31 March 1972. The Colorado National Guard used the 40 acres adjacent to Cedar Mountain as a small arms range between 8 February 1956 and 25 April 1978. Plates 1 and 2 in the Report Plates Section show the general location of the sites. Brief History: The Craig Army National Guard Training Sites consisted of two separate, non-contiguous areas located in Moffat County, Colorado near the city of Craig. The two separate sites include: a 23,065.77 acre artillery range at Sand Wash approximately 45 miles west of Craig and a 40 acre small arms range at Cedar Mountain approximately 6 miles northwest of Craig. The Colorado Army National Guard unit at Craig used both sites over partially concurrent periods. On 1 April 1964 the Bureau of Land Management granted Battery A, 3rd Howitzer Battalion of 157th Artillery Colorado Army National Guard a special land use permit for 22,425.77 acres for the artillery range at Sand Wash. The State of Colorado permitted an additional 640 acres in the middle of the site the following year. Battery A acquired a permit for artillery training using 105 mm high explosive (HE) rounds. According to interviews, the Craig National Guard unit used the artillery range intermittently, about once a year, in preparation for annual training at Fort Carson. The Colorado National Guard allowed both use permits for the artillery range at Sand Wash to expire on 31 March 1972. On 8 February 1956, the Bureau of Land Management granted a use permit to the Colorado Army National Guard a 40 acre tract for use as a small arms rifle range at Cedar Mountain. Beginning in April 1968, the Corps of Engineers managed the acquisition and renewal of the use permit for the small arms range. The Department of the Army retransferred the Cedar Mountain small arms range to the Bureau of Land Management on 25 April 1978. The archives search revealed no documentation highlighting the specifics of the OE training or site plan improvements at either of the Craig Army National Guard Training Sites. The Colorado Army National Guard trained with a variety of small arms at the small arms range at Cedar Mountain including: .30 caliber carbine, .30 caliber rifle (M1 rifle), 7.62 mm (M14 rifle), .45 caliber pistol, and .30, .45, and .50 caliber machine gun target practice. They also fired 40 mm practice rifle grenades and reportedly high explosive (HE) .40 mm rifle grenades on occasion. Also on 14 September 1975, the National Guard unit at Craig ignited and burned four atomic explosion simulators at the Cedar Mountain small arms range. |
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Range / Site Description: Associated Munitions: Activities Completed: The Archive Search Report for the Craig Army National Guard Training Sites was completed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Louis District, in September 1996. Issues: The TAG has determined that an EE/CA will be performed in Areas A, B, C and D since there is a high potential for more OE residue to be discovered in these areas. NOFA is required for Area 5. Other Information: EE/CA |
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