The Defense Logistics Agency Pacific region's reverse logisticians are gearing up for initiatives that will clear excess material from vital oceanic waypoints including the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands - more than 2,000 miles from Pearl Harbor - and Wake Island, some 730 miles to its northwest.

The U.S. captured Kwajalein Atoll during WWII and administered it as a territory until the 1980s, when the Republic of the Marshall Islands became independent. Since then, the Department of War has retained usage rights for at least another 40 years while it continues vital testing at what was renamed the Ronald Reagan Space and Missile Test Range earlier this year. When DLA Disposition Services was first called in to remove six million pounds of accumulated scrap of atoll scrap built up through the decades during a 2018 project, Pacific Region Director Faron Cordrey said the task was so big it was difficult for the team to know where to start.

"The scrap volume was not only massive; it had been there so long that some of it had become embedded as part of the landscape, as well as protruding past the shoreline into the water at some points," Cordrey said. "It was very difficult to assess - just too vast, and the scrap so varied."

Since then, beat up vehicles and equipment have once again accumulated, punished by the salty, humid island environment that can quickly rust through nearly anything metal. Guam-based DLA Disposal Service Representative Joshua Shewchuk supports property disposal needs on Kwajalein and said his Army customers there keep close communications with the agency.

"Kwaj, just like all the other outlying islands that fall under the [Pacific area of responsibility], always face difficulty when it comes to moving material from one location to another," Shewchuk said. "But Kwaj has always stayed consistent … they always stay in contact and always strive to ensure that anything they do is within the guidance and regulations while making sure to meet any and all mission requirements. It's a great feeling to have a customer who works like that."

Shewchuk said units at the atoll need to remove more than 150 vehicles with no reutilization value due to the material's heavily weathered condition. Scrap removals of unusable assets like ambulances, fire trucks and cranes are currently estimated at about 500,000 pounds, with another 185,000 pounds having already shipped off the atoll in February 2025 and January 2026. In October, the Pacific team is slated to visit Kwajalein for a technical survey to evaluate property in support of the Missile Defense Agency's "Operation Clean Sweep." In November, vehicles will be loaded and shipped to DLA for disposal processing in Pearl Harbor, with non-rolling stock and hazardous materials traveling 1,500 miles to Guam.

Wake Island, located roughly halfway between Hawaii and the Philippines, was claimed by the U.S. in 1899 and became an airline stopping point in the mid-1930s. The Navy began constructing a base there shortly before the U.S. entered WWII. During the Battle of Wake Island in late 1941, the Japanese overwhelmed about 500 Marines and 1,100 civilian contractors, and the island remained in Japanese hands until the conflict ended. In the many decades since, the small outpost has served in a wide variety of military capacities, with much of its history dedicated to missile testing and defense. An onsite technical assessment by DLA for property disposal operations took place there in September.

Jose Santos serves as the Pearl Harbor area manager for DLA's property disposal arm and recently visited Wake Island with DSR Brett Fabre. He said the island was beautiful and it was "awesome" to learn about the history behind such a remote U.S. asset. He explained how the agency works alongside MDA partners to prepare for the property retrograde mission on Wake Island while continuing coordination on broader regional efforts.

"Our team maintains continuous coordination with MDA personnel to deliver strategic feedback and ensure seamless transfers to DLA Disposition Services," Santos said. "To guarantee execution readiness, we participate in bi-weekly operational milestone reviews, will establish expanded turn-in windows, and are deploying an additional DSR to Kwajalein to provide direct, on-the-ground support-ensuring all property is correctly prepared and documented."

Cordrey said the team is reviewing property lists and photos and helping warfighters prepare for an efficient turn in. Agency DSRs will conduct follow-on technical visits to remote sites in the coming months and provide hands-on guidance, assist with electronic paperwork, and help make sure all property is sorted and segregated. Excess material is expected to reach Pearl Harbor for processing sometime around the beginning of December.