Maryland officials are sounding alarms after the Air Force confirmed it plans to begin construction at Joint Base Andrews before securing mandatory environmental approvals for the project.
Dave Abrams, a spokesperson for the Maryland Department of Environment, confirmed the federal position plainly: “The Air Force has indicated that it intends to proceed with construction before receiving those approvals.”
The renovation, which involves redesigning two golf courses at the Maryland military base that serves as home to Air Force One, has drawn sharp objections from state regulators over contamination risks.
Standard projects of this scale would ordinarily require wetlands permits as well as completed erosion and stormwater control applications, none of which the Air Force has pursued.
The regulatory standoff is complicated by the location itself: portions of the golf courses sit directly above a landfill embedded within a federally designated Superfund site, contaminated by decades of airfield and industrial activity.
Pollutants identified at the site include heavy metals, polychlorinated biphenyls, and so-called forever chemicals, raising concerns about what construction activity could disturb and where runoff might travel.
Maryland Department of Environment Secretary Serena McIlwain wrote to the Joint Base Andrews commander last Thursday, warning of potential contaminated runoff reaching surrounding neighborhoods and demanding cooperation from base officials.
“I take this matter seriously. My inspectors have a responsibility to assess potential environmental impacts and compliance with applicable requirements, and I expect the base to cooperate with them in carrying out that responsibility,” McIlwain stated in the letter.
A further dispute has emerged over site access, with Maryland alleging its inspectors were turned away when they attempted to conduct testing, a claim the base flatly denies, saying the inspector was escorted onto the installation.
The Air Force has sought to limit the scope of concern, asserting the renovation work is not taking place near the base’s primary creek corridor and that contaminated soil within the Superfund boundary is not being disturbed.
The White House offered a sharply different framing, with spokesperson Davis Ingle saying, “President Trump is a champion-level golfer with an extraordinary eye for detail and design, and his vision to renovate and beautify Joint Base Andrews’ golf courses will bring much needed improvements that servicemembers and their families will be able to enjoy for generations to come.”
Golf legend Jack Nicklaus, a longtime associate of the president, has signed on to redesign and expand both courses at the installation, which presidents have used since the 1970s.
Maryland Governor Wes Moore, a Democrat, has aligned himself with his state’s environmental agency in opposing the project’s current trajectory.
The Andrews overhaul fits a recognizable pattern: Trump has bypassed conventional review timelines on a series of high-profile renovation projects, including work at the Kennedy Center, the Lincoln Reflecting Pool, the White House Ballroom, and the golf course at East Potomac Park.
Critics argue the cumulative effect of sidestepping permitting requirements on projects of this sensitivity sets a troubling precedent, particularly when federally contaminated land is involved.
