During the past two centuries, the Department of Defense (DOD) has used land throughout the United States to train soldiers, airmen, sailors and Marines to ensure the nation's military readiness. As training and testing needs changed, DOD obtained property or returned the property to private or public uses.  Today, the DOD is responsible for the environmental restoration (cleanup) of contamination caused by the DOD on properties that were formerly owned by, leased to, or otherwise possessed by the United States and under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Defense prior to October 1986. Such properties are known as Formerly Used Defense Sites or FUDS. The U.S. Army is the DOD’s lead agent for the FUDS Program. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) executes the FUDS Program on behalf of the U.S. Army and DOD. The U.S. Army and DOD are dedicated to protecting human health and the environment by investigating and, if required, cleaning up possible contamination that may remain on these properties from past DOD activities.