The 75 day public comment period for the Missile Defense Agency’s proposed Enhanced Integrated Air And Missile Defense System on Guam has ended.

Residents had from Oct. 25 to Jan. 8 to submit comments on the draft Environmental Impact Statement.

In response, the Pacific Center for Island Sustainability released their public comments.

Their concerns range from the worsening housing shortage to the degradation of natural resources.

“The MDA’s proposal for an EIAMDS in Guam is overstated in its effectiveness and understated in the real and potential damaging repercussions to the Guam community. While the anticipated threat of conflict may ebb and flow due to diplomatic as well as military policies, the damaging repercussions to Guam will be manifest on the island for decades,” said PCIS Chair Robert Underwood.

The former Congressman also criticizes the gaps in information on the proposal's impact on the Guam housing market and calls it a “public disservice.”

As reported, the 37th Guam Legislature passed a resolution requesting the Secretary of Defense for the unclassified version of an independent assessment of the system done by MIT Lincoln Laboratory.

Underwood notes the community has been unable to see this report by the public comment deadline.

PCIS further points out the MDA’s lack of housing plans for military personnel, contractors, and foreign construction workers.

KUAM also obtained Guam Housing and Urban Renewal Authority’s public comments to the draft EIS.

In the documents signed off by GHURA Deputy Director Fernando Esteves, the agency highlighted that “military-induced inflation” is “making housing unaffordable for local residents and exacerbating homelessness.”

GHURA said, “The Government of Guam is overwhelmed with community housing demand” and notes a 16% rise in homelessness in 2024, “running parallel to peak defense activity on the island.”

The agency notes currently, “The (Department of Defense) occupies 4,681 housing units for active-duty personnel and their families, relying on the community for 65.03% of its housing needs.”

That number is only expected to grow.