The United States Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune began construction in April 1941 in anticipation of the significant role that the Marines would fulfill during World War II . Today , the base has facilities to accommodate up to 150,000 military servicemembers , families , civilian contractors , and civilian employees . During the 34-year period of exposure to toxins , from 1953 to 1987 , an estimated one million individuals were potentially exposed to toxic water at Camp Lejeune .
In 1987 , at the culmination of decades of multiple toxic incidents , underground contamination of wells and storage tanks , and reckless disposal of contaminated materials and substances , EPA designated Camp Lejeune as a Superfund site and placed it on EPA ’ s National Priority List for remediation because of the contamination of the water supply at the base .
54 x The Trial Lawyer