Later groundwater testing revealed volatile organic and other hazardous compounds in eight contaminated plumes at the military base. In South Carolina, groundwater contamination has been found at Shaw, as well as at the old Myrtle Beach Air Force Base, the Charleston joint military base and the the National Guard's McEntire air base southeast of Columbia, according to Department of Defense reports. It also is tasked with finding a PFAS-free firefighting foam or funding the development of one. The Air Force first started testing water in the area nearly two years ago as Luke Air Force's water supply showed high levels of contaminants. In 1962, an underground storage tank was installed at the base to store waste TCE, the degreasing solvent. Military Bases & Water Contamination: Whats the Link? If your base is not on the map or list above, this does not mean you were not exposed to PFAS chemicals from firefighting foam. The sites are McChord Air Force Base and Fort Lewis, both located just south of Tacoma. 1250 I Street NW The only way to tackle this ballooning contamination crisis impacting our military personnel and millions of others in Washington and across the country is for Congress to step up and take action.. On Wednesday, environmental advocates from the nonprofit Environmental Working Group (EWG) revealed that 90 more current and former Army and Army National Guard installations had levels of ground or drinking water contamination than previously indicated. EWG has found 28 bases with PFAS in drinking water at levels above those set by some state regulators. Additionally, DoD tested 2,668 groundwater wells both on and in the surrounding off-base community and found that 61 percent of them tested above the EPAs recommended levels. Toxic Forever Chemicals: What Are PFAS? TheU.S. Environmental Protection Agencysmaximum contaminant level for TCE in drinking water, above which long-term exposure could be expected to harm health, is 5 parts per billion. A free event about the film and water contamination in Hawaii will be held at Church of the Crossroads in Honolulu on Saturday night. PFAS are man-made chemicals used in products worldwide since the 1950s, including firefighting foam, non . ATSDRs new conclusions need to trigger a presumptive service connection, Arvo said aVeterans Administrationdetermination that certain disabilities were caused by military service, for which veterans can be awarded disability compensation. The data released this week by the military shows levels for five kinds of PFAS compounds at what Scott Faber, vice-president of government affairs for Environmental Working Group, characterized as extremely high levels, and he said they present a health threat to residents living nearby. Because military firefighters would use this fire suppressant on a regular basis, contamination with PFAS . These included 36 sites with drinking water contamination on-base, and more than 90 sites that reported either on-base or off-base drinking water or groundwater contamination, in which the water source tested above the Environmental Protection Agencys acceptable levels of perfluorooctane sulfonate or perfluorooctanoic acid, also known as PFOS and PFOAs. Hawaii Public Radio | Suite 1000 They now fall under the authority of the Army and are referred to as Joint Base Lewis-McChord. In Flanders, the government has advised people living in the neighbourhood of a 3M PFAS factory to stop eating eggs and vegetables from their hens and gardens, and a study by the Technical University of Denmark National Food Institute and the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration found that organic eggs in Denmark are contaminated with high levels of PFAS. The Environmental Working Group is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that empowers people to live healthier lives in a healthier environment. The Santa Cruz River flows northwesterly and provides the main drainage for the Tucson basin and is located approximately 4.6 miles west of the base. Contact her at [email protected]. PFAS contaminate the blood of every American and have been linked to serious health problems, including cancer and harm to the reproductive and immune systems. If you lived on a military base and developed cancer or thyroid disease, its possible that your illnessmay have been caused by toxic chemicals in your drinking water. Jack Holder, a Pearl Harbor survivor who went on become a decorated World War II flyer, has died in Arizona. Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of synthetic chemicals used since the 1940s that can be toxic to humans at very , To continue reading, subscribe Assistant Secretary of Defense for Sustainment Bob McMahon told reporters during a media roundtable that he "expects to see growth [in the number of bases contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS] as we begin to get a better understanding and better characterization of where we are.". In 2018, the U.S. Department of Defense announced that activities at 126 military bases had contaminated groundwater with PFAS. A spokesman for Air Mobility Command told Military.com that airmen's missions take them around the globe and often involve Copyright 2023 Military.com. As a "forever contaminant", PFAS can easily infiltrate the soil . What is the Venus-Jupiter conjunction and how can you view it? Last year, the DoD examined 524 installations for two of the most prevalent PFAS chemicals in aqueous firefighting foam, perfluorooctane sulfonate, or PFOS, and perfluorooctanoic acid, or PFOA, and found 401 with some level of contamination. Kirtland Air Force Base jet fuel leak, USA A decades-old jet fuel spill contaminated soil and groundwater beneath Kirtland Air Force Base, moving towards wells supplying drinking water to Albuquerque. In 2016 the EPA established a new, lower guideline for acceptable levels of PFOS or PFOA levels in water supplies: no more 70 parts per trillion. 1250 I Street NW Theres a hint in the shorthand for the properties of some PFAS, which is PBT: persistent, bioaccumulative and toxic. Several Oklahomans living near Tinker Air Force Base are having health issues . 2 at 800-504-2650. Davis-Monthan Air Force Base (DMAFB) is located within the Tucson basin, a northwest trending alluvial valley. The DoD began widespread testing for contamination in drinking water at its facilities in 2016, followed by testing of groundwater on and near military installations. . In a March report provided to the House Armed Services Committee, the Pentagon for the first time publicly listed the full scope of the known contamination. But Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for the Environment Maureen Sullivan said Thursday that was "really a wild guess" based on rough calculations during congressional testimony. In New Mexico, the Air Force recognized in 1999 that jet fuel had contaminated groundwater below Kirtland Air Force Base and surrounding neighborhoods. The Conversation airs weekdays at 11 a.m. on HPR-1. By submitting this form, I agree to the Terms, Disclaimer and Privacy Notice. This means you only pay if they win your case. "This is going to only improve over time. El Paso County (CO) near Peterson Air Force Base. "The military helped create PFAS-based firefighting foams and has understood the risks for decades," EWG Legislative Attorney Melanie Benesh said Wednesday in a news release. In 2001, ATSDRs look at Wurtsmith concluded that past exposures to groundwater may have posed an increased risk of developing adverse health effects, but that it was unknown whether the (volatile organic compounds) concentrations persisted at high enough levels for long enough durations to actually pose a public health hazard.. While the EPA did not make the guidelines enforceable, DoD decided to test all of its locations and work toward complying with the new standards. Protect your health. There are lots of potential sources of PFAS pollution. There was no factoring in of cleanup levels, no factoring in of technologies, it was just a general [estimate]. The toxic fluorinated chemicals known as PFAS are now confirmed or suspected at 678 military installations, according to EWGs updated analysis of Defense Department records. The human-made chemicals are in your blood, your clothes, your cosmetics. You can only hope now that people know and are finding alternative sources of water because those are shockingly high levels of PFAS, he added. PFAS gained particular attention in the early 2000s when DuPont came under public scrutiny for using PFOA in its Teflon pans and contaminating the drinking water of 70,000 West Virginia residents. McMahon said similar reports expected from the Air Force and Navy this fall will likely increase the number of known contaminated bases. Aside from chemicals manufacturing plants, any site that has regularly used PFOS-laden aqueous film-forming firefighting foams, such as airfields, military bases and firefighting training grounds, could in theory contaminate soils, air and water in the vicinity. To do so, Congress should increase funding for programs like the Defense Environmental Restoration Program and designate PFAS as hazardous substances under the Superfund toxic cleanup law. The base and surrounding area have been switched to a city ofOscodadrinking water supply that comes from nearbyLake Huronand does not include the contaminants at unsafe levels. SECURITY - A multi-million dollar lawsuit has been filed against the federal government because of groundwater contamination from the use of firefighting foam at Peterson Air Force Base. Flint, Michigan is no longer the only American city synonymous with contaminated drinking . may have been caused by toxic chemicals in your drinking water. Arvos health problems since his service at the base include breast tumors, which are relatively unusual in men; kidney surgeries; severe headaches, a degenerative brain condition and a recent diagnosis of cancer of the spine. Suite 1000 Veterans of the formerWurtsmith Air Force BaseinOscodafrom the 1970s, and their families who lived with them on the base, face increased risks of leukemia and other harmful effects from prolonged exposures to toxic volatile organic compounds that were in the now-shuttered bases water supply at the time, a federal health agency has found. McMahon said the task force has generated 40 recommendations and goals, from short-term fixes to long-term solutions to address PFAS-related issues. I will continue to work with my colleagues inCongressto protect service members from VOC chemical contamination at military bases.. In June, theSenate passedthe National Defense Authorization Act of 2020, which contains a number of critical PFAS monitoring and cleanup amendments. He declined to provide specifics, saying he has not shown Esper the group's list. AnAir Forcespokesman did not immediately respond to aFree Pressmessage seeking comment Thursday. The plume affected the bases water well. Explore the latest news, articles and features, This new version of quantum theory is even stranger than the original, Island-hopping cougars swim kilometres through icy water off US coast, Were starting to understand how viruses trigger chronic conditions. Mitchell said the military has not allowed Japanese officials to enter the base and investigate the contamination themselves. The EPA's provisional health advisory limit for drinking water is 200 ng/L. Air Force Civil Engineer Center conducts drinking water sampling at the former Wurtsmith Air Force Base, Michigan. Its an issue not just in New Hampshire, but at military installations across this country, said Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-New Hampshire. PFAS behave like surfactants, like soaps, says Prof Crispin Halsall, an environmental chemist at Lancaster University. ATSDR officials added that the agency will coordinate with other partners to notify concerned citizens and veterans about the findings in this report. The agency also said it will update its exposure assessments should additional information become available, and will support public meetings to discuss the reports findings. What isnt sweet are the potentially harmful food chemicals that may be hiding in your Valentines Day candies. Catherine Cruz is the host of The Conversation. This Polar bears have a PFAS problem: Pollution from the forever chemicals known as PFAS contaminates polar bears, tigers, monkeys, pandas, dolphins and fish and has been documented in more than 330 From coast to coast, and in almost every state in the U.S., high levels of the forever chemicals known as PFAS contaminate freshwater fish. We work closely with class action and mass tort attorneys across the country and help with investigations into corporate wrongdoing. At those locations it has installed filters at the water source or inside base housing, relocated water usage to another well, or provided alternate drinking water, such as water bottles, for personnel, Sullivan said. Through FOIAs, EWG has discovered that many of the highest PFAS detections in the nation have been found on or near military installations. It's 450,000 people. Remedial investigations also discovered benzene, a fuels-related compound, in the base and surrounding areas groundwater, presumed to have leaked from a petroleum, oil and lubricant bulk storage area on the base. At least 12 military bases contaminating water supply with toxic PFAS Testing by the Department of Defense revealed dangerous levels of the contaminants, drawing concern from public health. The tests will be carried out in contaminated groundwater on two Air Force bases and a Navy base as part of a wider search for technologies that can break down the long-lasting molecules. TheAgency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry(ATSDR), a federal public health agency within theU.S. Department of Health and Human Services, this week released new conclusions about the impact of Wurtsmith veterans exposures to unsafe levels of the degreasing solvent trichloroethylene (TCE) and the fuel byproduct benzene in the bases water supply in the 1970s. The Air Force has numerous initiatives ongoing towards protecting people from exposure to PFOS and PFOA in drinking water at levels above EPA's lifetime health advisories. Just fill out the form on this page to get started. Fort Dix, New Jersey Thats bad news because many PFAS also tend to bioaccumulate, which means they are absorbed by organisms faster than they can be excreted and will build up over time. Twenty-four of those had drinking water contamination at levels higher than the Environmental Protection Agency's lifetime health advisory of 70 parts per trillion. 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