Defense Department to again target ‘forever chemicals’ contamination near Michigan military base

The U.S. Department of Defense plans to set up two extra groundwater remedy methods at a former Michigan military base to regulate contamination from so-called ceaselessly chemical substances, U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin’s place of work introduced Friday.

Environmentalists say the methods will assist save you PFAS from spreading into the Clarks Marsh house and the Au Sable River near the previous Wurtsmith Air Force Base in Oscoda at the shores of Lake Huron. The base closed in 1993 as a part of a base realignment.

PFAS, an abbreviation for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl components, are compounds that do not degrade within the setting. They’re connected to a number of well being problems, together with low birthweight and kidney most cancers. The chemical substances are present in a variety of merchandise, together with nonstick cookware, meals packaging and firefighting foam that airports use to fight fires as a consequence of aircraft crashes.

Pentagon paperwork display no less than 385 military bases national are infected with PFAS, most commonly from firefighting foam used right through coaching.

DOD records released in 2021 confirmed PFAS were detected in groundwater round Wurtsmith at ranges up to 213,000 portions according to trillion. Federal regulators in March proposed limits of four portions according to trillion in consuming water. State officers have warned folks no longer to consume fish, venison or small recreation stuck in and round Clarks March and portions of the Au Sable and to steer clear of touch with all floor water and coastline foam in Oscoda.

The Department of Defense announced in August that it could set up two groundwater remedy methods near the base. The two new methods could be as well as to the ones methods.

“This announcement is a milestone moment for Oscoda and its surrounding communities,” Slotkin stated in a news free up. “I will continue to urge the Pentagon to swiftly implement these measures and to address other instances of PFAS contaminations at installations in Michigan and across the country.”

Tony Spaniola, co-chair of the Great Lakes PFAS Action Network, has driven the Pentagon to blank up PFAS contamination round Wurtsmith since he used to be notified in 2016 that water near his Oscoda cabin wasn’t secure to drink. In a commentary in Slotkin’s news free up, he referred to as the extra methods “a landmark second.” The effort will have to function a style for cleanup at different infected military installations, he stated.