Maine
Dirogo (to lead) or Sequitur (to follow)?
Dirogo (to lead) or Sequitur (to follow)?
It was sad watching the state of Maine mishandle its PFAS contamination crisis last year. The state’s influential PFAS Task Force failed to recommend setting maximum contaminant levels for PFAS in drinking water, like Vermont and New Hampshire have done. The collective wisdom of the state thought it best to continue its reliance on the guidance from the corporate-controlled EPA to protect Mainers from toxic PFAS chemicals. The Task Force neglected to protect public health by allowing corporate and military interests to impede the state’s authority to regulate contaminated food and mandate universal testing and cleanup.
The Task Force is off the mark on many counts. Members of the Task Force recommended continuing to test municipal sludge before it can be used as fertilizer on farm fields. C’mon, Maine, wake up and smell the sludge! The state ought to ban the agricultural use of sewage sludge and composted biosolids. After all, the state just completed a round of tests that found just about all sludge is laced with deadly PFAS.
The Task Force refused to call for a ban of fire-fighting foam containing PFAS. Rather, they call for the use of environmentally friendly fluorine-free foams, “for many scenarios (that) should be rapidly deployed everywhere appropriate.” This is chemical industry-speak for continuing to allow use of the toxins. The Task Force recommends legislation to require fire service organizations to report discharges of Class B AFFF to the environment, and legislation requiring all fire departments to report the locations of all known past fire training activities that utilized AFFF or other PFAS containing material. They recommend legislation to establish a “Class B AFFF take back and replacement program.” One Task Force member recommended the legislature establish such a program once an alternative that meets performance requirements is readily available at a reasonable cost.
Seriously? They’re shaking their heads in many of Europe’s capitals! The International Civil Aviation Organization has approved several fluorine-free foams (known as F3) that they say have matched the performance of the AFFF used by the U.S. military. F3 foams are widely used at major airports worldwide, including major international hubs such as Dubai, Dortmund, Stuttgart, London Heathrow, Manchester, Copenhagen, and Auckland Koln, and Bonn. All of the 27 major airports in Australia have transitioned to F3 foams. Private sector companies using F3 foams include BP and ExxonMobil.
Perhaps the environmentally friendly firefighting foams are good enough for Maine?
The Pentagon staunchly defends the use of the deadly foams largely because it is fighting congressional attempts to regulate PFAS under the Superfund law, which would create liability for the DOD in the tens of billions of dollars. Their defense rests on the preposterous claim that the stuff is “mission critical.” Don’t discount the military’s role in this debacle.
Maine’s Task Force couldn’t summon the courage or wisdom to call on the Maine Department of Environmental Protection to order cleanup of contaminated sites.
They recommend requiring 378 community water systems statewide that serve 25 or more people to test for PFAS, while they ought to be mandating testing for all 1,900+ community water systems, unless it can be firmly established that the presence of PFAS is highly unlikely.
Sadly, many of the nation’s top public health experts say drinking 1 ppt of PFAS daily may endanger health. Women who may be pregnant are especially vulnerable because these chemicals, in the tiniest amounts, we know, damage the developing fetus.
The Task Force also recommends that private drinking water should be tested for PFAS in areas where groundwater is likely to have been impacted by PFAS at unsafe levels and mentions several locations, while leaving military bases like Loring, Bangor, and Brunswick out of the discussion.
Task Force nothin’.
This is what Maine ought to do:
The Task Force is off the mark on many counts. Members of the Task Force recommended continuing to test municipal sludge before it can be used as fertilizer on farm fields. C’mon, Maine, wake up and smell the sludge! The state ought to ban the agricultural use of sewage sludge and composted biosolids. After all, the state just completed a round of tests that found just about all sludge is laced with deadly PFAS.
The Task Force refused to call for a ban of fire-fighting foam containing PFAS. Rather, they call for the use of environmentally friendly fluorine-free foams, “for many scenarios (that) should be rapidly deployed everywhere appropriate.” This is chemical industry-speak for continuing to allow use of the toxins. The Task Force recommends legislation to require fire service organizations to report discharges of Class B AFFF to the environment, and legislation requiring all fire departments to report the locations of all known past fire training activities that utilized AFFF or other PFAS containing material. They recommend legislation to establish a “Class B AFFF take back and replacement program.” One Task Force member recommended the legislature establish such a program once an alternative that meets performance requirements is readily available at a reasonable cost.
Seriously? They’re shaking their heads in many of Europe’s capitals! The International Civil Aviation Organization has approved several fluorine-free foams (known as F3) that they say have matched the performance of the AFFF used by the U.S. military. F3 foams are widely used at major airports worldwide, including major international hubs such as Dubai, Dortmund, Stuttgart, London Heathrow, Manchester, Copenhagen, and Auckland Koln, and Bonn. All of the 27 major airports in Australia have transitioned to F3 foams. Private sector companies using F3 foams include BP and ExxonMobil.
Perhaps the environmentally friendly firefighting foams are good enough for Maine?
The Pentagon staunchly defends the use of the deadly foams largely because it is fighting congressional attempts to regulate PFAS under the Superfund law, which would create liability for the DOD in the tens of billions of dollars. Their defense rests on the preposterous claim that the stuff is “mission critical.” Don’t discount the military’s role in this debacle.
Maine’s Task Force couldn’t summon the courage or wisdom to call on the Maine Department of Environmental Protection to order cleanup of contaminated sites.
They recommend requiring 378 community water systems statewide that serve 25 or more people to test for PFAS, while they ought to be mandating testing for all 1,900+ community water systems, unless it can be firmly established that the presence of PFAS is highly unlikely.
Sadly, many of the nation’s top public health experts say drinking 1 ppt of PFAS daily may endanger health. Women who may be pregnant are especially vulnerable because these chemicals, in the tiniest amounts, we know, damage the developing fetus.
The Task Force also recommends that private drinking water should be tested for PFAS in areas where groundwater is likely to have been impacted by PFAS at unsafe levels and mentions several locations, while leaving military bases like Loring, Bangor, and Brunswick out of the discussion.
Task Force nothin’.
This is what Maine ought to do:
- Warn women who may be pregnant about ingesting PFAS
- Develop a stringent drinking water standard for PFAS. Just look to Vermont and New Hampshire. Copy and paste if you must.
- EPA Method 537.1 is capable of detecting 18 perfluorinated compounds. See what California is testing.
- Mandate testing of all municipal water systems for PFAS contamination.
- Test private wells, especially those near military bases and notorious industrial sites.
- Test surface waters, especially near military bases and notorious industrial sites.
- Test fish tissue, set standards and promulgate appropriate consumption advisories
- Test all seafood sold in the state
- Test landfills
- Test sanitary sewer systems and sludge
- Test farm fields where sludge is spread
- Test agricultural produce
- Ban incineration and the practice of shipping materials from the state to be incinerated
- Take legal action against PFAS manufacturers.
The Feds have failed us - It's up to Maine
We have learned the importance of testing during the coronavirus pandemic and the same lessons apply to PFAS. We've also learned that it's up to Maine to take care of Maine PFAS are associated with many serious health conditions, such as immune system disruption, which can cause asthma, allergies, auto-immune diseases such as diabetes and lupus, and other health problems—underlying conditions that make people more vulnerable to viral infections and potentially more likely to suffer severe consequences if infected by the coronavirus. PFAS are something like Agent Orange, PCBs, and Asbestos all rolled into one. They can be toxic at extremely low levels, they don’t break down, and they bioaccumulate. The substances have become ubiquitous in the environment. They are present in millions of Americans’ tap water at unsafe levels and they are found in astonishingly high levels in the seafood we eat. PFAS are found in nearly all of our bodies. American babies are born pre-polluted with PFAS, which can pass from mothers to fetuses through the umbilical cord. For the most part, laboratory animals exposed to high doses of one or more of these 6,000+ PFAS chemicals have shown changes in liver, thyroid, and pancreatic function, as well as some changes in hormone levels. Because animals and humans process these chemicals differently, more research will help scientists fully understand how PFAS affect human health. (ASTDR). People exposed to high levels may have increased risk of kidney cancer or testicular cancer. Unfortunately, the EPA and federal authorities have failed us. They have failed to meaningfully regulate or control PFAS manufacture and use, failed to issue standards to protect our drinking water, ground and surface water, our food, air, and soil. It’s up to Maine to protect Maine. Bangor Air National Guard Base is Highly Contaminated with PFAS
Tracking PFAS contamination is simple enough - and the contamination at Bangor illustrates this. Surface water at the base flows through a series of interconnected storm drains and drainage ditches that flow into the detention basin located adjacent to the current Fire Department building. (shown in the photo below) The detention basin is a low-lying, topographic depression that may contain water on a seasonal basis. It is a kind of cesspool of toxins and most military bases have one - or several of these.
Table 6 in the Amec Foster Wheeler report shows the groundwater at the detention basin is contaminated with a staggering 41,861 ppt of PFAS: PFOS 12,900 PFOA 2,420 PFBS 2,970 PFHpA 2,010 PFHxS 21,200 PFNA 361 Total PFAS 41,861 Groundwater flows southeast toward the Penobscot River. Surface waters near the base include the Birch Stream, Kenduskeag Stream, Penobscot River, and Hermon Bog. The Kenduskeag Stream lies to the northeast of the Base and receives runoff from the base. The Kenduskeag flows into the Penobscot River approximately 3.5 miles southeast of the Base.
Surface water flowing out of the base is severely contaminated with PFAS chemicals. Table 7 shows these results: PFOS 2,660 PFOA 1,330 PFBS 129 PFHpA 524 PFHxA 1,250 PFNA 271 Source for data, images above: FINAL FY16 PHASE 1 REGIONAL SITE INSPECTIONS FOR PERFLUORINATED COMPOUNDS - MAINE AIR NATIONAL GUARD 101ST AIR REFUELING WING BANGOR AIR NATIONAL GUARD BASE BANGOR, MAINE Contract #: W9133L-14-D-0002 Delivery Order 0006 Amec Foster Wheeler Project #: 2-9133-0006 March 9, 2018
The feds don't give a damn - It's up to Maine
The Navy and the EPA only feign concern with PFOS and PFOA and have orchestrated propaganda campaigns to make sure you forget about the other non- PFOS/PFOA types of PFAS. There are more than 5,000 different types of PFAS chemicals and they're all believed to be harmful to people and the planet. The health impacts of PFOS and PFOA are well known, but the other types of PFAS are likely to be just as lethal. Prenatal exposure to PFHxS, found at a whopping 21,200 ppt in Bangor's groundwater, is associated with occurrences of infectious diseases such as ottis media, pneumonia, RS virus and varicella in early life. It is believed to be dangerous, persistent, and bioaccumulative, yet no one is talking about it. Additionally, the water-solubility of PFBS (found at 129 ppt) is higher than PFOS, which makes it more mobile and problematic when contaminated surface water is used as a drinking water source. Building 542 at Bangor had an AFFF fire suppression system
and interior trench drains that drained to the sanitary sewer system. AFFF was discharged during testing and allowed to flow into the building trench drains. Excess foam that was not captured by the trench drains was pushed out of both ends of the building and allowed to dissipate in the drive north of the building. This general area drains to the Dry Detention Basin discussed above. Malfunctions of foam systems are routine across the military and Bangor is no exception. During a test event in June 2015, a valve malfunctioned and foam flowed into the off-Base sanitary sewer manholes. Vacuum trucks had been utilized to remove foam from the building following testing however, it was not known where they were emptied. Building 496 Former Main Hangar The former Bldg. 496 was built in 1955 and demolished in 2015. There have been regular and accidental discharges of AFFF into the “sanitary” sewer system. This is particularly problematic because poisonous sewer sludge and biosolids are still allowed to be spread on agricultural fields throughout the state Building 496 employed an AFFF Fire Suppression System that was discharged every two to three years for testing. Some of these sprinkler systems can cover a 2-acre hangar with 17 feet of the foam in 2 minutes. There were several instances when the foams emptied into sanitary storm drains off-base. The toxic foams have traveled off-base, to the north of Maineiac Avenue. Soil is contaminated off-Base to the southeast. Cutler Naval Computer, Telecomm Area Master Station Atlantic Attachment “NCTAMS”
Monitoring of on-base groundwater wells in 2016 showed PFOS/PFOA at 350 ppt. Firefighting foam is the suspected source.
Loring Air Force Base
and the Smallmouth Bass Loring AFB was an Air Force installation in northeastern Maine, near Limestone and Caribou in Aroostook County. The base closed in 1994. It was redeveloped as the Loring Commerce Centre. The region remains heavily contaminated by the Air Force. Follow the photos below to see how PFAS contaminates groundwater and surface water. Source - FINAL SITE INSPECTION REPORT FOR AQUEOUS FILM FORMING FOAM (AFFF) AREAS AT FORMER LORING AIR FORCE BASE, MAINE December, 2018. Building 8744 at the now shuttered Loring Air Force Base was fitted with an overhead foam suppression system. The toxic material was allow to drain into the ground. The red X shows where groundwater was found to contain 8,936 ppt of PFOS and PFOA.
The red X shows where massive releases of toxic foam occurred. Surface water runs from the base to Butterfield Brook (light blue). The brook drains into Durepo Pond. Smallmouth bass collected from the pond contained PFOS at 114,000 ppt. The elevated levels reflect the bio accumulative nature of PFOS.
Smallmouth bass - Public health scientists say we shouldn't consume more than 1 ppt. of the substances daily. Would you eat fish containing 114,000 ppt of the toxins?
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Maine PFAS Data
(2007 ‐ 2020) Maine Department of Environmental Protection, EGAD (Environmental Geographic Analysis Database), is a public information resource provided by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). It is a massive database with approximately 30,000 entries and can be used to determine the levels of PFAS contamination in drinking water, groundwater, soil, fish tissue, surface water, compost, leachate, etc. Many of the acronyms make the system a bit unfriendly to use. For instance, the Portland Naval Shipyard is referenced by its acronym PNSY. It is instructive to skim through the data base with an eye on the row labeled "concentration." Scroll down to examine the whopping totals of the military sites, although, you'll have to know what the abbreviations stand for:
There is a ton of work to be done quantifying the reckless behavior of the military in the Pine Tree State. Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Updates
Not much here since January, 2020.. Managing PFAS in Maine, Final Report from the Maine PFAS Task Force, January 2020 September 6, 2019 - Maine sludge and bioash spreading information March 22, 2019 - Memo re: Requirement to analyze for PFAS compounds. PFAS in Blue Mussels
East End Beach, Portland - PFOSA in all 4 spatial samples 2,820 ppt Harpswell - PFOSA in 3 of 4 spatial samples 950 ppt https://www.maine.gov/pfastaskforce/materials/20190925/BMower-presentation-PFAS-in-Maine.pdf Maine should test and regulate well water for PFAS contamination
There are 134,761 well records from the Maine Water Well Database, although there is limited data on the presence of PFAS in residential wells. Water systems in Maine are not required to test for and treat unsafe concentrations of PFOA and PFOS because there is no federal or state drinking water standard for any of the PFAS compounds. When PFOA and PFOS exceed 70 ppt or the sum of all measured PFAS exceed 400 ppt., Maine’s Department of Environmental Protection recommends treatment or replacement of drinking water supplies.
Naval Air Station Brunswick is an environmental catastrophe and the EPA doesn't give a damn
Naval Air Station Brunswick is an environmental catastrophe and may be considered one of the most profoundly contaminated places on earth. Back in 1987 the EPA - when it somewhat functioned as a regulatory agency - placed the site on the Superfund program’s National Priorities List. The base closed in May 2011.
People in Maine must come to the realization, as its neighbors in New Hampshire and Vermont have done, that the EPA and federal regulatory agencies have generally become non-actors and it is up to Maine to set stringent environmental standards and enforcement mechanisms to protect the environment and public health. The EPA’s Superfund website on NAS Brunswick reflects the agency’s dangerous and dismissive attitude regarding PFAS contamination in the Brunswick region - and in communities faced with severe contamination caused by the military across the country and around the world. Read what the EPA is saying: “Recent contaminant investigations have included sampling existing public and private drinking water supplies located on- and off-base for poly- & perfluorokyl (sic) substances (PFAS). These chemicals were used in the formation of aircraft firefighting foams that were historically used by the Navy when Brunswick was an active air station. Results of this sampling identified two PFAS, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) at levels below or slightly above laboratory detection levels for these two chemicals. All reported supply well concentrations were also below lifetime health advisories established by EPA for these two chemicals. The Navy is currently investigating areas on the base where these firefighting foams were historically stored and potentially discharged to the environment in order to confirm whether or not these chemicals are present in the environment.” Every detail here is true, but taken as a whole, the selection amounts to damnable propaganda. Consider what the DOD and the EPA don’t mention. Many varieties of PFAS contaminants were found in testing wells, although they’d prefer to limit the discussion to PFOS and PFOA, which were phased out of production fifteen years ago. It is likely true that some results came back “at levels below or slightly above laboratory detection levels for these two chemicals.” Of course, we know that levels for the two toxins were also found at 15,320 ppt, which is 219 times higher than the already inflated EPA “advisory” of 70 ppt. Keeping to its script nationwide, the EPA/Navy says it is investigating areas where firefighting foams were potentially discharged to the environment. Potentially discharged? Do they consider us all to be fools? The Navy says it wants to “confirm whether or not these chemicals are present in the environment.” Really? The Navy has known these chemicals poison people and the earth for two generations. This charade must stop! Known discharges of AFFF containing PFOS/PFOA
at Naval Air Station Brunswick NAS Brunswick - Maine PFAS Data (in parts per trillion, ppt)
Surface Water 8/3/17 PFHXS 1250 PFBS 129 PFOA 1330 PFOS 2660 PFOA + PFOS 3990 PFHPA 524 PFNA 271 PFHPA 127 Groundwater 8/8/17 PFHPA 2010 PFNA 361 PFHXS 21200 PFBS 2970 PFOA 2420 PFOS 12900 PFOA + PFOS 15320 The following notes reflect the carelessness of the Navy and its poor "stewardship" of the environment/
Hangar 4 - Based on information used to prepare the 2009 RCRA Tier II Report, Hangar 4 had two 2,000-gallon tanks of AFFF. These tanks are located in the northern portion of the Boiler House Building. The Boiler House Building is located adjacent to and on the northwest corner of Hangar 4. Approximately 2 to 3 accidental releases of AFFF from the fire suppression system likely occurred at Hangar 4. One significant release was triggered by motion of a computer screensaver. Hangar 5 Approximately 2 to 3 accidental releases of AFFF from the fire suppression system likely occurred here. Hangar 6 Approximately 2 to 3 accidental releases of AFFF from the fire suppression system likely occurred at Hangar 6. Building 252 Public Works Vehicle Maintenance Shop - During a repair effort, AFFF was observed to be leaking from the tank. It was estimated that 20-30 gallons of AFFF discharged to the sanitary sewer system. Building 292 Approximately 2-3 times a year, AFFF would accidentally be discharged during the daily water checks. In such instances, the truck would be flushed with approximately 3,000 gallons of water to clear out the hose line and dilute the foam discharge. Fire vehicle maintenance included fully dispensing the contents of the AFFF tanks for each fire vehicle two to three times a year. The dispensing process including mixing AFFF with water during the dispensing and continued until the contents of the tank were empty. This would use approximately 3,000 to 5,000 gallons of water to empty the contents of each of the AFFF tanks. Historic discharges of AFFF into the sanitary sewer system led to issues with the Brunswick Sewer District. The defoamer used by the Navy reduced the amount of foam that would enter into the wastewater treatment plant; (WWTP).
In a letter to the Navy regarding an accidental release of AFFF on October 25, 2002 from the fire suppression system at Hangar 5, there was concern that the defoamer breaks down the foam, but does not break down the chemical compound that produces the foam. It was also noted that although the amount of foam was reduced prior to entering the WWTP, the foam was re-activated by the agitation processes of the pumping station within the WWTP. The Brunswick Sewer District would also add a defoaming agent to their system if foam levels increased as part of the WWTP processes occurred. High concentrations of PFOS and PFOA have been observed within the Eastern Plume. Continued monitoring of groundwater will be conducted; however, groundwater seeps have been observed in the vicinity of Merriconeag Stream and site contaminants have been observed in pore water along Merriconeag Stream. Source: https://www.navfac.navy.mil/niris/MID_ATLANTIC/BRUNSWICK_NAS/N60087_003833.pdf Defense Fuel Supply Point Maine Casco Bay
Groundwater 10/16/2018 PFHXS 3.2 PFUNDA 0.78 PFHPA 1.4 PFOA 3 PFHXA 1.2 PFNA 130 ======================================== Portsmouth Naval Shipyard has contaminated groundwater and the Piscataqua River
Groundwater
PFOS 1300 PFOA 98 PFBS 52 PFNA 3.16 PFPEA 27.9 PFHxA 15.5 PFGxS 41.5 PFBA 11.6 PFHpA 14.1 PFOS-based fume suppressants were used at Building 79 and the plating sludges were disposed directly into the Jamaica Island Landfill. The spent baths from plating operations at Building 79 were released into floor drains which were discharged to the Piscataqua River. Firefighting chemicals as well as other consumer products that may have contained PFOA/PFOS were disposed at Jamaica Island Landfill shown on the map below. Building 337, shown above by the road leading to Clark's Island, contains an AFFF fire-suppression system with several documented releases of AFFF.
A release of AFFF was confined to secondary containment within the building. A second release in August of 2004 overwhelmed secondary containment. The August 2004 release resulted in a discharge of a small amount of AFFF solution to an outside bay, which then traveled through a storm drain to the Piscataqua River. A third release occurred on March 13, 2016 when a sprinkler head was damaged while moving an item at a storage rack. The AFFF foam overflowed a containment sump, reached a storm drain at a loading dock , and discharged to the river via an outfall. Bubbles from the AFFF solution were observed in the offshore area. A fourth release (date unknown) was reported during the September 2017 site visit. The release occurred at the main sprinkler drain, the foam traveled down the slope to the storm drain and foam was observed exiting the outfall. AFFF also has been released directly onto soil at the main sprinkler drain located on the exterior southeastern wall of the building. AFFF could also have been released directly onto soil during testing of the system at the inspector’s test port also located on the exterior northwestern wall of the building. AFFF |