[CPEO-MEF] PFCs concerns at former Wurtsmith Air Force Base, Michigan

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

New Michigan water worry emerges near former air base

by Keith Matheny
Detroit Free Press
March 10, 2016

Harmful chemicals spilled from the now-decommissioned Wurtsmith Air Force Base are spreading into groundwater, affecting residential wells and potentially public health in the surrounding Oscoda community, state health officials said.

The Michigan departments of Health and Human Services and Environmental Quality, along with the local health department and U.S. Air Force, will hold a community meeting March 23 in Oscoda to discuss what they know - and don't yet know - with concerned residents.

The contaminants of concern are perfluorinated chemicals, or PFCs. They were used in firefighting foams as part of base firefighter training and fire suppression beginning in 1970. Elevated PFCs have been found both on the former air base and in groundwater beyond its boundaries. The state health department in 2012 issued a "do not eat" advisory for non-migratory fish caught from ponds east of Wurtsmith, and in a 7-mile stretch of the nearby Au Sable River, from Foote Dam downstream.

…

For the entire article, see
http://www.freep.com/story/news/local/michigan/2016/03/09/new-michigan-water-worry-emerges-near-former-air-base/81539010/

--

Lenny Siegel
Executive Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
a project of the Pacific Studies Center
278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
<lsiegel@cpeo.org>
http://www.cpeo.org

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