“OSCODA, MI — Earlier this week a group of federal lawmakers from Michigan sent a letter to the U.S. Air Force imploring them to clean up the contamination at Wurtsmith Air Force base.
The letter concerning per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) seeping into groundwater from the former air force base in Oscoda was issued Wednesday by Michigan U.S. Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters, both Democrats, and U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Flint Twp…
The group of lawmakers said the Department of Defense should utilize some of the $310 million in federal funds earmarked this year for cleaning up contaminated former military bases.
As it stands, the Department of Defense is in violation of Michigan water quality standards, the letter states.
‘The DOD must comply with Michigan’s water quality standards and cleanup criteria, and must stop the movement of contamination from the former base into groundwater and surface waters near Wurtsmith,’ the letter reads.
The lawmakers recommend the Department of Defense install more granulated activated carbon filter systems to stymie PFAS from spreading through the groundwater in huge plumes.
The filters, which the Department of Defense has already installed in two locations, are part of a treatment system that withdraws contaminated water, treats it to remove the PFAS and then reinjects the treated water back into aquifers or surface water.
The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality expects clean-up efforts at Wurtsmith will cost $38 million this year alone, according to the letter.”
Read the full article by Michael Kransz