Read the full article by Carol Thompson (The Detroit News).
“Airports across Michigan were awarded state grants to help cover the costs of responding to PFAS, a class of man-made pollutants common in fire suppression foam used at airports, the state’s environmental department announced Friday.
Airport officials can use the money to test for PFAS, monitor the pollution, control the pollution, clean groundwater and stormwater and replace or clean equipment, according to a press release from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy.
State lawmakers in 2022 set aside more than $11.6 million for PFAS response grants to local units of government, including municipal and independent airport authorities. They set aside another $2 million in 2023 to support purchasing PFAS-free firefighting equipment or for cleaning out existing equipment.
Twenty-one airports applied for the PFAS cleanup funding that EGLE announced Friday. Nineteen airports received awards that totaled $9 million, the department said. The awards ranged from $150,000 to $1 million. This is the final round of grant funding; $9.6 million were awarded from 2020-2022.” …