PFAS accident ‘disaster’ at former Maine naval base raises concerns as military conducts nationwide cleanup

A privately leased Navy hangar in Maine and its surrounding area continues to clean up 51,450 gallons of firefighting foam and water contaminated with PFAS, the second accident in two months involving supplies at active and former military bases.

On August 19, a fire suppression system in a hangar at the former Brunswick Naval Air Station accidentally activated, releasing 1,450 gallons (6,400 liters) of aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) and 50,000 gallons (126,000 liters) of water into the building as well as nearby storm drains, sewer systems, and drainage basins on the site of what is now Brunswick Executive Airport.

According to the Washington DC-based Environmental Working Group, the Navy had planned to remove the foam, which contains PFAS chemicals – per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances – in October.

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Although the Navy is not responsible for the oil spill, it is in contact with the Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority, which leases parts of the former base and is responsible for cleaning up the damage, according to David Bennett, spokesman for the Base Realignment and Closure Project Management Office.

“The Navy is taking actions nationwide to remove AFFF from mobile systems, hangars or other structures on Navy-owned properties, including properties leased to third parties,” Bennett said in a statement to Military.com on Sept. 9.

PFAS chemicals are commonly referred to as “forever chemicals” because they do not break down in the environment and can accumulate in the human body. They have been linked to a range of health problems, including testicular and kidney cancer, low birth weight and other medical problems.

Earlier this year, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) set new limits on the permissible amounts of certain types of PFAS in drinking water after extensive research showed that the substances are potentially harmful in any amount.

The Brunswick spill followed a July spill that released more than 7,000 gallons of PFAS-contaminated water at Cannon Air Force Base in New Mexico. The water, which contained AFFF, was removed from emergency vehicles as part of the Air Force's efforts to remove PFAS-based foams from its systems, according to an Aug. 30 news release from base authorities.

After the Brunswick spill, Jared Hayes, senior policy analyst at the Environmental Working Group, told Military.com that the threat of an oil spill “looms over communities across the United States,” particularly those near active and former Department of Defense bases.

“Some of the largest oil spills in the country in the past have come from military installations because they have such a concentrated and large stock of [AFFF],” Hayes said in an interview on August 29.

The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 requires the Department of Defense to stop using AFFF for training and operations after October 1, 2024, except on ocean-going vessels where uncontrolled fires pose a significant threat to equipment and personnel.

Due to the deadline, the services began removing their supplies from more than 1,500 facilities and 6,000 portable devices and vehicles.

However, the Defense Department said in July that a one-year waiver would be required to extend the deadline because, while it has made “significant progress” in complying with the law, it needs time to remove AFFF from all facilities and time to install systems that use an alternative foam.

“The Department of Defense is committed to eliminating the use of AFFF in firefighting operations at all of its facilities,” officials said in a July 1 press conference.

Hayes said his organization expects the Defense Department to exercise a second statutory exemption and extend the deportation process until October 2026.

“The Department of Defense must urgently step up its efforts to date and make the removal of these legacy firefighting foams from active systems a much higher priority, contain them and ensure there is no risk of contamination like in Brunswick,” Hayes said.

The Brunswick City Council passed a resolution on Sept. 3 calling for a comprehensive investigation into the leak and decommissioning of PFAS-based foam suppression systems in other hangars at the plant.

“This event is a public health and environmental disaster unlike anything our community has ever experienced,” Brunswick City Council President Abby King wrote in an accompanying letter to Maine Governor Janet Mills. “My community is desperately seeking answers on how to mitigate the damage of this event, protect their health and prevent future incidents.”

As of March 31, the Department of Defense has investigated 710 of 717 active and former facilities for possible releases of PFAS chemicals and resulting contamination. It has identified 578 sites that require further investigation and has initiated those additional investigations at 350 sites, the department said.

The Brunswick Naval Air Station was officially closed in 2011.

Related: In response to new EPA standards, the U.S. Department of Defense is expanding its investigation and removal of “forever chemicals”

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