Cannon appeals NMED fine over PFAS spill
Cannon Air Force Base outside of Clovis is seeking a hearing to appeal a fine issued in January from New Mexico environmental officials for a 4,000-gallon PFAS spill last August.
When the New Mexico Environment Department issued the nearly $68,000 fine, it said the military had violated pollution limits and failed to tell authorities about a spill into surrounding groundwater from a damaged retention pond last year. The state agency further alleged the U.S. Air Force violations included waiting nearly 16 days to notify state officials, instead of reporting the spill within 24 hours of discovery.
New Mexico environment officials say Cannon Air Force Base owes $67,000 for August PFAS spill
Per- and poly-fluorinated alkyl substances — called PFAS — are a class of thousands of manmade chemicals. The chemicals are used in everyday items like cookware or in waterproofing, but also are a component of certain firefighting foams. Health studies have linked PFAS to decreased fertility, fetal development issues, immune system damage, lower vaccine effectiveness and increased cancer risks.
Officials from Cannon wrote a letter and filed an official response denying the allegations and seeking an administrative hearing on Feb. 6, just before the 30-day deadline to seek an appeal.
'We have continued to provide information to NMED as it becomes relevant despite the ongoing litigation over these issues in the federal court system,' wrote Colonel Robert L. Johnston in a letter with the appeal. 'We respectfully disagree with these cited violations.'
The most recent spill is separate from the 4-mile long PFAS plume from firefighting foams that seeped into the groundwater over the decades of use on base. That plume resulted in the euthanization of more than 3,500 dairy cows after they were found to be contaminated with PFAS. NMED started blood testing people in Clovis last year since drinking water wells have also been contaminated.
The New Mexico Environment Department is currently involved in two separate lawsuits over the U.S. military's release of PFAS on at least two bases in New Mexico. New Mexico is part of multidistrict litigation before a federal judge in South Carolina, joining tens of thousands of plaintiffs seeking damages from the federal government's use of PFAS laden firefighting foams on bases across the country.
The second, in federal district court of New Mexico, the U.S. Department of Defense sued the NMED, challenging the state's authority to mandate the cleanup of PFAS on the base.
Animals and plants outside of a different spill in Lake Holloman outside of Alamogordo were found to have the highest level of PFAS so far recorded in the world. State lawmakers are currently considering two bills to address cleanup and PFAS.
House Bill 212, which aims to phase out products with intentionally added PFAS, passed its first committee on a 6-4 party line vote and now heads to House Judiciary.
House Bill 140 shores up hazardous waste powers held by the state and passed both committees in the House, and now heads to the floor for a full House vote. If approved, the bill would still need to pass the committee process and a full Senate vote to become law.
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