Letter to Lieutenant General L Scott Rice - Suffolk Ground Water Contamination

Letter

Dear Lieutenant General L. Scott Rice:

Following the recent discovery of Perfluorooctane Sulfonate (PFOS) contamination in groundwater near Gabreski Airport, in Suffolk County, we write to urge the Air National Guard (ANG) to quickly assist the community by providing the necessary funding to‎ begin testing their water for PFOS contamination. We further urge the ANG to assist Suffolk County in determining the exact source and scope of this PFOS contamination, and to help them devise and fund a remediation plan as soon as possible.

It has come to our attention that the PFOS contamination was likely caused by firefighting foam that was used by the Air National Guard (ANG) at the Suffolk County Air base. If so, we urge the ANG to immediately provide all of the necessary resources to ensure that residents have access to clean bottled drinking water while also remediating the pollution as quickly as possible.

Furthermore, In light of the recent findings of a New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) investigation and the presence of PFOS in three out of four groundwater monitoring wells installed by the county health department, we are requesting that ANG immediately use their experience from prior similar situations in places such as Newburgh NY, and their resources to expeditiously help the community test all relevant water within the community and water systems to help identify the extent of the contamination and determine its source.

Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) is a man-made chemical that was commonly used in a wide variety of commercial and consumer products. PFOS is extremely persistent in the environment and resistant to natural forms of environmental degradation. The toxicity and bioaccumulation potential of PFOS can pose a risk to vulnerable populations, which makes its presence in groundwater near Gabreski Airport in Westhampton Beach a concern. This high level of contamination must be remediated as soon as possible in order to ensure the health and safety of the community. Therefore, we request that you immediately provide technical and financial support to help the community investigate the full scope of the problem and assist with subsequent remediation as quickly as possible.

It is imperative that this uncertainty be quickly addressed by quickly identifying the scope of the problem and speedily implementing an effective remediation plan. Again, we thank you for your work in protecting our nation's health and the quality of our drinking water. Thank you for your attention to this important request.

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