In Letter, Murray Voices Concern over DoD Delaying PFAS Cleanup at Hundreds of Military Bases Including Across WA State, Threatening Drinking Water Safety for Servicemembers[...]

Murray: "Eliminating toxic PFAS contamination at our military bases and ensuring military families have safe drinking water must be a top priority for the Department-any attempt to delay or slow-walk this important cleanup work is unacceptable."

***LETTER HERE***

Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, sent a letter to Assistant Secretary of Defense Dale R. Marks expressing her concern over recent reports that the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) is delaying its planned investigations and remediation efforts for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), also known as "forever chemicals."

In her letter, Murray called on DoD to resume its previously planned efforts to address toxic PFAS at military installations across the country, including in Washington state. Murray also requested a briefing with an explanation for the recent delays, an overview of DoD's actions to address PFAS contamination, and answers to a detailed list of questions regarding the recent delays and cleanup efforts.

"PFAS contamination has been a serious issue at hundreds of military installations and communities nationwide, including Naval Air Station (NAS) Whidbey Island, Naval Base Kitsap, Joint Base Lewis McChord, Yakima Training Center, and Fairchild Air Force Base (AFB) in my home state of Washington. Any delay in remediation efforts is a setback to the progress the Department has made to provide clean drinking water for servicemembers, their families, and the surrounding communities," Senator Murray wrote in her letter Thursday to Assistant Secretary of Defense Dale Marks.

The National Institutes of Health has linked exposure to PFAS to deadly cancers, impacts to the liver and heart, and immune and developmental damage to infants and children. PFAS contamination has been a serious issue at over seven hundred military installations and communities nationwide, including at a number of installations in Washington state. In 2024, the Biden-Harris Administration announced the first-ever national, legally enforceable drinking water standard to protect communities from exposure to harmful PFAS. To help implement the rule, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced nearly $1 billion-including $17.321 million for Washington state-in newly-available funding through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to help states implement PFAS testing and treatment at public water systems. Despite the myriad of funding sources available for DoD to continue PFAS cleanup, the New York Times reported last month that the Department of Defense has quietly issued directives delaying its cleanup of PFAS at nearly 140 military installations across the country, including at Fairchild Air Force Base near Spokane and Naval Air Station Whidbey Island.

Murray continued in her letter, "This administration's delay is already hurting many of the installations in my home state of Washington, including at Fairchild Air Force Base and Naval Air Station Whidbey Island. For example, in the initial investigation and planning for PFAS cleanup at Fairchild Air Force Base, it was determined that the forever chemical cleanup would be completed by 2026. That date has since been pushed to June 2032 for Fairchild and March 2034 for Whidbey, without public announcement or consultation with community leaders. The Spokane and Whidbey Island communities have long partnered with their respective installations in a spirit of mutual support; however, this delay means that at least 15 years will pass between the initial discovery of contamination in 2017 at both Fairchild AFB and NAS Whidbey Island and the beginning of cleanup. The lack of communication is eroding trust between the communities and the military installations they have proudly supported for more than 80 years."

"Eliminating toxic PFAS contamination at our military bases and ensuring military families have safe drinking water must be a top priority for the Department-any attempt to delay or slow-walk this important cleanup work is unacceptable," Senator Murray concluded.

Senator Murray has been dogged in pushing for oversight and resources to address PFAS contamination over many years and, as the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, she has secured major investments in reducing PFAS pollution through annual appropriations bills.

Last Congress, when Senator Murray chaired the Appropriations Committee, she secured $473.6 million for PFAS and aqueous film forming foam (AFFF) clean up and remediation in the Fiscal Year 2024 defense funding bill, and an additional $50 million above the President's budget request for PFAS-related cleanup activities at former military installations in the Fiscal Year 2024 Military Construction funding bill-both bills were signed into law in March 2024. In a previous letter sent in October 2024, Murray urged DoD to use the funding she helped secure to meet new EPA standards on PFAS contamination and redouble their efforts to address PFAS at military bases.

This year, Senator Murray is fighting to secure additional resources for PFAS cleanup. In the draft Senate defense funding bill for Fiscal Year 2026, Senator Murray secured $407.8 million for PFAS and AFFF clean up. In the Senate Military Construction funding bill for Fiscal Year 2026-which was signed into law Wednesday night-Senator Murray secured an additional $50 million above the President's budget request for PFAS remediation and cleanup.

Over the years, Murray has called on the EPA to deliver on its PFAS Action Plan, pressed DoD and EPA for answers on reports of efforts to weaken contamination standards and pushed for additional federal resources to address water contamination near military bases. Senator Murray has also fought to include firefighters in studies on the effects on workers exposed to PFAS on the job, and demanded that the Navy take every step necessary to address PFAS contamination in Kitsap County, among much else.

The full letter is available HERE and below:

Dear Assistant Secretary Marks:

I am writing today to voice my concern over recent reports that the Department will be delaying its planned investigations and remediation efforts for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). PFAS contamination has been a serious issue at hundreds of military installations and communities nationwide, including Naval Air Station (NAS) Whidbey Island, Naval Base Kitsap, Joint Base Lewis McChord, Yakima Training Center, and Fairchild Air Force Base (AFB) in my home state of Washington. Any delay in remediation efforts is a setback to the progress the Department has made to provide clean drinking water for servicemembers, their families, and the surrounding communities.

Since 2017, Congress has appropriated nearly $2.5 billion to address the crisis created by the use of aqueous film-forming foam in and around military communities and enacted several measures to support remediation efforts. Annual appropriations bills have included PFAS remediation funding, and every National Defense Authorization Act has granted new authorities to help the Department meet its responsibility to clean up more than 500 identified locations where PFAS chemicals have been detected. Given the urgency of addressing toxic PFAS contamination and the funding Congress has provided for this work, I am alarmed by the Department's abrupt decision to delay cleanup efforts. Americans deserve to know why the Department is suddenly delaying efforts to provide clean drinking water for military families and the communities that support them.

This administration's delay is already hurting many of the installations in my home state of Washington, including at Fairchild Air Force Base and Naval Air Station Whidbey Island. For example, in the initial investigation and planning for PFAS cleanup at Fairchild Air Force Base, it was determined that the forever chemical cleanup would be completed by 2026. That date has since been pushed to June 2032 for Fairchild and March 2034 for Whidbey, without public announcement or consultation with community leaders. The Spokane and Whidbey Island communities have long partnered with their respective installations in a spirit of mutual support; however, this delay means that at least 15 years will pass between the initial discovery of contamination in 2017 at both Fairchild AFB and NAS Whidbey Island and the beginning of cleanup. The lack of communication is eroding trust between the communities and the military installations they have proudly supported for more than 80 years.

In order to provide greater clarity for residents affected by these delays, I request a briefing no later than December 15with an explanation for the recent delays and an overview of the Department's current actions to address PFAS contamination. Additionally, please provide written responses to the following questions:

1. Why did the Department extend the timelines in the investigation of PFAS contamination at Fairchild AFB and Whidbey NAS?
   1. How was it determined which bases would be impacted by the delay?
   2. How is the Department working in the short-term and the long-term to support the communities impacted by the delays in PFAS clean up?
2. Does the Department plan to continue funding the cleanup of toxic sites?
   1. How has the Department spent the $2.5 billion dedicated to PFAS contamination remediation over the last eight years?
   2. Has any of the funding been redirected to other priorities unrelated to PFAS?
3. Will the Department still ban the purchase and use of PFAS firefighting foam by September 30, 2026?
   1. What is the Department doing to research less harmful chemicals that can be used to put out fires on the airfield in lieu of PFAS?
4. How were the changes in timelines associated with PFAS investigations communicated to the affected military installations?
   1. Who was notified of the timeline changes?
   2. When do you plan to reach out to the community leaders near affected installations?
   3. Why was there no public announcement prior to the adjustment of the timelines?

Eliminating toxic PFAS contamination at our military bases and ensuring military families have safe drinking water must be a top priority for the Department-any attempt to delay or slow-walk this important cleanup work is unacceptable. Thank you for your attention to this matter, and I look forward to your response.

Sincerely,

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