FAMILIES ON EDGE OVER WATER CONTAMINATION AT FORMER AIR BASE

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Associated Press

Mar 4, 10:38 AM EST

FAMILIES ON EDGE OVER WATER CONTAMINATION AT FORMER AIR BASE
BY MICHAEL CASEY
ASSOCIATED PRESS



PORTSMOUTH, N.H. (AP) -- The Pease International Tradeport, which features an airport, hundreds of businesses and several day care centers, has been called a textbook example of how to redevelop an air base.

But many who worked or had their children looked after there are coming to terms with a hidden risk: drinking water contaminated by military firefighting foam that contained perfluorinated compounds, or PFCs.

Exposure to the chemicals, found in scores of everyday products like nonstick cookware and stain-resistant carpet and probably occurring at low levels in most people, have been linked in animal studies to low birth weight, accelerated puberty, cancer and thyroid problems, among other maladies, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

But it's far from clear how much those problems also manifest in humans. And the uncertainty isn't sitting well with the Pease parents whose children were found to have elevated levels of PFCs in their blood. Many, like Andrea Amico, Alayna Davis and Michelle Dalton, who formed the advocacy group Testing for Pease in 2015, said they have struggled to find doctors who can interpret the test results.

Read more: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_DAY_CARE_CONTAMINATED_WATER?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2017-03-04-10-38-02

[keithbvadu2]

1. Camp Lejeune USMC had a similar problem

Camp Lejeune USMC had a similar problem

I know of one civilian who has been treated for cancer by the V.A. because she had lived on base as a child.

https://clnr.hqi.usmc.mil/clwater/home.aspx?utm_source=Bing&utm_medium=Search&utm_campaign=2016_CLDHW&utm_term=camp%20lejeune&utm_content=Camp%20Lejeune

[dixiegrrrrl]

3. Old Navy base by Half Moon bay in Calif. had same problem.

Gov't sold it to a developer, over objections of locals, but it turned out to be contaminated beyond developer's wallet to fix, so just sat there.
same thing with military base on Angel island, which is halfway between SF/Oakland, just off the bridge.

Hope Trump does not last long enough to rescind all the regs that keep people from being poisoned from old bases.
Cal. will most certainly pass laws if it has not already.

[bunnies]

2. I used to work there back when it was a ghost town.

Never drank the water though, you could smell it from a foot away.

[joet67]

4. My uncle was career air force. Their family stayed in base housing the entire time.

He has health problems, though not severe. My aunt, on the other hand, has had numerous problems, and specifically an unusual cancer the affected her blood vessels, which I have never heard of. She underwent a surgery 10 years ago to have a large section of vessels in her chest replaced with artificial ones. Just this year, the cancer returned, and she is undergoing additional treatment as we speak.

My cousin (their daughter), has numerous health problems as well. At least two different, serious diseases that I know of, and is constantly being monitored.

I am not implying it was due to any kind of chemical contamination, but I also sure wouldn't rule anything out. The military has a long history of not cleaning up after themselves.