Courtney Bourgoin, Courtney.Bourgoin@sierraclub.org
Oscoda, MI-- Today, the Air Force’s Wurtsmith Restoration Advisory Board met in Oscoda to discuss environmental remediation plans at Wurtsmith Air Force Base-- a site highly contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) due to the agency’s use of PFAS-based fire fighting foams. Community leaders called from the U.S. Air Force to clean up the PFAS contamination from the former Wurtsmith Air Force. PFAS is linked to ulcerative colitis, thyroid disease, and certain cancers. For almost a decade, the Department of Defense has delayed any clean up action despite citizen demands for remediation.
In response to the event, Michigan residents and local Sierra Club staff released the following statements:
“Michigan officials discovered Oscoda PFAS contamination nearly ten years ago, making it the first of nearly 200-- and counting-- chemically-contaminated sites in Michigan,” said Tony Spaniola, Oscoda homeowner and attorney. “It is now more than nine years into their process in Oscoda, and the Air Force has yet to provide our community with a clean-up plan or signal any kind or urgency. People are suffering because of their inaction.”
“It’s time for the Air Force to take responsibility for the harm it has done in Oscoda,” said Christy McGillivray, Great Lakes State Organizer with the Sierra Club. "Instead of pressuring the Trump administration to weaken safeguards on PFAS, the Department of Defense should be protecting American lives-- especially service members and families harmed by chemical contamination for decades. Their presence in Oscoda today is long overdue, and we expect to hear plans.”
“We support amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act which would require the Air Force to take responsibility for the harm it has done to our military families and surrounding communities,” said Spaniola.
MORE:
At the same time that Michiganders await urgently-needed cleanup at the Wurtsmith Base, Congress is weighing several important provisions that would speed clean up and increase military accountability in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The House and Senate bills include more than a dozen amendments to address the PFAS crisis which would require the Air Force to provide clean water to farms and dairies, and require the government to review the Department of Defense in their lad to respond to contamination.
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.