WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Senator Gary Peters (D-MI), Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, has sent a letter to Department of Defense (DoD) Acting Inspector General Stebbins calling for an investigation into significant delays to DoD’s cleanup efforts of per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) at military installations nationwide. The request follows Peters’ October 20th letter to DoD Secretary Pete Hegseth raising concerns about the delays affecting six military sites in Michigan. The delays include Selfridge Air National Guard Base (delayed six years until 2033), Wurtsmith Air Force Base (delayed two years to 2027), K.I. Sawyer Air Force Base (delayed seven years to 2033), Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center (delayed six years to 2033), Kellogg Air National Guard Base (delayed six years to 2031), and Kincheloe Air Force Base (delayed four years to 2031).
“In September, reporting uncovered that DOD delayed PFAS cleanups at nearly 140 military instillations across the country, stalling progress at some sites for up to a decade,” wrote Peters. “DOD released the revised cleanup schedule in September without a public announcement explaining these changes.”
“Every American deserves access to clean, safe drinking water and should be able to rely on their government to promptly address imminent public health threats,” continued Peters. Exposure to PFAS is associated with a range of harmful health effects, from increased risk of certain cancers to elevated cholesterol and blood pressure.”
The senator’s letter requests that the Inspector General review the factors DoD considered in delaying cleanup timelines, including staffing and resource constraints, and assess whether DoD evaluated the impacts on local communities. The letter also asks whether DoD took any steps to communicate with affected communities prior to releasing the revised schedules.
Peters has led and championed many efforts to address toxic PFAS chemicals. In September 2018, Peters helped convene the first-ever hearing on PFAS contamination in the Senate, which assessed the federal government’s response to PFAS contamination and remediation efforts. He then convened a field summit in Grand Rapids in November 2018 to shine a light on how local, state and federal governments are coordinating responses to address PFAS contamination. Peters also convened a hearing in 2021 as Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee to examine how servicemembers, their families, and communities across the country have been harmed by exposure to toxic PFAS substances connected to military sites. He also previously supported and led provisions in the national defense bill to prohibit DoD from purchasing or using firefighting foams containing PFAS chemicals for military training exercises, and enhanced state cooperation for the DoD to clean-up PFAS contamination stemming from military-related activities.
Peters introduced and advanced bipartisan legislation to reduce the spread of PFAS chemicals at commercial airports. The Preventing PFAS Runoff at Airports Act, which was signed into law in 2022, is working to deploy more existing Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) funding for commercial airports to purchase devices to test their firefighting equipment without discharging toxic PFAS chemicals. In 2022, Peters’ bill to help protect firefighters and emergency responders from PFAS exposure in the line of duty was also signed into law.
Full text of the letter is available here.