Futenma Begins Disposing of PFAS-Polluted Water in Sewage System Disposal is “Safe and Clean”, Says U.S. Military
MCAS Futenma
August 26, 2021 Ryukyu Shimpo
On the morning of August 26, the U.S. Marines in Okinawa announced that they have begun disposing of polluted water containing organofluorine compounds (PFAS) in the public sewage system after the water has been treated. They had been storing the water at MCAS Futenma in Ginowan. The marines say that after treatment, the PFOS and PFOA content of the water is less than the benchmark for drinking water in Japan (50 nanograms per liter).
According to the announcement, the U.S. Marines will remove PFAS from the water using a treatment device and then drain the treated water into the sewage system. The treated water contains 2.7 nanograms of PFOS and PFOA per one liter of water, and is “twenty times cleaner than Japan’s benchmark.” They say that the PFAS removed from the water will be transported out of Okinawa and incinerated at a facility approved by the Japanese government.
At the press release on August 26, the spokesperson for the marines said, “we will create a safer and cleaner environment for everyone.”
PFOS and PFOA are designated as Class I Specified Chemical Substances under the Chemical Substances Control Law, so new manufacture, import, or use of PFOS and PFOA in Japan is forbidden. The substances do not exist in nature, are difficult to break down, and remain in the environment for a long time. Even if treating the water reduces the concentration of PFOS and PFOA per liter, if large volumes of the treated water are disposed of, ultimately a large quantity of PFOS and PFOA will build up in the environment.
The Ginowan City Council has unanimously passed a resolution and a document calling for an end to the disposal of polluted water containing PFOS and the like using the public sewage system or the rivers.
(English translation by T&CT and Ellen Huntley)
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