The Senate’s NDAA approved last Thursday includes a new provision that would require federal environmental regulation of toxic PFAS chemicals while setting a DOD deadline to end their use in firefighting foam, Environment America announced in a news release Friday.
The provision addresses mounting test results discovering PFAS groundwater contamination on military installations and in adjacent nearby communities, as On Base has previously reported.
The provision, attached as an amendment to the mandatory defense policy legislation, was co-sponsored by Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and Ranking Member Thomas Carper (D-Del.).
The Senate easily adopted the bipartisan environmental proposal that would ultimately ban DOD’s use of PFAS-based firefighting foam after Sept. 30, 2022.
It would also require the Environmental Protection Agency to establish a national drinking water standard for the “forever chemicals” that health experts have determined pose serious risks to humans, according to The Hill.
The toxins have been a primary ingredient in firefighting foam used by military installations, and DOD has acknowledged a liability of at least $2 billion environmental cleanup costs.
If signed into law, the new regulatory provision would bar DOD from using PFAS-based firefighting foam by fiscal 2023.
The Democrat-led House broadly supports PFAS regulation and is unlikely to try to remove the provision in upcoming NDAA conference negotiations.
 Air Force photo by Airman Jacob Wrightsman