Elevated levels of PFOS found in Air Force Academy groundwater

The U.S. Air Force Academy announced Thursday that following a study of the installation’s groundwater, elevated levels of PFOS and PFOA were found in the groundwater.

PFOS, or Perfluorooctane sulfonate, and PFOA, or Perfluorooctanoic acid, are synthetic chemicals that were commonly used in commercial and military firefighting foams.

A studyof groundwater samples from several areas on the Academy campus were found to be above the EPA lifetime health advisory levels of 70 parts per trillion. The Academy didn’t give specific numbers for the PFOS levels in the groundwater.

The concern is that because those elevated levels were found in the groundwater, drinking water wells south of the installation “could be impacted.” The Air Force will be inspecting potential risks to water wells near the Woodmen Valley area.

The Academy isn’t the only Air Force base to be dealing with this issue: Peterson Air Force Base also investigated PFOS in the groundwater after the use of firefighting chemicals.